The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1905-08-06
ALDRICH'S INTERVIEW AND
ALABAMA GOLD FIELDS
By F. J. RorHpLETz, MINING ENGINEER.
Birmingham, August 6. 1905.

/
Editor of The Age-Herald:
In your issue of the 4th instant I find
an article from Mr.. 7. H. Aldrich, de-
scriblng in graphic terms his visit, with
other members of the American Institute
of Mining Engineers, to the mining re-
gion of Alaska and British Columbia, from
which he has just returned
While the article cannot fail to greatly
/ interest general readers, it should prove
of great value to all those interested in
the gold mining industry of Alabama.
either as owners or as prospective in
vestors.
Il Is well known that broad belt. or.
rather two broad parallel belts of gold
! bearing rocks traverse the state from
the eastern part of Elmore county, In
northeasterly direction to the Georgia
state line and extending through that
state and the Carolinas From 1880 to
1850 two counties especially, in Alabama,
were the scenes of extensive and sue
! cessful gold placer mining, Cleburne and
Tallapoosa. and from these two several
million dollars were extracted by the old,
primitive methods, the miners washing
the dirt in Toms Rockers" or "sluice
boxes" and saving the coarse and
I heavier gold As a result of these opera
tions numerous veins or permanent bodies
of gold bearing ore. were exposed to
view and the material extracted there
from was in many places treated In old
style stamp mills pounding mills,
as they were then called and with more
or less success while the ores were taken
from above water level, and from atmos-
nh decOIn-
posed and the gold was in free state,
but the gradual change from free mill
ing to "sulphureted' ores, requiring a
radical change In the method of treating
| the ores, proved a stumbling block TOO
great for the uneducated miners 10 over
! come. The gold discoveries in the PACING
slope states and in Colorado and other
mountain territories, with the opportunl-
ties given by the government to discover
| errors of mineral veins or deposits 10 ae-
| auire a title thereto at the nominal cost
| OF the fees for fling and registry. quick
| ~ drew to those regions almost all the
| southern miners. and gold mining In Ala
| bama came to a standstlll
| In the western mining regions, as in the
| SOUTH all the earlier operations were on
| placer deposits gradually changing to
| free milling ores, and then to sulphuret-
| ed ores, the same difficulties arising as
| in the southern states. But, with the
| hosts of common miners, there also noek-
| ed to those states and territories. edncat-
ed men, especially skilled in metalurgical
processes, and gradually these difficulties
| were overcome.
improvements in the construction of
crushing and grinding machinery, in
| methods of amagamatlng the precious
metals: the introduction OF the ehloflna-
| ton process: of smelling for some classes
| of ores; improved methods and machines
| for concentrating the ores dhe me-
| ehanieal separation of the ores proper,
| from the quartz or other useless mate
| rial) thus largely reducing the cost OF
| treatment of the valuable portions OF the
| ore: and finally the discovery and grad
| ual perfection of the modern cyanide
/ method of treatment of ores, have fairly
revolutionized the business of gold min
| ing. and capitalists from all parts of the
| world flock to our western gold mining
regions seeking opportunities for Invest
| nent. and reap a large reward for their
enterprise. Here, in Alabama, 1t Is Differ
ent. mo prophet Is without honor save
! in his own country seems to apply to
| Alabama gold mines. Our capitalists shut
| their ewes and ears to all evidences Of
| fered of the extent and value of our de-
posits of precious metals.
| As far back as 1891 DR.. William b.
| Phillips, then assistant state geolegist In
| his first official report of an examina-
| ton of the lower Alabama gold field. af-
ter making a broad and strong statement
! as to the value and extent OF the gold
ores In a portion of Tallapoosa county,
remarked page 43 of report, The state
! ment may, and doubtless will be received
! by some with the customary smile or IN
! credulitv, the almost invariable accompa-
niment of assertions regarding the profit
able treatment of southern gold ores.
| The same smile did duty when the first
assertions as to the southern Iron ores
were made. when the Florida phosphates
were discovered and when coke making
| vas begun in Alabama, and 1t is still in
| good working order. 1t is as old as hui
man nature. and will outlive the last
man." And so 1t is today. Not only do our
Alabama capitalists. large and small, go
on wild goose chases to remote mining
districts, from Mexico to Alaska, for