The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1906-11-11

which, with the I'll Paso and North
western. is controlled by Phelps, Dodge
Il co. This company has expended
millions In opening up copper mines
In Arizona and Sonora, and has re-
Gently engaged In coal mining In Col
fax County, In Northern New Mexico,
on an extensive scale.
The establishment OF smelter at
GuaymaB, by the Mexican American
Smelling and Refining Company, has
given nm impetus TO mining all along
the Sonora railway This smeter
cost s350,o0O.
One OF the big gold fields Of Sonora
In owned and operated by John w.
Gates and his associates at MlnaD
Prietas The Minas Prietas and La
Colorado mines are supposed to be e.
Enormously rich. The corporation In
close. and no stock is floating about.
Minas PrIetas lies thirteen miles east
OF Torres station, on the Sonora rail-
road. II Ia said that the little railroad
connecting these places has made its
owner millionaire.
Another important gold camp Ia that
dominated by the Giroux Mining Com
There the mines known as La Sui
/ tana and I'll Capote have been turning
taI Tho al
tana IL down 1.100 feet, and IL the
deepest mine In Sonora.
The San Juan Batista, group, near
the old mineral OF San Juan. is now
being developed. These are anti
guaa," or old mines worked In the
eighteenth centuary by the Jesuits.
The silver ground out In the ancient
arrastras. ruins OF which are still to
be seen, was taken to the City OF Mex
leo on muleback an interminable jour
ney. San Juan Bautista was In old
times the capital OF Sonora a region
which stretched almost to Canada
The mission church, beautiful spec
linen OF ecclesiastical architecture OF
the Spanish order, stands in part
" ruined state. The San Juan mines
Yield silver copper, and gold. and are
being DEVELOPED under direction os
George +. woodward, of Montezuma,
who discovered them. Interesting re-
ferences to the rich San Juan mines
are made in books dealing with the
history of Mexico in the eighteenth
century. Near the San Juan proper
ties, at Cumpas, the Transvaal Cop
per Company has erected large smell
ter, and is developing adjacent mines.
Col Epes Randolph, the right
hand man Of f. H. Hartman in rail-
road operation and conjunction IN
Arizona and Sonora is the principal
owner of the Llano de Orc, as implied
by its name, is a plain or valley yiel-
; ding placer gold in a conglomerate oil
cement and gravel. The mines are
said to have yielded 100000 In 1905
are operated in Sonora. one of the big
properties being La Bufa, east OF the
mine Is owned by Richardson Bros.
who ship their product to FL Paso and
San Francisco for reduction. TnS
Nina Mexico, near San Xavier, has
yielded a fortune to the Ortega estate
The Trinidad in Sahuaripa dis
is a steady producer of silver.
Mention Is made here only Of Inn
portant mines and diAtricts, which
would attract in any mining regior
In the world. Dozens of properties
large and small, are now being devel-
oped all through the State, on botf
sides of the Yaqui River. The great
mineral belts which have raised Ari-
zona to the first grade are equally
strong in Sonora, which is geolog-
ically a twin of its northern neigh
bor
The transformation of Sonora re-
sulting from these railroad and mining
operations Is of interest in a sociolog'
ical sense. The Jesuits and Domin'
leans have long since passed away
The mission bells. which still hang II
the ruined belfries have not rung fol
decades. The Mexican population
fringing the Sonora Railroad and oc'
cupying small ranches along the
streams, Is face to face with the Amer
lean invasion. The scenes resulting
from this commlngling of the old anc
the new are sometimes grotesque.
Is not unusual, for instance, to SCI
blanket Indians hanging about smel'
ters and mines, looking in blank a
magement upon the operation of cleo
trical machinery. Occasionally {
band of Yaquis swoops dowi
upon a party travelling in an automo
bile. and the struggle between old ant
new takes a mighty practical tune a.
the bullets fly.
The Mexican people, as rule, arr
glad to see Americans come in and de-
velop their country. They make fan
laborers, and unless the lower classes
are full of mescal, they are peaceable
The higher classes, comprising th'
officials. are very friendly to the Am
orleans. Some of the better-clas'
-,..,,, oro n,ap Of hiph StandinS