The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-02-18
MONTANA SAPPHIRES.
Mountain State Has Wealth of Rare
Stones

In Fergus county are located the
most famous gem mines on the North
American continent. They are situated
in the Yogo mining district, about 16
miles from the town of Utica. 1t was
the everlasting search for gold which
led to their discovery. A placer mining
company was organized in 1895 to work
the gold-bearing gravel east of the
Yogo forks of the Judith river. The
company put in $38, 900 worth of ditch
and fumes, but after all this outlay
the first seasons cleanup amounted to
only $780, But in the sluice boxes were
number of blue stones which were
later identified as SapphireS. A cigar
box full of these stones was sent east
and Tiffany gave $3.50 for them. The
company now saw some results in sight
for its great outlay, and made pre-
parations to work the gravels for the
sapphires, which were found in great
abundance in certain parts of the field.
At first it was thought that the gems,
with the gold, came from Yogo gulch,
but in February, 1896, their real source
was discovered by John Ettien of the
neighboring valley of the Judith river.
While prospecting above the placer
he found a assure in the limestone,
with a soft filling, which resembed the
outcrop of a vein. Some of the dirt was
washed and there again were the blue
stones. Their value again was not
known by the discoverer until they
We're shown to the workers at the
placer. They began at once to locate
the sapphire lead. Investigation show
ed that the gems occurred in a dixie of
trap rock which could be traced for
distance of five miles from the mead
ows of the Judith river westward to the
canyon of Yogo creek Its entire
claims, some of which have already
been patented. The sapphire mines are
in the center of q broad and open basin
inclosed on three sides by the Little
Belt mountains, whose slopes disclose
outcrops of white limestone resembling
banks of snow. High foothill ridges
shut in the basin from the open plains,
country to the east. Through the basin
flows the Judith river, its three forks
uniting at the base of the mountain
slopes to the west. The mines take
their name from Yogo creek, the most
northerly fork of the river. They are
located on the bare benchland lying
north of the main streams and east OF
the creek.
It is in igneous rock, or clay, SO hard
that it requires drilling and blasting,
that the precious gems are found. Th1S
rock Stacks pretty much the same as
lime upon exposure to the air, the pro-
cess being aided by rain, frost and
snow Then it is run through the
sluice boxes, some of it two or three
times before the gems are extracted
The gems in the rough, just as taken
from the mines, are carefully sorted
and shipped to the London house, and
there prepared for the market The
product is sold in the European, Ash
attic and New York markets and the
superior quality of the stone found in
Fergus county is said to be driving the
| CeylOn article out of the market. The
late Queen Victoria had a Yogo sap
phire in her collection of gems; at the
Paris exposition the YOgo sapphlres
were awarded a silver medal. Another
great concern owns a large number of
| claims and it's output is nearly, if not
quite equal to that of the other cor
poration. 1t maintains its own shop in
! Helena where fifteen men are en-
ployed cutting and polishing the stones,
and it is asserted with confidence that
the work done there is finer even than
that turned out in London.
In a recent report of the Montana
bureau of agriculture, labor and in
dustry, the following description OF the
methods of working the mines occurs:
1.-THE method of extracting the sap
phires from the magma is somewhat
similar to that used by placer miners
in sluicing for gold. The sluice boxes
are fitted with Hungarian rifles, as in
placer mining, but it is necessary to
exercise more care in setting them, as
the specific gravity of the sapphire is
much less than that of gold, AND with
the boxes set at too great pitch they
would pass over the rifles and be lost.
When first attacked the magma is
passed over a grizzly (screen) and the
finer parts pass at once into the
sluices The coarser, harder material
is thrown into the dump, where the
process occupies from one month to
one year. according to the hardness
and tenacity of the magma. Superin-
tendent Sweeney of the American
company assists the elements in the
disintegration of his dumps by turning
a flow of water on them occasionally,
and by this means the hardest of the
vein matter is ready to pass through
the sIuices in two months For clean
ing up an ordinary rocker is used, with
three screens of as many sizes, through
) which the pay dirt is passed.
! when the pay dirt has been worked
down as closely as possible in the rock