The Socorro chieftain. [volume] (Socorro, N.M.) 1902-1959, 1906-09-29
ORE BODIES IN KELLY DISTRICT.
"Mines and Metals" Gives Detailed
Description of Famous Field,
and Kelly Mine.

Kelly lies near the foot of the
west slope of the Magdalena
mountains four miles south by
wagon road from Magdalena,
terminus of the branch running
west from Socorro on the main
line of the AtchiSon, Topeka &
Santa Fee railroad.
In 1903 Mrs. Gustav Billings,
of Cincinnati. sold her Kelly
mine to the Tri-Bullion Mining
and Smelling Co., of Chicago,
who now operate it. for price
reported to be 100000.
The zinc ores that it had been
necessary to extract to get ont
the cerusSite had been thrown on
the dumps, but the greater part
of the Smithsonite was in the
Slopes, so that the new owners
of the mine found themselves in
possession of large bodies of
blocked-out ore ready for ship
ment with minimum cXpendi-
ture Ol time ana TABOR.
Along the foot of the gentle
slope near Kelly extends dixie
of intrusive rhyolite, whose
western limit is generally con-
cealed by the wash that covers
the valley at the Graphic smell
ter to the depth of $50 feet.
The small dikes, which often cut
the limestone OF the mine open
ings, are in many places seen to
be olfshootS of this contact dixie.
The rhyolite has feldSpathic
matrix with occluded crystals of
quartz and oligiclaSe, and, while
whitish underground. shows "A
brick red color on the surface.
The ore was primarily a COM
plex mixture of lead, zinc, cop
per and iron sulphideS, and the
four horizons must have been
( planes of weakness along which
the metal-bearing solution pene-
trated to leave their contents in
the lenses. Metasomatic re-
placement of the limestone was
the manner in which the ore
chambers attained their present
dimensions, their diStrib button
along a given horizon resembles
that of polka dots on bed quilt.
! Considerable oxidation of the
primary ore has occurred start
ing as a rule at each longitudinal
step fault and descending along
the bedding plane so that by
passing below the sulphideS at
the base of fault block, we find
oxides at the top of the fault
block deeper down.
The oxidation of the ore and
influence of percolating waters
caused a redistribution of the
metals, often changing the in
ternal Sulphide mixture into sep
arate layers of cerussite and
mithSonite that could be easily
kept apart in mining.
The old slopes are often 300
feet long on the strike by 100
feet wide, and though the thick
ness averages only ten to fifteen
feet, as much as sixty feet is
: reached i'll places.
The Kelly shaft is in two COM
partments, cage and pipe, tim
bered throughout and sunk re-
Gently at a cost of $50 per foot
to develop the lower levels of the
mine.
The ore is hauled to a railroad
terminal switch in five-ton wag-
onS with four horses. At present
the only source of spelter is the
smithsonite ore. which is much
in demand at Pueblo for that
purpose. So far the sulphideS
have been only used for zinc,
white lead at the Graphic smell
ter in Kansas.
For the solid SulphideS little
would now be gained by local
mill. for as over % per cent OF
the ore is galena, blende, and
chalcopyrite the freight saving
on the waste shipped to Kansas
is now only -, at IS per ton
shipped, and to offset this, must
be reckoned the higher cost foi
fuel, labor and supplies that now
prevails in New Mexico. When
ever the silceous sulphideS begir
to be locally treated by washing
| however, it may then prove best
. to smelt the galena concentrates
on the spot. Not only would
the cost of fuel, and labor, on q
we'll designed blast furnace plant
with Heberlin roasting be lit
r tie more than III Kansas, but the
steady lead supply would enable
the profitable buying of dry Gus
{ tom ores, as was done formerly
: on a large scale at the Ri'
5 Grande smelte- at Socorro. 1t i
= unlilxelv that IL would. even then