Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1899-03-04
Buffalo Mining District.


readily traceable by its outcrop, as well
as surface exposure, through the entire
length of these two claims.
The formation of the country rock is
gneiss, a species of granite, one of the
Oldest and best-known formations for
mineral bearing veins. The vein is a
fissure running i'll northerly and south
erly course, having a width of from 20 to
40 feet. The vein filling consists of
hard white brittle quartz, having a
banded or ribboned structure. The
quartz carries off the base metals about
| ~ per cent of pyrites of iron, per cent
of lead, 4 per cent antimony, q per
cent manganese and a trace of copper,
in all about 3 per cent of the baser
metals, which are evenly disseminated
through the mineralized strata of the
ledge. OF the precious metals the values
are principally gold, having about
ounce gold to ounce silver.
Samples taken from the surface crop
pings and the open cuts over the entire
length and width of the ore body give
the following results: The groupings,
SI2 in gold and ounce in silver, and of
the cuts as follows The 80 feet across
the Big Buffalo averages / ounce gold,
~ ounces silver, about $2I.5o per ton.
Cut No. 2, 10 feet in depth on the Merri
mac, averages As of an ounce gold aud
ounce silver, in values about 81 for the
entire 40 feet in width.
1t is reasonable to presume that in this
ore body, 800 feet in length by IS feet i'll
width should the vein hold to the depth
of 100 feet of the same character of ore,
there will be in sight $1,000 tons, having
a gross value of 81 100000
This ore can be mined and mlled at
cost not to exceed 81 per ton, and with
railroad facility for one-half the cost,
showing profit of at least $1,000 900
above the 200 foot level in this one ore
body. Other exposures, both north and
south from this ore body, show the ledge
to be from 10 to 20 feet i'll width, having
values fully as good as those shown in
the large ore body.
The general character of the ore of the
district is identical with that of the
Alaska Treadwell mine or the ores from
the mother lode of California The ordi-
nary California or Colorado gold mill
will save from so to 90 per cent of the
values OH the plates, and the remainder
of the values, save and except a loss of
about s per cent, can be saved in the
form of concentrates that will run from
500 to $500 per ton, The concentrates
can be treated with the ordinary chlorin-
alton, or cyanide process; with railroad
facility the concentrates can be shipped
to smelters and sold, charging practically
no treatment after delivery at the sinelter,
paying $40 per ounce for the gold con-
tents and 95 per cent of the silver.
| During the past 10 years have visited
nearly all the mining camps of prominence
west of the Rockies, as well as those
throughout Montana and Dakota, and
nav hNf1i RSShI NAiSiNf~ Il
showing equaling the showing made on
the Big Buffalo and Merrimac claims.
There is no question in my mind but
what further exploration and develop
ment will prove these claims great gold
producers, equaling, if not surprising
any discoveries made since the palmy
days of the ComstocI lode in Nevada.
Nearly all mining engineers, who
have visited this district, are of the same
opinion that this is one of the greatest
discoveries of the age. The streams head
ing at this Buffalo Hump district and
flowing into the Salmon and Clearwater
rivers were placer mined i'll the early
Dos, and one express company-Wells,
Farga & Co.--alone handled over S4o,-
ooo,ooo that was produced out of the
placer mines within a radius of 30 miles
from this new colorado.
This district has been visited by a
number of competent and able mining
engineers, who are all of the same
opinion that this placer gold came from
lodges traversing the Buffalo Hump
region. There are several parallel veins
on other claims which have extraordinary
showings; one ledge i'll particular, about
one mile westerly, known as the Monte
Cristo or st. Paul vein, is readily
traceable by its outcrop through II
claims, over two miles in LENGTH show
ing on the different claims ledge vary
ing from 10 to 20 feet in width of ore
that will pay profit to mine and mill,
on some of the claims, the Monte Cristo,
the Gem City, the St. Paul, the San
Francisco, all have big showings of
high-grade ore, varying i'll values from
$40 per ton up as high as $1,000. On an
other parallel vein, about four miles dis
tant from the Big Buffalo, in a southerlv
course, lies the Jumbo claim Develop
ment thus far on the Jumbo makes an
extraordinary showing. An adit level
has been laid at depth, vertically, of
70 feet, with a drift Oh face of the level
distance of $40 feet, aud average sample,
the entire length of this level, assays
two ounces gold and az ounces silver.
One particular rich stratum, about
eight inches in width, runs from 500
to $1,000 per ton in gold. This mine is
now being developed by lower tunnel
on the vein, and the same values are