Omaha daily bee., 1903-03-16
MINING IN THE BLACK HILLS
Bad Roads Hamper Operations in Ragged
Top and Iron Greek,
HORSESHOE COMPANY IN NEW HANDS
capitalization 90 He Cut In Two and
Dividends Paid only when ERrned
six million Bond Issue
Talked of.

AAAAAEh @%
Talked Of
DEADwOOD, S. D., March 15.-(Special.)
Dad -oads are interfering TO a consider
able extent with mining operations in the
Ragged Top and IRON Creek districts, but
as there Is not much snow up there for this
time Of the year. unless another heavy fall
comes along. this difficulty will socn be a
thing Of the past. Those mines which have
TO make o short wagon haul to the rail-
roads. and those whose plants are not con-
nected with the mines by tramway or rail-
road, are the only ones nov troubled on ac-
count Of weather conditions. The Dead
wood STANDARD is now experiencing n hti!s
din Guilty in keeping its big mill supplied
with ore but expects that this viii be
remedied in a few days. The mill has been
running at its full capacity for several
weeks, and its eleanups are growing larger
all of the time. The new shoot OF ore "
covered in the mine is showing up better
than was at FIRST expected, which assures TO
the company a large reserve Of ore. and 1t
is believed that this company viii be the
next to 60 on the list Of Black Hills divi-
dend-payers.
The spearhsh mill was closed down for
five days this month in order to make some
necessary repairs to the rolls, but these
have been made and the plant is again In
operation. The mines Of the company are
now producing their best ores, so 1t is said
that the elose-down will not make any per-
ceptible difference in the amount Of bullion
which will be produced by the mill this
month.
sinking to Quartzite.
The Gold Hill people will resume opera
tion in their shaft. which is now down about
! 220 feet, and It is believed It will not have
to 90 very much deeper before the quart
zite is reached. superintendent Goodman
has made all the arrangements necessary,
and the new work will probably be started
this coming week. The company is one Of
the few in the district which is sinking to
/ quartzite, and the indications now are that
lit will strike a good ore body when that
formation is reached. for the material COM
ing into the shaft is mixed with ore which
carries fair values. The company is well
equipped in the way Of hosting, pumping
machinery and air compressor plant AMI
power drills to continue the work Of min
ing at a depth. The company has a mum
Der of shoots of ore Of a good grade near
the ~eurface. but its management believes
that the best ore will be found on the
lower ore contact, and have been sinking
for It. Omaha people are interested in this
company.
The Dakota company is shipping about
1926 tons a day from this district and treat
ing II in its mills az Deadwood and making
a profit Of S1.1S a ton on 81 ore after the
expense of mining and railroad transpor-
4 tation has been deducted. The company has
made arrangements for increasing the
tank capacity OF its Deadwood plant, and
the work will begin at once. For some
time the plant has been running but twelve
hours a day, but IL is hoped TO keep II In
continuous operation from now on. While
the company has a vast amount of ore, the
majority Of 1t is of low grade, and can be
handled and treated at a profit only in
large quantities. Some Of the ore taken
from the eompany's mines, however, Is
OF a much better grade than the average
eyaniding proposition, and 81 is ~Apected
that the work which Is noe icing done on
them will disclose more Of this character.
The company has one OF the finest mills
in the west, a wet crushing cyanide, and
has demonstrated that II can treat ore at
a profit which other companies would not
handle with their equipments Of ma
ehinery,
Magnet strikes ore body.
The tunnel which the Magnet Mining
company has been driving for the past few
months has penetrated a body of ore. The
ore is a silicihed lime, and has the gem
eral appearance Of the ore which is be-
Ing taken from the workings Of the Spear
fish and Deadwood- STANDARD companies
over on Ragged Top, the Magnet being To-
Gated in the Iron creek district, which is
a continuation Of the Ragged Top. No
tests have as yet been made of this ore,
Considerable work had been done along
the rim OF this ore shoot before the tun-
mel was started, and samples of the ore
taken from there carried some gold and
twelve ounces Of silver. this being an I'M
usually large percentage OF silver for ore
OF this character. 1t is believed that the
ore just struck will show a higher per
centage Of gold and less silver than wal
shown on the out crop. There is a car
Donate ore found in the same vicinity which
is altogether different than this ore. The
formation in which the Magnet company
is working is a carboniferous lime, almost
identical in its characteristics with that OF
the Ragged Top district.
The Cleopatra company has driven its
drift on the quartEite from the bottom OF
MS 225-foot shaft over 100 feet along that
formation, and the indications are at pres
/ ent that it is not far from a strong YER
teal which is apparently the source Of
: the ore shoots which the company had
been working nearer the surface!
HOrseshOe's New Policy.
The big smelter Of the Horseshoe Min.
ing company at Rapid City and its 2OO-tor
cyanide plant at Puma are still idle and
r will continue in a state Of inactivity until
D after the meeting Of the stockholders q
5 the company TO be held in Beulah, Wyo.
Z next week. At the coming meeting, II Il
D said, the capitalization Of the company will
D be cut almost in two, and the propert!
will be made to earn dividends before pay
ing any. The Horseshoe company owns
. some Of the very best mining ground II
- the Blsck Hills, and its equipment is second
D 70 none of the big companies operating II
g this section. but Encouragement In thu
q past has placed it in an unfavoTable ligh
l. before the. public. The new management
d Of the company is in the hands Of practice
s mining men and men Of business, and tn
d people Of the Hills look for great improve
r ment in the eompany's affairs from now on
The big cyanide plant at Terry, ON Whiel
- operations have been suspended. will. /
e Is said, be completed as soon as the meet
e ing Of stockholders has been held, tn
plant at Puma started again and the smell