The Sumpter miner. [volume] (Sumpter, Or.) 1899-1905, 1900-12-26
Practical Suggestions as to How
to Make It Pay.

worthy on other subjects are entirely un.
able to form sane or just conclusion on
matters connected with gold. Many, II
not most, men also are inclined to put a
better face on the question than usually
exists,and the sight Of few yellow colors
leads them at once to figure out bonan.
"a. II investors would only bring to bear
on gold mining the same prudence and
business sense which Is necessary in any
other business, 1t would greatly reduce the
number Of failures. The investor has to
guard against two clusses Of evil advice.
One Is that Of the professional swindler
who "promotes the property for the sole
purpose Of transmitting the funds of the
subscribers into his own pocket, and the
other Is the well.meaning man who, per.
haps, has fairly good thing II properly
worked, but who has more srlf.confidence
than experience and skill.
The ground should be surveyed-if not
accurately at least approximately-and a
map prepared on which may be recorded
available, and the extent of the ground
worked every season. Test.pits should be
sunk at sufficiently frequent intervals to
place the nature Of the ground beyond
conjecture. The examination should show
the full depth Of the gravel, the nature Of
the bedrock, II any, and the distribution
of the values; whether they are greatest
at the surface, In layers, or on the bottom.
Values are never uniformly distributed,
and nothing Is more deceptive than a
glib statement Of so much per cubic yard.
The nature Of the material should also
be ascertained, and this not only on the
surface. The sizes and percentages Of the
gravel, from coarsest to finest. should be
measured. This Is necessary to determine
the character Of screens to be used, or
whether any at all are necessary. The
action Of the gravel while being washed
or sluieed should be experimentally deter.
mined. Some gravels wash very freely;
others, again, are Of a clayey or stiekey
nature. often with large bouIders, which
increase the difficulty Of working. The
condition Of water supply Is most import.
ant. Water Is essential to the recovery
Of gold, and Its presence In suitable quan.
titles Is a great desideratum.
The disposition Of tailings Is a subject
which must be carefully studied. Unless
the dredge can get rid Of all material pass.
ed through without choking or piling up,
In such manner as to interrupt It's work,
1t Is liable to be stopped, and the entire
enterprise brought to a standstll until the
difficulty can be remedied. The configura.
,ion Of the ground, the character Of the
material, the depth Of the water, and the
heighth Of ground worked above water,
all enter into the question and should be
carefully determined. As to the gold It.
self, the question Is threefold. There are
to be considered, first, the character Of the
gold; second, Its value per cubic yard Of
material handled; third, the best method
of saving It. On the satisfactory deter.
mination of these points the whole success
of the enterprise depends. and here long
experience and sound judgment are abso.
lutely necessary. The gold may be fine
or coarse, of all degrees, and may be easy
to save or difficult to save, and the most
effective method Of saving It depends up
on its character. There Is no new discov'
cry for gold saving. All known methods
depend on one thing for their successful
action, namely, the great specific gravity
of gold as compared with the gravel.
Their separation can be effected only by