The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1909-08-27

The Vermilion range, the first
iron range discovered in Minnesota
is coming into its own, as sure as
God made little apples" This has
been foreseen for several months
and in consequence there is at pre-
sent scramble for options on lands
hereabouts which BODIES good for
the future of the range; those hold
ing property and the people of the
Vermilion in general.
Those who are on the inside
have it that the last meeting of steel
manufacturers and the steel trade,
gave out the startling information
that the steel and iron at present
being put on the market was not
up to requirements and that more
old range ores were required to
remedy these defects. The claim
is made that the cheaper and more
cheaply mined soft ores of the Me-
saba range are accountable for the
loss in the stability of the manu-
featured products and that more
hard ores must be used. The best
and only ores for the purpose of
furnishing the proper mix with the
soft ores of the Mesaba are the Yer
million range and old Michigan
range grades.
Owing to the expensive methods
of prospecting Vermilion lands,
this range has been somewhat lost
sight of in the scramble for Mesaba
lands where iron ore could be shov-
eled out of any post hole dug on
almost any forty. The Mesaba
lands are about all taken and atten-
ton has diverted to this range, and
as we have remarked on several oc-
casions, Keep your eye on the
Vermilion.
The stimulus given the range
prospects was first noticed about a
year ago when Geo. A. St. Clair,
(who by-the-way has never fallen
down on anything attempted in the
way of mining prospect took
hold of the Section 80 proposition
and is making a mine of it after
the property had been repeatedly
turned down by several parties who
profess to be it in the mining bust
ness. St. Clair was confident there
was mine on 80" and went to
work with the end in view of show
ing it up. This he has done, we
think, to his own satisfaction and
the satisfaction of the fee owners
who have contended that Section
80 was worth something in the face
of the most discouraging aud adj
verse reports.
Knockers" have been quite
busy with this range ever since it's
discovery and while the Mesaba
also had a touch of it in its early
days it nevertheless remains a fact
that the commercial knocker" has
hammered away at this range to
his hearts content. Section so
was not alone in the attention of
the ,knocker. ;" At one time it
was claimed that the Minnesota
and Chandler properties were the
only ones containing iron ore and
all the balance of the prospects
were N. c.. The Pioneer which
has developed into the largest mine
in the world, the Zenith, Savoy and
Sibley each in turn received it's
hammerings at the hands of the in
dustrous and paid knocker."
Even state biologists, paid by the
people, overworked their jobs and
designated, this that and the other
prospect as hole in the ground in
which without a question no iron
ore could possibly be found as the
surface indications and topograph-
ical surveys all pointed to a cessa-
ton of the deposit at just exactly
the line dividing the prospect land
from another fellows mine.
Miles and miles of holes were
drilled on these so-called ore-1ess
prospects. All drill cores were
carefully guarded and no one was