Los Angeles herald., 1908-10-05
AUSTIN MINES
IN BIG MERGER
NEW CONCERN TO OPERATE
EXTENSIVELY
Great Producers of Early Days, by
United Effort, Expect to Resume
Place as Nevada Bonanza
Camp


These properties, some of which have
already produced millions, will be op'
Grated extensively by the Austin Man
haitian Consolidated Mining company
a new organization. =
These mines were first discovered II
1852. three years after the location nl
the famous Comstock lode, which holds
the worlds high record for productloh
The mines of the Reese river us
frict now embraced in this consoIda-
tion have a past production aggregat-
ing $4,000 600. the second largest tota
for mines in this class in the Onlteo
States.
Sixty-nine of the developed mines lie
on Lander hill, back Of and adjoining
the town of Austin, New In the pas'
each of these mines was operated Wltn
a separate shaft, hoisting works anu
pumping machinery, necessitating tha'
the ore, after being hoisted to the sur
face, be hauled to the mills on wagons
The average depth of these mines
on Lander hill is less than 400 feet.
thousand feet below the outcroppings
on Lander hill has been constructed a
tunnel, now practically completed, al
a cost of more than 100000. This
tunnel is 5000 feet in length and Its
main branch 2S40 feet. 1t has already
cut 32 veins and has demonstrated the
fact that with depth the veins are be-
coming larger and the values more
constant.
On Lander Hill
The tunnel is now connected with
the principal mines on Lander hill and
the work is being pushed as rapidly dSs
possible to connect 1t with others OF
these properties, thereby affordlng ell
ficient drainage without cost, and 4
fr1
ores from the mines to the mill.
In the past, ores running under 500
a ton in value have been considered
low grade, although DR.. Rosseter w.
Raymond, United States government
commissioner of mining said: "Ores
in this district are considered low
grade which in any other mining camp
would be called very rich"
The records of the Manhattan Silver
Mining company, one of constltu-
ent companies, show that for twenty
years the average mill recoveries We're
$245.55 a ton. while the very rich ores
were shipped direct to the smelters'
and averaged much higher. This rec
ord is absolutely unparalleled in the
mining history of the world. There is
not another record in existence where
the ores have averaged so high in
value covering so long a period
The so-called low grade ores, II
mined at all, were sorted out and LEFT
OIL the dumps, but We're often either
not mined or used as filling in the old
slopes For every ton Of high grade
ore taken from these mines 1t is safe
to say that at least ten tons of low
and medium grade have been left In
the slopes or on the dumps, and there
are therefore enormous quantities OF
these low and medium grade ores
which, under modern methods, will af-
ford large profits.
Mills Are Erected
The company has concentrating mills
at cost of over $2oO,O00.
and it is engaged in adding to the ca
pacity of these mills and installing
betterments and improvements which
will enable them to handle the low and
medium grade ores economically and
Besides connecting the tunnel with
the various mines the Consolidated
company is erecting a cyanide plant
for the treatment of the tailings which
alone will save from Sc to $40 or every
ton of ore milled. They are also In
creasing the crushing and concentrat-
ing capacity and erecting a hydro
electric power plant which Will save
$4,000 to $4,000 per month on the full
operation Of these properties.
The mill, as soon as the improve
ments now being installed are COM
pleted, will have a daily capacity of
200 tons, which it is proposed then to
increase. as circumstances
permit.
The betterments and improvements
being installed will, according to the
engineers, effect a minimum
saving of $4,000 to 100000 per month,
over and above the usual profits of
the past, and are in themselves suf-
hcient to pay large returns on the in
Vestment.
The problem of the treatment of the
low grade ores of Austin and the Reese
river district has been solved. The
method arrived at after two months
testing by D. C. Boley, the noted met
allurgist of Chicago, will enable the
mills at Austin to prolitably treat $40
ore.
There are hundreds of thousands of
tons of this once so-called low grade
1re now in the slopes and gaub of the
Austin Manhattan mines, where 1t was
eft by former operators as not worth
he handling. 1t only awaits the re-
opening of the big tunnel and the re-
labilitation of the mill along the lines
designed by Boley to be brought from
profit. In numerous places in the COM
)anys mines under Lander hill, where
he veins are from two to five feet in
width, for every ton of high grade ore
aiken out and sent to be treated by
pam -amalgamation or to the smelter
here were three tons of low grade left
n the workings. 1t is estimated by
he companys engineers that the big
unnel with its crosscuts and laterals
Juts in sight enough of this low grade
IRE to keep their mill running forty
ears at its present capacity.
All this has to do with low grade
res only There are yet unmined In
hese properties apparently ineXhaust-
BILE deposits of ore of the high grade. |
These will be mined and treated by the |
.boVe process in the Austin mill. In |
his class of ores the average Of values |
n the past has been $245 to the ton |
through a total production of $65,000, |
90 in bullion. 1t is said that with |
he present mill capacity the yearly |
utput of the Austin Manhattan Con-
olidated Mining company will be not |
sss than $1,000,000 per annun. And
ghen the properties are developed and
onnected UP by crosscuts with the
lain tunnel and the mill capacity in
roased according to present plans this
nnual output will be quadrupled.
With these things coming as fast as
honey and tremendous energy can
ring them, Austin should speedily re-
ume her place as the bonanza produc-
lg camp of Nevada. it is said.