Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-06-15
Will Be Driven to Tap Silver
Lake at Once
WORK WILL TAKE A YEAR
Water and Quicksand Forced an
Abandonment of the Route Pre-
viously Decided Upon.

That Silver lake, which is situated Il
miles west of Anaconda, will surely be
tapped is no longer in doubt. The work
of driving a tunnel a mile long. more or
less, into the lake was commenced early
last fall and was abandoned several times
on account of water and quicksand. IN
fortunately the route of the tunnel was
surveyed up the gulch against the advice
Of the most practical miners, who claimed
at the time it was surveyed that water
and quicksand would prevent the tunnel.
being completed. What they sad has
come true. Operations along the line OF
the tunnel were commenced in several
shafts. AS depth to the tunnel level was
gained these two obstacles We're encoun-
tered to such a great extent that 1t would
take five years, and probably more, to DO
the work, if it could be done at all, be-
sides the vast amount OF money SUCH an
operation would entail. The best of
pumping machinery was placed on the
ground, but was of no aval The men
were at work under the supervision of
John r. Toole, who was counted a thor
ough man at such work. All his endeaV-
ors We're in vain. and he had every facil-
ity at his command. Several times the
work was abandoned and resuIned again.
The last time work was stopped it seemed
to be forever. and that was true about
the gulch route. Yesterday John O'Neill
and a man named Griffin, and another
whose name canno be learned, came
over from Butte and will begin at once
to drive a tunnel under the hill. as spoken
Of in the Inter Mountain several months
ago. Mr.. O'Neill will be the superintend-
ent Of construction, and Mr.. Griffin and
the other man will be the fcremen over
a large number of miners who will be put
to work at once. The new tunnel will
start neal the first one and viii run
under the hill, or far enough away from
the gulch to avoid any more water and
Quicksand. 1t is claimed the tunnel can
be completed inside of a year, and then
the world will know more ahout Silve1
lake and the effects of tapping its lower
depths for the purpose of securing water.
With all this work going on at Silver lake
this summer. coupled with the resun1p-
ton of the Gold Coin mine and mill, Gable
mine and mill, development work in the
Moose Lake mining district and other
of that section. it would not
be surprising to see the B., a. & 2. rail
way extended as far as Silver lake before
the end of the year. SO much work be-
ing done UP there means a great deal
for Anaconda. and the Inter Mountain.
the great Anaconda news-giver. was the
first to convey the news. East of Ana
cOnda, IN TACT, IN the city limits. Is What
was once the Washoe lumber plant. now
presumed to be a part of the Amalgam-
ated Copper company. a day or two
ago the machinery used in the NJ. J. Con-
nell company planning mill at Butte was
shipped here and is now at the Washoe
lumber yards, waiting to be unloaded.
The buildings at the Washoe yards We're
put up to accommodate a frst-class plan
ing mill n the machinery was shipped
from Butte for that DIJrDOEp. So MANY
things being started up around Anaconda
at this time of the year, and under pres
ent conditions. it looks as though there
will be a celebration on the Fourth of
July in the old W if not on a broad
scale, just an impromptu affair.