Arizona republican., 1901-12-27

MINING outside world the solid
IN merits of the many
ARIZONA. mining districts of Ari-
IONA. and it is a pleas
ure to note the better understanding
and appreciation of our mineral wealth
among the people OF the east. The fol-
lowing intelligent editorial from the
Boston Journal for Investors Is an IL
lustration of the more Intelligent man
ner in which Arizona mining is now
discussed by the financial journals OF
the east:
striking feature of the general IN
terest attracted to mining during the
last half dozen years mas been the re-
naissance of Arizona mines. widely
extended and profitable mining indus
try has been developed from sup
posedly decadent industry. The criti-
cism OF unsuccessful miners who did
not dig down. that Ar.zonn mines had
no depth, has been disproved by the
now successful miners who have dug
mines down to great depths. At the
same time Arizona mines have been
found to have great breadth as well as
depth. The mines are notable Tor the
enormous ore bodies hat extended
working has Disclosed.
The great change in Arizona mines
from what they we're a dozen years
since to what they ere now can be at
tributed principally 10 the inc: eased
value of copper and to the Improve
ments in modern metaliurgical meth
DDS. They increased value OF copper
made ores, formerly unavailable. com
mercially, desirable. Improved metal
lurgy cheapened the cost al tier treat
ment and increased the margin OF pos
sible profit.
Old mines-the great silver and gold
producers of twenty and thirty years
ago-have been reopened to work
greater depth. and TO secure the cop
per- bearing ores that were then left
in the mine as too base or too low to
justify mining and treatment for the
gold and silver they carried. Now
these ores are the basis of n greater
mining industry than their appearance
was supposed to have destroyed.
The physical conditions make Ari-
iona mineral deposits part of the sys-
tenn developed even more extensively
in northwestern Mexico. Copper is the
principal metal. The original sulphide
minerals have been largely oxidized
and secondary deposition has concen-
trated the values in large. easily min
able deposits. In this development OF
the oxide and carbonate ores. Arizona
mines have had considerable advan-
tage over most copper mines in other
districts. Also, as the sulphide ores
are reached with depth. they are found
to average high in copper and to carry,
as rule. exceedingly high values in
gold and silver, notably the former.
Much of the mining work going on
in Arizona during the last two years
consists in the opening OF great metal
bearing deposits and in their equip
ment with metallurgical plants. In
nearly every county of the territory
new mines have been opened, devel-
oped and equipped without the aggre-
gate of this work attracting attention.
In nearly every county in the territory
a large proportion of the old mines are
being reopened. This is true, not only
of the old mines that We're worked as
free-milling gold Ind silver PROPOSE
lions down to the zone of copper-bear-
ing sulphides and then abandoned. but
Is equally true of the great silver
mines. which have had the same kind
of a record of free milling exploita-
ton of upper levels and abandonment
by reason of the incoming of water
with depth or the exhaustion of the
first bonanza ore body.
1t used to be said. once a silver mine
always a silver mine. Now the expert
western mines, which for a time was
supposed to disprove it. has confirmed
and rather improved it, The once sill
yer mines are not only still silver
mines. but they are copper mines and
gold mines as well.
The new Arizona mining is different
from the old, which had considerable
of the OBJECT of Mexican association in
its methods. The mines were worked
near the surface and for high-grade
ores only. When the high grade ore
deposit was exhausted the mining
stopped. The new Arizona mining is
availing itself of the methods that have
proved effective in other regions. Deep
shafts are being sunk and the best
types of hosting and pumping ma
chinery are being installed. Milling
and smelling plants are being built to
save all the different values the COM
pick ores contain. Mining is being
made n business of manufacturing
rather than an opportunity for gam
bling. 1t cannot neIp being made n
profitable business. Copper can be
manufactured very cheapiy in Arizona
For those people who are always
ready to believe that stock promoters