The silver state news. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1907-1909, 1908-02-17

From the Pecific Miner.
There is an increasing interest in
news concerning gems. The Pacific
coast is rich in gems of a semi-pre-
cious nature. At Oroville, California
there is an excitement over the dia-
mond find in that vicinity, and in
other parts of the state there are gem
hunters who think they see fortunes.
The sapphire workings at Yogo
Gulch, Montana, are being gradually
developed into a great and growing
mining industry. An English com
panv. the New Mine Sapphire syn
dicate. has been this far the largest
produced and the one most prominent
before the public. The other company,
the American Sapphire company, fire.
ouently called the Yogo Mining com
panv, has been engeged in extensive
mining and development work, and is
now preparing to begin operation on a
larger scale than heretofore attempt
ed in Montana Taken as a whole, the
Yogo dyke is adjudged by experts n
men who are competent to judge, as
probably the greatest mine In the
world.
The Yogo's length on the surface is
four miles. and being a true igneous
dyke. it descends to an indefinite
depth. IF, having an estimated depth
of 5000 feet, below which possible
working becomes questionable, and at
an average width of six feet, although
some places it is considerable wider,
the entire content of sapphire-bearing
rock would approximate ten million
cubic Yards. The American company
are now erecting a mill to mine on an
average of ten thousand tons a day
Experts are of the opinion that if both
of the companies were to consolidate
and would work the mine as one com
panv, results would he very advanta-
geous as regards the output, and the
conversation of the property, to say
nothing of the great saving in the
expense of both Of the companies
ComDarativelv speaking. the stones so
far mined have not feen of great
value. most of them being sold for the
manufacture of watch Jewels How
ever manv of the stones have averaged
up to two and three carats when cut
and rarely up to five and six, and be
ing unusually brilliant n of good col
or when cut and free from flaws, the
Montana sapphire is the finest in the
world according to expert OPINION, al
though it brings a lower price on the
market, due mainly to the prejudice OF
the purchaser.
That many diamonds have been
crushed in the ore crushers of Califor-
MIA is easily proven by anyone who
will take the trouble to examine the
pulp over any extended area. Of
course, it would be impossible to hunt
carefully through all of the ore that
is sent into the mills, but if placer
miners would use a creased board when
working along the bank of a stream
where diamonds have been known to
have been found, many fine germ
would be discovered, even if, in fact,
the original dyke could be located,
which is easily possible. Diamonds
have been found over the whole state
of California almost, and he who To-
Gates the pipe or pipe from which they
come will certainly become rich be-
yond the dreams of avarice, and it is
certainly worth some trouble to seek
it. The grease board offers the sim
plest and at the same time the most
easy method of keeping tab on gravel
tailings. This extremely simple affair
consists only of a smooth pine board
coated with tallow, over which the
gravel can be passed by means of 2
stream of water. If there are dia
monds in the gravel they will be found
adhering to the tallow on the board.
All other stones will pass over. The
discovery of this method was made
accidentally by a worker in the Kim
herlv mines in South Africa, and has
resulted in the saming of many thous-
ands of dollars worth of small tones
at those mines, which otherwise would
have been lost.
An interesting discovery of pyrope
garnet was made during the building
of the subways in New York. About
one thousand feet south of the start
ing point in New York, beautiful
grains or nodalues of pyrope were OBJ
tanned, yielding gems up to one carats
when cut. The specimens were found
connection with serpentine and kero-
lite. Pyrope is a mineral belonging to
the igneous rocks, especially perid-
%otites, from the formation of which
serpentine is frequently found. This
character of garnet is that which il
usually found on the desert country of
Arizona and New Mexico being quite
plentiful and common The essonite.
or partly decomposed variety, is very
common in San Diego and other south
ern counties Of California, while the
darker pyrope is rather scarce.
--o-