Watertown weekly leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1906-1908, 1907-05-10
THE M0NTFORD LEAD
ORE MINES VISITED
EUGENE WARDWEL WRITES OF
RECENT DISSERTATIONS.
Particular Reference is Made to
the O. P. David Mine-WOrk is
Being Pushed With Vigor-EV-
erything is Open for Inspection
Remarks are Worth Reading.

Editor Leader Il suppose the aver
age citizen is more OF less interested
III the subject of lead mines and the
ore taken from them. | recently
visited the mines near Montford. Per
haps some remarks in regard to the
subject might be worth reading.
Take the o P. David mine one half
mile south of Monttord where work
is going on and the business is being
pushed with vigor, you can learn much
about lead mining Everything about
this mine is open for inspection and
the men at WORK about the place will
freely answer any questions The day
| was there one of the officers was
there and | was fortunate enough to
interest him so that he showed me all
over the works, taking great pans to
explain everything There is no stock
for sale, all having been subscribed
for by wealthy men. In this mine
pure lead jack and sulphur ore is found
In paying quantities at depth of l25
feet | might here remark that sulphur
ore Is generally found much nearer
the surface and that lead ore is lmbed-
ded in the rock and in seams between
the rocks, also in what they call clay
beds. This particular officer, whom |
talked with, claims that lead ores are
deposited by water as it flows slowly
along between the rocks and crevices
That it is first dissolved from mineral
and vegetable substances and probably
also, from mineral mat. ers in the soil
and rocks. He says IN proof of this
IS the fact that the top surf ce of the
layers whether jack or lead ore is full
of fossil remains Water containing
large quantities of the mineral as it
flows slowly along deposits the lead
In any sort Of Seam or pocket or
crevice either in the soil or rocks
There are no signs on the surface of
the ground to go by TO Indicate where
you may find lead. The deposlting
process Is going On continually as can
be seen in the old lead mines of
Galena, abandoned fifty or sixty years
age, where a deposit Of the ore Is found
after pumping out the water Al!
good lead mines have to contend with
a large quantit of water In the o
2 David mine, he eek and clay bed
cont i0iGg the ore. is blasted and
picked loose compressed air beihg
Ell to run the diamond drills to drill
holes where they place the shots
The Iousened rock is carried from
the bottom of the shaft, in bucket
by strong cable to the very top OF
the building The cable is attache q
to a windIass when is run by the en-
CINE and controlled by brakes so the
cattle can be stoEpf or started at any
point From the a &c bin into : hict
the rock is dumped 1T is PUT through
crushers and rollers until it is made
as fiae as sand and flour From this
point it Is carried dov ward through
troughs INTO series of water tight
boxes Gr small lis sc placed IN a rev
that the a a eE o. Gft1CWs from the lst
to End box End TO 3rd, etc The boxes
have a bottom which is controlled by
machinery. The contents beng kept
constantly churning allows the lead to
settle to the bottom from whence it
can be removed.
Yours truly,