Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1904-07-13
Among the Mines
Devoted to the Large MINI
Ing Interests or Fergus
County General Notes.
Mines on SAGE Creek,

"''So oH oa9c S'ScNs
Henry Prentiss. Jr., one of the To-
Gators of the mines being worked by
the Fergus Mining Company on the
head OF Sage creek, southeast Of
Great Falls, is in the city, returning
from a trip to st. Louis and other
eastern points, says the Great Falls
Leader. Mr.. Prentiss, as well as the
other i~ncorporators of the company,
belongs in Great Falls and the work
of Development is being largely done
with with Great Falls capital.
I'VE think we have a good pros
pect," said Mr.. Prentiss today, land
we will continue development work
until We have demonstrated a failure
or a fortune. Fergus county, In which
our property is located, until a few
years ago, was looked upon as pecu.
liarly adapted to grazing and agricul'
ture; its hills were not f~avorably re.
garded by mining men, and the pros
pector generally passed them by on
the other side. But from some Of
these hills today are taken an album
dance of gold. as is evident at the
Barnes-K King, Kendall, Gold Reef and
other properties, until at this time
Fergus county leads all other sections
of Montana in gold production, hav-
ing a record which compares favor
ably with any like area in the Unit
ed States, and tits more than prob
able a still higher position will be
reached. Today the Barnes-King is
cleaning up something like 100000 in
bullion per month. and has become
one of the great mines of the coun-
TRY.
The celebrated Kendall mining
property was sold by the discoverer
to Mr.. Kendall for a mere pittance,
as compared with its present value.
THE characteristic gold ore of this
district is micro-crystalline, where
particles are so minute that they can.
not be detected by the unaided eye,
is easily crushed and the cyanide so.
luton readily penetrates, dissolving
out the -four gold embraced in it, thus
making it adapted to the simplest and
cheapest form of cyaniding. The ore
does not lie in well defined veins, but
resembles a blanket formation &C.
curing in the limestone and e the
porphyry contact.
This ideal formation has also been
found in the Little Belt mountains at
the head of Sage creek. south Of
Great Falls, and has been pronounced
by experienced men as having all the
surface geological indications of a
gold camp. Last spring the Fergus
mining company was formed to de-
velop the property acquired from the
original locators at Sage creek, and
since that time has doubled its hold.
ings and taken up water rights and
timber lands preparatory to doing an
extensive mining and milling bust
ness.
Since the weather would permit
last spring we have been prospecting
on twenty claims, and are running one
shaft down which will 70 reach 100
feet, timbering 1t we'll as we go, so
that it will be safe il needed for op.
Grafton. At present there are no o.
be;joyful' discoveries to report or as.
says showing dazzling values, but the
work is in gold bearing rock, running
sufficiently well to give a reasonable
hope that there is a large paying body
somewhere within reach, and the out.
growth of the economic geological
conditions by which they are sur
rounded.
"All the men directing the opera.
tions of our company, and the major
ity of its present stockholders, are
men of more or less mining exper-
fence, and are going about the work
in a business-like manner, spending
money for tools, powder and miners
labor, cutting out all the furbelows
which wreck SO many mining enter
prises.
The Fergus Mining company was
not instituted as a soaking scheme,
to keep the printing press hot issuing
stock to be scattered all over the land,
and by its golden dream and fraud
enrich a few. whose mine is no deep.
er than their pocket, but 1t was in
corporated under the laws of Montana
to do a mining and milling business,
and il the values are in the ground
we propose demonstrating it.
I'VE have now five men working
steadily, and will make a consider
able showing before winter"