The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-12-30
BulIfrog Is Making Good
AS a Genuine Producer

Rhyolite, New, Dec. 24.-The story of
the Bullfrog district today is one of
gratifying contrasts and tremendous
import in the present making of south
ern Nevadas mining history.
Almost two years ago a boom landed
mere which was second only to the ia
nous rush into Goldfield the fall and
winter of 1904 and 1905. Prices for real
estate scared high and out of all pro-
portion to the mineral prospects known
at that time. During the summer of
1905 work Jagged partly on account Of
the heat but more especially was 1t
caused by the reaction which surely
comes from unhealthy initiation of any
description. There were about dozen
property owners who. knowing the real
merit of their ground. continued dog
gedly to pursue the work planned.
They bored deeply into the bowels of
the great mountains, always encour-
aged to pierce deeper and deeper as
the ore bodies increased in size and
value. The best mining superintend-
ents in the country were directing these
workings and never did the stockhold-
ers and directors lose faith in their
properties.
was SdiQ OIL the us
trict until the famous strike on the
Denver mine was given out TO the pub
lie in the fall of 1905. From that dis
coVery dates the commencement of
Bullfrogs regeneration; since then his
leaps have been tremendous and his
footing secure.
Thousands of tons of shipping ore are
ready for the cars and millions of dol
lars worth of ore is blocked out. The
Las Vegas & Tonopah railroad is con-
gested with machinery in transit for
the mines. The arrival of the TOnOpah-
Garfield railroad is assured by Feb. 10
next, and ''Borax" Smith will reach
here by the middle Of this coming
April With three lines of steel stretch
ing from us across the desert, the con-
tinuous and rapid discoveries of rich
mineral deposits north, south, east
and west, Rhyolite. the present
metropolis of southern Nevada, will ex-
perience a boom equal to that which
places Goldfield among the most re-
markable mining camps in the worlds
history of mining.
The population Of Rhyolite at pres
ent is about 1000, but three months
from today it will probably be nearer
5000. Daily arrivals in the camp num-
Ger from % to 90 peOple-few return.
J. Ross Clark recently stated that he
estimated the ore ready for shipment
at the present time and that which was
blocked out and in position for imme-
date handling would easily amount to
Se 600 tons; make a low estimate of its
ton value at $40. and it reaches close TO
So 500, 600. 1t would require 1856 gOn-
dolas to haul this immense body of ore,
sand the net freight income to the rail-
road would figure handsomely on the
right side OF the ledger.
At the present time there are 1000
miners at work in this district at a
minimum wage Of $3.50 per day, many
getting $3.50 for eight hours toll. Two
hundred saws and hammers are driv-
ing nails and cutting boards to pre-
pare places so that RhyOlite may eat
and sleep. A hum of activity is in the
air. and no place IN the world offers
opportunities to the man of moderate
capital as does Rhyolite and the Bull
frog district. A description of the day
business in this thriving mining camp
is one long encomium to merit and re-
source.
The government. instead Of assist
ing In the progress, has, through its
dilatory and slow-mOving methods,
tended to make the mail service con-
tinuOus source OF annoyance. The
camp has long needed better postof-
flee facilities. The present force con-
sists of a postmaster and a clerk, with
an occasional hand from the postmas-
ter's family-without recompense. This
Office sells about 81 800 worth of postage
stamps monthly. The money orders
ema1ating here amount TO from 81, 900
TO $1,000 daily. and the registration
amounts to $50 letters daily. This lat
ter work would be one mans duty in
any other camp in the United States.
Postoffice inspectors draw salaries from
the government, but seem TO dislike the
long desert rides into the interior OF the
state. There are consequently no tours
of inspection for our benefit
The deposits in Rhyolite banks
amount to S1,250,000; a year ago they
were less than 100000. Since the ar
rival of the Western Union Telegraph
company their local Office has been do
ing a business of 5000 per day. Two
men do the work in this office.
The mines of the Bullfrog district
are too we'll known to require any de-
tailed description at this time. There
are at least a dozen properties in the
camp which have long since passed
from the prospect stage into what may
be conservatively called mines. Among
the properties entitled to this distinc-
ton are: The Montgomery-Shosho
Tramp Consolidated, Gold Bar, Orig
inal Bullfrog, Homestake, Banner, DEN
yer, Gibraltar and Mayflower. Several
estates have showings which would en-
title them to be called mines, but there
is not quite enough ore blocked out to
insure them place among the steady
shippers. The Gold Bar, Banner,