Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-08-26

has recently begun the development
OF another district which viii feed in
TO Daiquiri / am told there Is more
ore In sight than the amount so far
mined,
The Cuban steel Ore company has
iron mines IN the mountains 40 miles
west Of Santiago and about six miles
back from the seaport Of Chirivico.
The mines are connected with the sea
by a railroad which Is said TO be one
Of the best equipped Of It's kind on the
island and at the Chriylco are two
wharyos and steel dock a thousand
feet long,
MINING WITH STEAM SHoVELs.
The iron ore Of Cuba Ia both mag
nctitc and hemetite. II is found chiefly
near the tops of the hills In small ir-
regular bodies without definite walls.
II is very hard and must be broken
loose from the country rock with sled
ges and explosives II is Of such a ma
ture that steam shoyels are largely
used 10 tear away the earth and UNI
cover the ore. There are hundreds Of
Iuch shOyels now working at Dali
qulri. and the Lola mine there Is being
g0uerd out much as we are eNcavat-
ing tho Culehra pass at Panama
The most OF the cuban miners are
Immigrants from northern Spain The
natives work well with the machete,
but they seem lost In the presence "
picks and snovels. Labor Is Compar-
atiycly cheap, the ordinary wage being
81 "a day for 10 hours. The companies
feed the miners II the men desire IT,.
but 90 this case they are charged %
cents a day for their food making their
pay 70 cents day ana food. The
miners live in villages built for their
use IN the immediate vicinity Of the
mines Barracks are provided for the
bachelors and huts for those who have
families Nearly every mining property
has IT'S store whore meals, provisions
and clothing can be purchased,
CUBA A LAND or MINERALS.
These mines give some idea Of the
rich iron deposits Of cuba. The island
has never been carefully prospected, all
,hOugh hundreds VI mining concessions
have been taken out and mining prop
critics are owned here and there an over
the island. II Is easy 90 get a mining
concession. ana 10 costs only a bIga-
telle 10 hold It, II one wishes TO take
out such a riRh, he has only 10 con-
form 10 certain legal teChuiCalties
and thereafter pay a small government
tax per year. The government grants
concessions for AN unlimited number OF
years, and the owner may work his
mine or not. as he pleases, His tax for
all metals except iron is at the rate Of
S. per hectare or two and One-half
acres per annum. If II Is an iron con-
cession he viii pay only 81 per hectare,
At present the Cuban government has
granted over 200 iron concessions. It
has granted las concessions for mining
manganese, 1l2 for copper, 20 FOR gold,
10 for lead, for quicksilver, for zinc,
six for petroleum, ana IS for asphalt
These items viii give an idea Of the
minerals which exist In the island. Min
erals are found In every province, from
pin1r del Rio 10 Santiago, although the
latter u.s.. above all others, the richest
I'm cuba. The concessions granted In
Santiago number 436, Of which the larg-
| est number are for iron, manganese
copper and lead. The total value Of
The mineral products Of cuba IN 1901
was 100000, Of which the most came
from Santiago.
MANGANESE MINES,
Speaking Of manganese, this is a met