The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1910-01-03
RICH GOLD MINES
Those in Santo Domingo Said to
Rival King Solomon's.
Nearly Every Known Mineral is to Be
Found in Dominican Republic,
According to Consul's
Report.

Washington received nu-
merous inquiries regarding mining and
minerals in the Dominican republic,
Consul Ralph ]. Tottcn of Puerto
Plat has prepared a general outline
OF the information obtainable.
The most important of the useful
modern mines are gold, silver, iron
ore. copper ore, Ignite. salt and pc
troluem
Gold is the only mineral that has
been worked to any extent. In the
time of Columbus the Indians paid
tribute In gold and in the year 1896
the records show the following mines
or placer workings: La Vega, the
Cibao the San Cristobal and the Bu-
enaventura n considerable quantity
Of gold is at the present time washed
from the sands of the Vague, Verde,
| Bao, Jaina and Moa rivers and their
tributaries by the country people with
the most primitive apparatus, 1t Is
claimed that women often obtain two
or three ounces OF gold per week IN
| this manner. Lodes and gold-bearing
quartz are mentioned in some OF the
old reports, but no record can be
found of any attempt to work these
mines scientifically In fact, none OF
| the mining men now in this country
claim to have located quartz veins
that would pay for the working.
There are no doubt some gold de.
Dosits, not only in the river beds, but
llso on the hills, that have never been
| worked, and there is probably conSid-
cradle gold remaining in Che old work
ings that ctnld be saved by modern
machinery and dredges. The cond
ions for working ere good, there be
| ng abundant water and sufficient fall
or drainage in most parts of the gold
ountry. A great drawback is the eX-
| RENE difficulty encountered in get.
| ing machinery to the interior on &C
| spunt of the entire lack of wagon
Dads
This Office has record of four com
| anies or individuals now in this
! ountry, in the central or northern
ortions. engaged in prospecting for
| ainerals or in developing prospects
previously located. On. company is
| installing up-todate machinery and
| lredges for thorough exploitation of
IS property 1t has been compelled
| 10 transport all machinery. tools and
supplies 30 miles on pack horses and
| over roads that seem at first glance
to be practically impossible
AS to the value Of the mineral de
| posts, experts who have looked into
| The matter show considerable differ
| ence of opinion, Don Juan Nieto y
| Barlcarcel, was sent by the Span
| sh government in 1898 to study the
mines and lodes of gold, silver, cop
| per. iron, alabaster and emeralds
Some of the old partially worked
mines, he asserts, were of extraordi
| nary richness He finished his repor
| by saying: II can compare this isle
10 that OF Tarnish, from which Solo
| mon drew the gold which he employed
| III IiiE VI DISQUALIFICATION vi Ills ltUiBlt.
Mr.. w. p Blake. geologist and miner
| alogist, sent by the American govern
| ment in 1871, also reports the exist
| once Of considerable mineral wealth
n paying quantities On the Other
| hand, Sir A. +! Geike, the wellknowr
| English mineralogist, after making an
| 1S months investigation Of the min
| aral resources of the island, report
ed that this country in his opinion
was q geological curiosity shop, con
| aiming scattered samples of nearly
| every mineral but none in sufficient
| quantities to be Of commercial value
The fact remains that no mining
| pr0po ition IN the Dominican republi,
# late years has proved successful, al
hough nothing has been attempted
| with abundant capital and with mod
ern methods and machinery.