Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1902-02-08
AFRICAN GOLD MINING.
Problems c onfronsing the Trans
vaafs Great Industry.
EXPERTS PRACTICAL REMARKS.

/ EXPERTS PRACTICAL REMARKS.
John Hays Hammond Places the
Probable Life of the Rand Reef at
Thirty Years . Curious Facts Re-
Il garding the Diamond Mines-The
i Question of Labor.
4 The following remarks on the re-
sources and outlook of the Transyaal
are extracted from an address deliv-
cred by Mr.. John Hays Hammond at
4 Harvard and Yale. The facts set forth
have an interesting bearing on the cur
rent finance, commerce and history,
i says the New York Post. Aside from
the broad questions of the money mar
ket involved in the problems touched
upon, the matters of American sup
plies for the Transvaal and of the
country's own industrial and political
future depend very largely on the de-
i velopments now about to be witnessed
on the Witwatersrand.
i Mr.. Hammond spoke as follows:
'sThe Witwatersrand goldfeld in the
Transvaal is by far the most impor-
i tant gold mining district in the world.
| The Witwatersrand district is in its
physical aspect radically different from
the usual conception Of mining coun.
try. 1t rather resembles a grazing
country, where mining prospectors
would pass by CONTEMPORARY as 'un-
congenial to ore, and in that respect
| the occurrence of gold in the Witwa-
| tersrand district illustrates the truth
| Of the adage that gold is where you
| find it. Gold was first discovered in
! this district in the year 1885. 1t oc-
Cured in what is called the banket,
which is coarse conglomerate deriv.'
| ing its name from it's resemblance to
an almond rock candy called blanket
! by the Dutch. This nomenclature is
about the sole contribution of the
Dutch to the mining industry.
"These auriferous deposits are unique
| in the history of gold mining and are
unparalleled in respect to their re-
markable consistency and consequently
commercial reliability. The gold bear
ing conglomerate beds are interstrati-
fed with beds of quartzite and sand
stone. The ore carries about $40 in
gold per ton and is mined and treated
metallurgical]y by the usual methods
Of gold mining and milling.
The principal mines extend east and
west from the town of Johannesburg
twenty five miles in either direction. To
give some idea Of the magnitude of
operations, may state that about 10O,-
900 Kaffirs and over 10000 white men
are engaged directly in mining and
that nearly 6000 stamps are working
night and day, crushing over 100000
tons of ore annually In order to OBJ
tain the supply of ore for one years
output it is necessary to excavate eight
miles of solid rock five feet in width
and AGO feet in depth besides the many
thousands of feet of additional shaft
sinking. etc. The gold won as the re-
suit of this stupendous work is valued
at about $75.OOO,OOO. Since 1886 these
mines have yielded nearly $40O,000,000
worth of gold.
"Just previous to the beginning of
the war the Witwatersrand mines were
producing gold with a value of $780,
100000 per annum. more than one-third
Of the worlds output. The gold mines
support district of 100000 white pop
ulation besides contributing to the sup
port of thousands of laborers in other
&C.,
of supplies for this industry.
"How long will these mines last?"
sit is customary to speak of such ex-
tensive deposits as illimitable, but as
an engineer | am denied the use of
such convenient hyperbole and must |
endeavor to satisfy the curious by
some reply more definite. But it is in |
deed a difficult question to answer, de-
pending as it does upon the depth to |
which mining can be probably car |
rieG on and upon the rapidity of ex- |
ploitation as well. AS to ultimate |
depths. the geological and mining con-
ditions in the Witwatersrand district |
are exceptionally favorable and admit
of maximum depths. There is but lit
lie water to interfere with deep min
ing. it being for the most part seepage
and is taken up from the upper hori-
IONS. Also the increment of tempera-
ture with the depth is very low. there
being only one degree of increment in
temperature for 200 feet of depth I
have on other occasions expressed the
opinion that mining will be found feast
BILE to a depth of about 10000 feet.
As to rapidity Of exploitation we min
ing engineers of South Africa. chiefly
American engineers. pride ourselves in
holding the worlds record in respect of
speed in mining. and work that has
taken centuries in the history of Eu-
ropean mining will be done in decade
under the conditions that obtain with
us. Therefore when speak of mining
out an area in the aggregate some
thirty miles long to vertical depth of
two miles must prepare you by these
statements have just made as to our s
to undertake rapid exploita-
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