The Arizona sentinel., 1900-12-12
LA FORTuNA MINE.


 In the early days of gold discovery of Califcr nia, 1s4s, when the news reached the gold miners of Sonora, there was a general exodus of the able bodied men who were able to get away northwest to the new Fl Dorado in California and the state of Sonora contributed many men 10 the mining population. They took the old road1 which was known as the ''calnino real ' from Estancia and Altar northwestward nearly parallel to the gulf, following the mountain ridge known as the Gila range, just north of our present boundary. The road led to Yuma, and hrpasSing the Gila range they went within a few feet Or yards O. a very modest outcrop of quartz which no one seemed to consider of sui fcient value to merit any attention. That hum blc and insignificant quartz outcrop is today the Outcrop of the great Fortuna mine.
 It is situated on the westward slope and nearly gt the base of the range of mountains called on some of the old maps the Gila range. This trends ncrthweSterly and reaches nearly to the Ifila river al the point now known as BlaiSdell. 51he railway in it's course to Yuma passes around the northwest point of this range. Where the rocks are exposed at that point they Tre mostly Of homogeneous granite Of gray color and weatEered out at the surfaces, which,
 
 ton Of some soft substance. But beyond these low-lying hills of granite there are big outerops sf rock which to the experienced eye indicate stratifed formations They are indeed strait fled, for the bulk of the range southward and southeastward is composed of regular Stratified, dominated. hard gneissic rock I use the word '-gneissic' in a very general and comprehensive sense, for you can describe these rocks with ;T mica states and lornblendic slates with inter rolations Of quartzite beds, especially in the upper part of the series, with green stains, sup losed to be stains of copper and decomposition Of copper ore, which they probably are, d. though there are peculiarities of color, and sSrHeyellow colors, which indicate to me the TreSence of some other mineral, possibly tel lTrium, which by its decomposition has given toese colorS. The fact remains, however, that the bullion from the upper part of the vein con- tains more copper than it now contains in the lower levels Of the mine. The workings which E.EVt been carried on here have developed a condition of things which could not be forctold from an inspection of the outcrop. The vein Or lode appears to be a chimney not a contino- oCs ore body, nor continuous vein with an ore DOdy or chimney or chute upon it. As re- rlarked the outcroppiag points indicate that there is no very great longitudinal extension of this ore body.
 The vein is remarkable first in this limited out crop; second. in its continuity in depth its con- tjnued satisfactory richness and the promise it gives Of enrichment by further veins dipping into it on the fOot-wall sides.
 Some facts-in regard to the product or yield: The ore paid from the surface. The product or ore extracted up to the time has been about 80 tons per day, which is sent to the 2C-stanp mill eIch stamp of which crusheS about tons in every twenty-four hours The extraction is chiefly and largely by power drills. A force cf So men is employed by this mine and mill. The greater part of the labor underground and mining is done by compressed air The lode I was told, was to l5 feet wide. This large space permits the use of power drills to great advantage. In the material hOisted there are fragments Of the wali.rocllS. some of which are tarowa out. but many pieces pass through the l.lin- They would prefer to reject most of this Taii rock. but it would take more time and ex- pelse than it does to mill it, and there is a chance Of some of it containing gold. From these 90 tons of rock crushed daily the average product is perhaps S4S.01e worth of gold per rio1th So:ae r-oas,is sthey have produced as E;gh as s9a.y0t.
 In th4 region osI1aesS oE;GG Gt sSine the forIna- cions appear to be wholly Of mica slate and hornDlende slate, with some arenaceous layers Ike oi2 nisaceoIS sanlssorles and quartzites The uj-e io srrro-adea by black hornblendic , s..tes and 'ni'a Slayes, dipping sc2thward and soa:hEesOward a a,. angie of about 45 degrees and these states are very evenly lamuated gidee after ridge. This iS apparently con