Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-02

CfDlFS
gion seems to be one vast rock covered
with a thin skin of earth, upon which
trees and grass grow. The surface of the
rock is irregular 1t rises and falls, with
water in the hollOws, and here and there
lake. In places the rock crops out on the
top of the ground. and in this rock Sill
yer vein may sometimes be seen. These
veins run for hundreds of feet across the
country. and everywhere they show up on
the surface. In the TimmOns mine, for in
stance the earth has been stripped off 20
the width of narrow pavement for dis
lance of a thousand feet. The rock has
been ground smooth by glaciers. When
cleaned it looks much like a tagged side
walk. Running through it in Il winding
way is a vein of almost pure silver, SO
rich that you can see the metal shine as
though the rock was plated with it. You
can rub the vein with your feet and polish
it. Indeed, 1t makes me think of melted
silver spoons mixed with a little sand pour
ed down in the crevices of the rock. [
walked over this silver street for hundreds
of feet, securing the precious metal with
my shoes as | did so.
Big Silver Nuggets.
This is some of the richest of the Cobalt
ore so far discovered. Nuggets of silver
which are 50 and 90 per cent pure have
been taken out of the Timmons mine, and
some of the nuggets weigh three and four
silver and rock the size of a paving brick
which | could not lift Indeed. much of
the ore makes me think Of the almost pure
copper nuggets which one finds in the Lake
Superior mines. These veins of silver are
not regular in width nor do they run even
throughout. Here and there branch veins
jut out from the main one like the veins Of
leaf. and the ore has everywhere soaked
into the adjoining rocks.
Like a Quarry.
c. tho t,oro .---
quarrying than mining The vein with the
rock on both sides of it is blasted out and
the best of the ore bagged up in sacks. The
country about is cut up by long trenches
from ten to twenty feet deep and five or
more feet wide. which have been blasted
and cut out of the rock to get the ore. The
sides OF the hills are quarried where the
vein breaks out. the veins being followed
in this way for long distances.
So far no one knows how deep down the
silver veins go The biologists say that the
silver will lessen in extent as it descends
and it is claimed that this has been the
case in the Tretheway mine and in some
of the Earle properties owned in part by
the Standard Oil Company. The deenest
mine so far sunk is the Timmons mine. to
which have referred. In this shaft has
been put down beside one of the veins to
depth of ninety feet. and the vein is found
mine has already shipped about 200 cars
of ore in bags the output being worth at
the least half a million dollars.
Mr.. Joseph c. Houston. the manager of
the OBrien mine tells me he believes the
ore TO be a primary rather than a second
airy formation, and that it will grow richer
as the excavation goes down. Major Nor
rlSon of the Ottawa Citizen, who has min
ing properties here. has the same belief as
to richness in regard to depth. He con-
slders the camp one OF the richest mineral
fields of the world When he came here
last spring he published a statement that
from R.-1
dollars worth of silver practically in sight
He now thinks that his estimate might
have been trebled and still been under the
truth
The Extent of the Mines.
As to the value of the mines l make no
prediction. | know that the silver is here
and that there seems to me vast quantities
of 1t. / have seen thousands of sacks.
each holding about a half bushel of ore
which is exceedingly rich, and some of it
almost pure silver. / have examined the
veins, and have found some that are al
most foot wide. and so rich In silver that
l could see it shining out of the rocks
But how much there is of it or how long
ii will last | do not pretend to say The
biologists may be right in that 1T will peter
out after a hundred feet or So and the
miners may be right in that there are great
wide veins In solid masses of the precious
metal far down. From what can be seen
on the surface there are undoubtedly mill
lions of dollars worth of silver here and
the camp will increase in value as it is de-
veloped.
At present there are about twenty mines
working. Some are owned by Buffalo peo-
pie some by New York parties, and more
by Canadians. The field far as defined
is about three miles square, with the very
richest mines within radius of two miles
IL embraces Lake Cobalt, and there has
been a proposition to drain the lake in or
der to mine the veins that run under it.
This has not been permitted by the govern
ment. There are now men digging out
quantities of ore within ten feet OF the
banks of the lake. and the veins there are
SO plainly marked that the refuse is car
red ont in wheeibarrows and dumped on
the shores
Tunnels win probably be made under the
bed OF the lake to get out the ore. Such
mining is not impossible. Some of the best
mines OF the world are under the water.
There are fifty miles of tunnels out OF
which coal has been taken from under the
Pacific ocean. in the Bay of Nagasaki.
Japan and vast quantity of coal IS
mined under the Pacific off the southern
coast of Chile / have been in both mines
and have ridden for miles through the
Chilean tunnels on the electric cars used
for getting out the coal away down there
under the sea.