Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1908-06-05
MINING EPOCH
OPENING OF A
BIG SHELTER
Douglas Copper company's
Big Plant in State of Sonora
Means Much for the West
Coast of Mexico.

NoGALES. Ariz.. June 4.-rhe
blowing in OF the Douglas Copper
compsuy's new snelter at Fundicion,
Sonora, May II, marked an epoch in
the development of the mining indus
try on the west coast of Mexico.
Heretofore every pound of ore
shipped from the Pacific slope had 10
bear the heavy expense of Transports
ton Do distant markets-first by pack
or wagon train, from usually tar in
land points difficult of access, to the
nearest deep water port or to the
railway; thence long haul.
II shipped from a port, the ore
either went around the peninsula of
Lower California, and then north TO
san Francisco or Seattle, or it made
the tip south around the Horn, and
then TO Europe or New York. IL
shipped by rail. the ore Jared even
worse; the railway freight and the
custom house expenses, together with
the inevitable shrinkage in the ore
from its hard ride and transfers en-
route to inland smelters, made a
headache for the suffering miner
Small wonder. il he resorted to drink.
Nov, however. the new sInelter
affords to an extensive territory a
nearby market for the output of its
mines. The plant is located on the
main lire of the Cananea Rio Yaqui
& Pacific railway being built south
by the Southern Pacific, and is about
midway between the Yaqui and
Mayo rivers. This main line. Ito
gether with the Sonora railway
runs through 2 mineral country from
Nogales, at the international bound
AIRY line. already we'll into S1noIua,
with GuasialaiaTa as its ultimate
terminal n
Feeders greatly Increase the. Tibu-
tary territory. At Torres. on tho
Sonora railway. section, the branch
line 20 Represo brings in the products
from La Colorado and MinaS PFietIs.
as well as FROM the region eastward,
even beyond the, Yaqui river. Just
north of FundicfoR the rich Yaqui
mining county is being penetrated
by q branch line of road running up
the river. Just south. the Alamos
branch opens up that well known sec
ton About 100 miles to the south
the Orient railway is crossed by the
main line, that road affording an out
let to the rich Fuetrte mining coun-
try.
Ore originating on the Gull of Cali
foTnia or the mainland co2st further
south finds a near port II Guaynas,
on the Sonora railway, or at TOpolO-
bampa, on the Orient railway, from
either of which ports it can reach
Funficion by rail Guaymas is much
nearer the smelter. though, than is
TopoIobampo.
The plant was contemplated origin
ally only foS smelling the ores from
the Douglas Copper coSlpany's near
by mines, chief of which is FL Cobre,
and for the present, doubtless, the
main supply will come from these
company mines, with comparatively
small proportion coming from the
outside. But with the rapid develop
ment of the mining industry, result
ing from the improved transportation
facilities and the availability of this
new smelter, purchased ore supplies
Will gradually increase in volume.
It may be that finally they will even
exceed the receipts from the com
pany'S mines, although in FL Cobre
mine alone sufficient ore is blocked
out to feed the smelter for FIVE years
al It's present capacity.
As yet but the first unit of the
plant has been built, of which the
more important installations are as
follows Morrison suspension fire
box boilers of $50 H. p. each. de
signed for work at 100 pounds pres
sure: tandem compound Bates blow
ing engines, direct connected to Roots
high-pressure blowers; Bates vertical
cross-compound engines direction
Rected TO Western Electric company
generators, supplying current for
driving all machinery and pumps for
which direct current at 500 volts will
be used, while lighting will be at no
volts: 44xi60 inch Power & Mining
Machinery company furnace vita Is
foot settlers; 11-foot balloon-shaped
dust chamber connecting at one end
by 6-foot down-takes with furnaces
and at the other end with a self
supporting steel stack - feet in d.
ameuer at the base and 8 feet at the
top, with a total height Of III feet;
jeffrey steel pan rollerbearing con-
veyors. two per furnace, which ele-
waite the weighted charge 10 feed
floor. discha-ging it into a steel bin
at each side of furnace. TO be run
thence directly in the furnace.
A 36-inch gauge steam railway
reaches all parts of the plant. The
ore as received is unloaded directly
from the railroad cars into the mar
row gauge cars standing alongside,
the sample going 70 the sampling
min while the balance is hauled over
an elevated track and dumped into
bins. From these bins the ore is
drawn of below into charge cars
when wanted for smelling and dumped
into the jeffrey furnace conveyors
mentioned above
Automatic sampling and a very
large elimination Of hand labor
throughout in the movement Of ma
terial. electric transmission Of power,
and the employment of the latest i'm
proved 9esfg as everywhere, all In
dicate The thoroughly modern charge
ter Of the plant.