White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1910-08-28
Heinze, the Butte Battler

got his degree of mining engineer be-
fore he was 20 years old. That was
In 1889, 81 years ago this month. In
the fall of the same year he was in
Butte working at his profession for
a salory of $3.50 a month. A little
later he was back in New York hold
ing down a chair as a sub-editor on
the staff of the Engineering and Min
ing Journal. The call of the mines
was irresistible. Accompanied by
Stanley Gifford-ever since his close
associate-he went back to Butte.
The young men each had $4,000,
borrowed money. With this capital,
Heinze and Clifford began leasing on
the Ramsdall Parrot. Out of profits.
they started a lease on the Glengarry,
found high-grade and in a year
bought the mine for SIS 900. Then
they took up the Rarus afterward in
cluded in the sale by United Copper
to the Cole-Ryan syndicate. The RAJ
rus was bought for $500. 600; it paid
Heinze half a million yearly for
years. Remember all this was in Mr..
Heinze's kid" years. He was only
% years old when, in 1892, he organ
lied The Montana Ore Purchasing Co.
and formed an alliance with the Lew
isohs for the marketing of ores of the
Butte district independently of the
local smelters.
Out of this grew the first HeinZe
litigation in Butte. James A. Murray
a millionaire operator and banker was
his opponent. Heinze won after a
trial lasting Il days. The stake was
a quarter of a million. After Heinze
had won, a friend of Murray advised
that gentleman TO take the young
mar into partnership. re%marking.
Between the two of you, you will
own the State of Montana in five
years" 1.-The devil l would" retort-
ed Murray. "HeinZe would own me
and the State of Montana as we'll"
Are you still getting side-lights on
this Heinze character?
In 1892 while his first litigation
was in progress, Mr.. HeinZe's atten-
ton was called to the Leroy mine,
in British Columbia, west of the Col
umbia River, and at a town now call
ed Rossland, 20 miles by stage from
the nearest railroad, and in the midst
of a forest. When Mr.. Heinze got
there, all he found was a shaft about
300 feet deep, and a small house and
three or four shacks. Heinze i'm
mediately decided the mine would be
a wonderful producer. and advanced
100000 to get control of the mine.
He thereupon made a contract to
smelt 100000 tons of ore of over
$500, 600, and started the eonstruc-
ton of a 44-mile railroad. In IL
months the community around the
mines had grown into one of 10000
people, and within two years, the
town of Rossland developed from the
few shacks around the shaft into a
town of 10, inhabitants.
Incidentlly to this venture, Mr..
heinze undertook the construction of
a 350-mile railroad, got an agree
ment for a government subsidy
amounting to $4,000, 900, and took
an option on the Crows Nest Pass
coal fields, which recently passed to
the ownership of the James j. Hill
interest. Mr.. Heinze was in British
Columbia engaged in these ventures
when, in 1896, the Butte Copper war
broke out. There was treachery in
his Butte camp, which had been
strenuously busy from 1892 to 1896.
Heinze literally jumped from B. c. to
Montreal, made a l~ightning-like
deal by which, in return for all his
British Columbia possessions except
one-half interest in $780, 00 acres of
timber land granted as subsidy for
the so miles of railroad already con
structed, he financed himself for the
big fight.
Back to Butte. with a pocket so
deep Amalgamated never got to the
bottom of it, jumped Heinze; and the
war was on. What followed is writ