Bisbee daily review., 1903-12-22
UNIQUE FIELD IS
 MINING IN MEXICO
INDUSTRY HAS BUT FAIRLY EN
 TERED UPON A NEW ERA.
No Winters and Shows to Interfere With the Work-Many of the Dis tricts 300 Years OId-iack of Trans portatipn Facilities and Crude Methods Held Back Development.

A unique field for mining enter prises, and especially for mine de velopment, exists in the republic of Mexico, says Geo. R. Pierce in the Mining World Situated at the very doors of the United States, this coun try continues and repeats the mountainous and mineral-bearing re- gions that extend from the states of Washington and Montana to Arizona; with the great advantage that there are no winter nor heavy snows to in terfere with work. In our western mountain states, frozen streams anc deeplying snows often close down mining for months at time. In Mex ico, such things are unknown.
 Many of the great mining districts of Mexico were discovered and open ed up within a few years after the conquest of the country by the Span iards, three centuries before the dis coyery of gold in California started the mineral development of our great west Some of these districts have produced enormously; yet during these centuries the mineral develop ment of the industry was held back by
 
 and the crudity of the methods en- ployed, as well as by political disord- CTS and the general insecurity. The last quarter of century has witness ed a wonderful change Beginning with the accession of President Por firio DiaZ, established order and do- mestic security have forever succeed ed the long years of warefare. pillage and strife. Within the last 15 years, railways have given quick and econo- mical communications between the different sections of the country: and ten years ago the peculiar tariff leg islaJion of the United States furnish ed the motive for implanting in Mex ico the modern smelting industry, which is steadily growing, borne up- ward by the renewed mining activity which it helped to create. Within this same period, the rapid advances of metalurgical science have made iti possible to economically work ores that previously could not be made toI yield their values at a profit. All of these factors have combined toI quicken Mexicos old mining districts with new life. Old mines are being reopened. old dumps are being work ed over by new processes, and new exploration is being stimulated 10 a hitherto unknown degree
 The mining laws of Mexico are lib- eral, simple and logical. in strong con. trast to the litigation-provoking leg islation of the United States and the llllberal restrictions of British Ameri- ca. In most of Mexico native miners are plenty. They are skilled, in their way although less efficient and less resourceful than the average Ameri. can miners of the west To offset this lower efficiency and their lack of me- chanical aptitude. the average rate of wages paid them is 75 cents silver per day (about 35 cents gold) as con. trasted with g to s350 per day com monly paid to American miners, and strikes and disorders are unknown. The labor cost of getting ore is con- sequently very low. The railroads are constantly pushing ahead into dis trlcts heretofore isolated and remote, quantities of capital are coming in for investment in mines, and every thing indicates that the mining in- dustry in Mexico has but fairly enter ed upon a new era of vigorous and rapid growth.
 In Mexico. the prospectors who act ually discover the mineral deposits are usually the native miners. They have nose for ore" and an enterprise in using it, that is entirely out of keep ing with their thriftlessness in some other respects. They seldom or never have the few dollars necessary to make legal announcement to secure title to their discoveries: and it is a common custom with them to seek someone who will defray the expen- ses of Announcement and a little ex- ploration, the discoverer being given employment in the wolk, and. retain Ing as his share Q non-assessable in- terest of from one twenty-fourth to nVe twenty-fourths in the property. In the states. the average prospector would scorn such a proposition, and It Is common in the west for mere prospects, of entirely improved value, to change hands at substantial prices and furnish the basis for float. ing company of imposing capital at least on paper
 Dnring the three and a half cen turies that mining has been carried on in Mexico, thousands of mines have been opened, in which. for one req son or another. work was subseuuent- ly abandoned Political disorders, ore too low grade or too rebelliuus 10 work by the methods in vogue, in creasing cost of mining and unwater-