Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1903-10-03
suffering for lack of Process.

D., the writer makes the statement that
the veins Of ore in the southern Hills
are small but rich. 1t is further stated
that these veins do not yield much at the
surface and that deep sinking is required
to develop them to point where they
will pay. This is not the exact language
used, but it imbodies the substance and
the meaning of the article. We desire
to comment upon this somewhat, though
not in spirit of retaliation, for we real
ize and appreciate the fact that the edi-
tor of that paper is friendly to the south
ern Hills and would do us good turn if
he could. But he is mistaken to some
extent, for although we have some small,
rich veins, they are not the kind upon
which we generally rely, unless he con
siders veins from to 20 feet in width
small veins.
AS to the matter of deep sinking, al.
though that is desirable thing to do at
all times and in every mining district, it
is not especially so in the southern Hills.
The lack of depth on our veins is not the
particular cause of the lack of gold pro-
duction in the southern Hills. We have
many mines now in this district which
are fairly well developed where the ore
bodies have been penetrated by shafts
and tunnels to depth Of from 100 to
300 feet. The ore in our veins in some
inc inr IN, 81 oh nt1
and some maintain about the same grade.
They do not need to become richer.
They are rich enough right from the
surface to pay and pay well. No the
lack of depth is not our trouble but in
plain words we are suffering for the lack
of process to save the gold that is in
our rock. We do not mean by this that
we cannot obtain a correct test in the
laboratory, we mean that we have not
thus far had introduced in our district
the proper process for extracting the
gold from our ore on commercial scale.
Every mill and every attempt thus far
to treat the ore in the southern Hills has
been on the free milling plar and it has
not even in one instance proven ade-
quate for the work.
1t is true that large proportion Of our
veins show free gold at the surface and
this fact instead Of being blessing has
proved curse. 1t has been the will o
the wisp which has led so many of our
mine owners into the bogs of temporary
failure. If We never had any free mill
ing ore, if it had always been as refrac-
tory at the surface as it is with depth,
We would never have been deceived by
the relying upon tie cree milling quality.
Our mine owners would have addressed
themselves to the finding of some pro-
cess Of successfully treating our refrac.
tory ores, which the assayer and the
chemist alike agree is rich in gold. 1t is
hard for our people to abandon the idea
of free milling and to look for the prop
er process for saving the precious metal,
so long as they can get a good prospect
in the pan of the bright yellow metal.
We have announced upon our own re-
sponsibiity that there has never yet
been discovered free milling mine in
the southern Hills. We have been
blamed for having made this stateme ent
but we can only reiterate it, for we know
to a certainty that before we can reach a
basis of success We must solve this prob
lem, of what constitutes the best method
of saving the gold that is contained in
our rock.
1t would make this article too long to
start in now to describe the nature and
constituents Of the various ores of this
district. (They are not all alike Suf-
fee it to say that we believe in our diff
ferent mines We have all the various
minerals that are laid down in the cata-
logue of metals. But our experiments
have led US far enough into the subject
to justify US in the belief that when the
proper process is found out it will be
found to be cheap, thorough and easy of
application. We have reason to believe
that when the problem is solved, that
our miners will regard it with astonish-
ment and wonder that they had not
thought before of making use of thing
80 natural and simple. During our 43
years of experience in mines We have
worked and prospected in many districts
and in many of the different camps of
the west. and have studied deeply into
the question of veins and vein filling,
and the only reason that we remain in
Custer is because we have found it the
richest in the precious metals of any
camp we have ever visited. The lack of
the proper process for treating our ores
has kept US, as it has many others, poor,
but we know that we have untold wealth
under ground. We shall not leave this
place for we know ofno other that prom
ises higher reward for our labor. We
bide our time in confidence that some
day, in the sweet by and bye some man,
or some company of men will make their
advent into our district, who not only
possess the necessary capital but what is
still more essential the necessary metal.
urgical knowledge to solve the problem
and set our people free.
This, and this alone, is all that is need
ed to lift the dark incumbus which now
hovers over us, and let the bright sum
shine of prosperity food our hills and
redeem the richest mining camp in all
the broad domain of the west.