Los Angeles herald., 1907-11-25
MINING IN AFRICA
IS EXPENSIVE WORK
The TransvaaI Was Bankrupt in 1877
but Has Made Great Record
Since as a Pro.
ducer

South Africa extends from the cape to
the Zambesi river about 100 miles, cover
ing an area of 1,400,000 square miles. 1t
takes in Rhodesia, the Transvaal, Swazi-
land, Basutoland, Natal, Orange river
colony, Cape colony, Zululand and Bechu-
araland. The native population including
Portuguese territory is about 100000. The
area of Rhodesia is 10000 square miles.
The Transvaal is 126,000 square miles in
area (about four-fifths the area of Cali
formal.
The most important gold discoveries
have been made in the Transvaal, where
now one-third of the total gold output IF
the world is produced from stretch Of
gold-bearing ledges sixty miles in length.
The Transvaal was bankrupt country
in 1871 but it is now producing gold at
the rate of $120,000,00O per annum.
The white population of the Transvaal
is about 800, 900; about 114000 Of this popu-
lation are located in the vicinity of the
mines. There are 100000 natives and $1,000
Chinese employed in the mines of the
ysitwatersrand and there are about $4,000
natives employed in other occupations in
and near the mining towns. The 114,000
white people of various occupations on the
mining area of the Witwatersrand are
supported directly or indirectly entirely
by the mining industry and their numbers
have increased proportionally as the min
ing industry mas progressed.
Ore Runs Low Grade
| When the mines were first discovered
only the high grade ore was mined and
| treated. At the present time the average
value of the ore mined and treated Is
OILY $3.50 per ton. 1t REQUIRES economical
mine management to produce $40, 000, 900 per
month from ore going $3.50 per ton in a
country where living expenses are twice
as high as they are in the United States,
and to pay interest on capital invested.
The skilled labor is performed by white
men and the unskilled labor by negro
natives or Chinese under the direction of
white men.
The white miners and mechanics mot
including officials) are paid s4 to So per
coy, and the colored labor costs from %
cents to so cents per day, including food.
White contractors make from $3.50 to $500
per month on rock-drill work. Over rs
I'per cent of the mining costs is paid out
fer wages, and three-tifths of this amount
is for white labor, including staff officials
and clerks. 1t will be seen that all white
labor could not be used for mining So ore
so as to pay for supplies and interest on
capital invested where the conditions are
such that 1t takes four people to mine
and extract the gold out of a ton of it, In
a country where the cost of living IS
couble what it is in the United States A
mine crushing 5OO tons per day is some
times capitalized at $2,5OO,000.
Working expenses vary from So to So
per ton. The natives and Chinese are
fairly good workers when properly man
aged The principal work they do under
around is single-hand drilling, shoveling
and tramming and assisting white rock
drill men and other miners. Some of them
are proficient at single-hand drilling and
they can put down three-foot hole in
IN from two and nua-ha1f In
three and one-half hours, and this is con-
sidered shifts work and entities them to
days pay.