The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1909-11-13
GROWTH IN GOLD MINES.
Antiquated Steam Machinery Replac-
ell by Later Methods.
From the Philadelphia Record.

From the Philadelphia Record.
Human ingenuity and energy are
being exhausted in the West in the eff
fort to make the gold production of
the United States this year exceed the
production Of 1908, which was the
highest for many years. In 1908 the
gold production of $9O,313,3OO was
something over $6,O00,O 900 in advance
of the production of 19O7--due in a
large measure. to the perfection of
new and scientific methods of extract
ing the precious metal from refrac-
tory or low grade ores.
In the great gold-mining States of
the West a revolution is being enacted
in the mining camps. Antiquated ma
chinery is thing of the past.
Last year the six States of Colora-
do, Alaska, California, South Dakota
and Utah supplied 90 per cent. Of the
total gold production Of the United
States. Apparently the gold resources
of these States are inexhaustible. All
of them require different methods of
mining. yet the ingenuity Of man has
met every demand, and every year
sees some new triumph accomplished
and some new difficulty in mining
overcome.
In Colorado it is estimated th.. the
gold mining industry gives employ
ment to over 1900 persons, and the
yearly payroll is more than $4,000
600. In the earliest days Of quartz
mining, before powder was used,
mines could not be worked to depth
of more than SO feet in some districts.
The water had to be lifted by hand,
and generally the first appearance of
subterranean flow was a signal for
abandoning mines that have since
been worked to depth of thousands
of feet at great profit.
The evolution of placer mining has
been even more astounding than that
of deep mining. One can see the con-
trast even today in the United States.
In Arizona there Is a placer field Of
1000 acres that is worked by Mexi-
cans in the most primitive manner
the water being carried on the backs
Of burros for six or eight miles. This
form of "panning" was practiced in
early days of placer mining. The old
time placer miner was equipped with
a gold pan, Long Tom" rocker and
pick and shovel. and with these crude
instruments succeeded in wrestling
many millions from the earth. But
this form Of mining was slow, and
only the richest pockets" could be
worked. Something was needed that
would work faster and clean up the
ground In more economical fashion,
so at Yankee Jim, Placer county, Cali
fornia, in 1852. there appeared the
first hydraulic machinery. An ingen-
ious miner, whose name is lost to
fame, contrived a simple apparatus,
the hose being made Of cowhide. 1t
proved practical, however, and soon
there came into general use the hy-
draulic machinery that is now a fami-
liar sight in many placer fields-great
streams being shot into bearing
earth at tremendous pressure and
washing the gravel into sluices, where
1t is treated.
Even the hydraulic machinery prov
ed to have its drawbacks. however. 1t
required much water, from running
streams. and, as the Western country
was being settled by ranchmen who
needed all the available water for ir-
rigation, suits were instituted, and in
many cases the mining interests were
losers in court.
The attention Of mining men in the
placer fields was turned to the gold
dredge, machine that was invented
by a New Zealander in the eighties.
The gold dredge Is a great fiat boat,
one one end of which projects a giant
crane, equipped with steam shovel.
The dredge requires enough water to
enable 1t to float, and that is all. The
giant shovel picks up the gold bearing
sand, dumps it into sluice on the
boat, from which it is run to tables,
where the gold Is scientifically ex-
tracted and the refuse is allowed to
pass out at the rear of the boat. The
dredge keeps cutting a new basin for
itself. and soon travels a vast expanse
Of placer ground.
In one instance In the West a
ranchman found gold "color" in his
valuable orchard. He figured that he
could max moro rnOnav GOLD ,nininU