Tonopah bonanza. [volume] (Butler City [i.e. Butler], Nev.) 1901-1909, 1905-12-02
OFFICIAL PAPER OF NYE COUNTY.
CIRCULATION IN TONOPAH
OR MILLS.

SME Oh
Does the great mining camp Of
Tonopah need shelters or quartz
mills2
Now let US consider this question
for a few minutes. for it will take but
a few lines to demonstrate to our
readers, that we are right and ab.
solutely so.
1t is beginning to dawn upon us all,
that we must keep and work our
ores at home and not ship them over
railroads to smelters end pay ex-
orbitant transportation charges, and
high working and sampling charges
at the smelling plants, and at the
same time not receive the full value
contained in the ore.
Tonopah is today at the mercy Of
the shelters, and the many railroad
lines, for upon every ton of ore
shipped from here we are losing
money on our profit. This can admit
of no argument, for it constitutes a
line OF facts. Our output is curtailed
by the universal and arbitrary law of
supply and demand. Railroad rates
are high, and smelling rates are GO
ing higher.
What are Tonopah mlne-owuers
going to do? They must either
erect shelters or quartz mills here
and run their ore into bullion.
Now who will call any of the Tono-
pah ores smelling ores2 We have
noticed lately different papers
speaking Of a shelter at this point,
but we think a few good quartz
mills would better fill the bill.
Is there any mill man, or smelling
man, or metallurgist who would pick
up a piece OF rock from any of our
mines and pronounce ii smelling ore?
Not one, 1t is a pure silicious ore
carrying a small percentage Of iron
and %sulphides, but no lead; not as
much as n percent on the average.
Smelling men will tell you that ore
when it is properly huxed, and ready
TOR treatment, enters the smeIter
containing at the least, ten per cent
Of lead, no less.
The ores Of the biggest smelling
camps in this country all carried
high values in lead. Cerro Gordo
ore averaged forty per cent, Eureka
thirty.five aud Spruce Mountain,
Bristol and others about the same
relative percentage. Lead ore
sometimes carries its own tluxes
other times a shovel full or two to a
charge, Of iron ore, lime, or silica is
added to make a proper luxing.
1t takes, on an average, at least
four tons OF an ordinary grade lead
ore to work one ton of Tonopah ore.
Now by way of illustration; this
camp with its output curtailed by
shelters, is shipping in the neighbor-
hood Of 100 tons a week, or $500
tons o month. To reduce this ore by
mean of smelling would require at
least $4,000 tons OF lead ore OF
twelve per cent and upward with the
necessary auxes, Where in the
name Of all that is practical are 25,
600 tons Of lead ore per month com
ing from2 To pay freight on all OF
that ore to Tonopah, and freight its
bullion back, at an expensive freight
rate is imperious. Tonopah has
blocked out In its mines, and is in a
position to extract more ore than
Che mines OF the balance Of the state
combined.
1t is Assured to say that four times
as much lead ore can be freighted in
10 Tonopah, as Tonopah can produce
silica ore.
Some people r talking about dull
times, why Tonopsh can produce
with the mines Of the Tonopah com {,
pany, the Belmont, Montana, Ex-
tension, Midway, West End, North
Star and others, at least 5000 tons '
week or 10000 tons o month Of pay s
rock, and where are the mines that I
ean ship into Tonopah, v e so, 900
tons q month OF leaG ore to work 9