Gilpin observer., 1905-07-06
NEWS FROM THE MINES and MILLS
Profits From Lessees.

| ~''s~ - .~SSSSSs
After having been officially an
nounced as worked out" Stratton's
independence. at Victor, in the Grip
pie Creek district, turned over to les
sees. Is paying dividends at the rate Of
100000 per annum. The company is
deriving revenue from ore found out in
the granite area to the south, In Wash
ington ground. The company derives
profit for everything 1t does-the les
sees pay for everything-hoisting, tool
sharpening, rent of air drills, steel and
the like-and after the payment of all
charges of all kinds, the company de.
ducts it's royalty, the leaser getting the
balance. That the leaser should sue
ceed where the company failed is not
surprising when all the facts are taken
into consideration. The policy of this
particular company was to exhaust the
mine as soon as possible, but in doing
SO, it failed to carry on the necessary
development to keep pace with the ter
rife production maintained.
| Had the policy of systematic devel-
opment been followed the company
would have obtained in addition the
profits derived also by the lessees. But
this Is case where individual effort
and enterprise has succeeded where
corporation endeavor has failed. The
man who leased block of ground and
personally directed the work of his
men and sought to break the ground
for the smallest possible sum of
money, certainly had an advantage Of
a management that rarely saw the un-
/ harprnnnd WnrkinUc Tho Inv
daily study, understood conditions that
could only be appreciated by daily in
spection-he worked with as few men
as possible-he made every dollar earn
another dollar. IL he could not, the dol
lar would not be invested.
| That the company appreciated the
fact that as corporation 1t had not
carried on its work as it should have
done, is shown in the clause in the
leases which compels the lessees to
| perform a certain amount of develop
Lient worh-compels them to do work
which, had it been done by the COM
pany would have resulted in greater
profit to the company.
The company has the advantage of
dealing with the best set of lessees in
the country-men who have made
money at the business and who are not
AFRAID 10 Spenu thousands OF dollars IN
development-one lessee in Cripple
Creek spent nearly $4,000 in develop
ing and improving mine leased to
him. The lessee studies the mistakes
of the owners-takes advantages of all
the errors to which a company itself
seems to be blind. perhaps by reason
of the fact. that they committed them,
and thus is successful.
AS a rule, the lessees in the Cripple
Creek district do fully as good work as
do owners, and in some cases much
better. The independence manage
ment candidly admits the skill and ac-
tivity of the lessees in opening ore in
Washington ground-the examining en-
gineer, when the sale of the property
was made to the English syndicate.
spoke of the ore to be developed in
that section, and constant efforts,
through a period of several years, to
lease that section, was indicative Of its
existence at that point The capital
stock of Strattons Independence Is
5000. .O0O-$4 SOC, ,S63 has peen paid in
dividends. The stock of the company
was sold, however, on a basis of $13,-
100000.
At the present rate of production.
due almost entirely to the activity of
the Cripple Creek lessee, the com
pany is laying dividends at the rate of
ten per cent. on the par value of its
5tock.-Ores and Metals.