The San Francisco call., 1910-12-04
Inyo Mines

Since the recent big silver-lead
strike near Darwin it LOOKS like the
old mining district of south southern lnyo
olden days when millions were taken
out of the mines of that part of the
country. Those were the days long
before the advent of the railroad, when
all the supplies were hauled by team
from Los Angeles and the bullion was
Cerro Gordo was busy paying dividends
and many other of the old mines were
doing the same. The bullion shipped
from the southern part of Inyo county
Pedro, and many men are still living
in this part of the country who used
to team across the Mojave desert into
Los Angeles and keep their teams in
corrals which were built where now
is the heart of Los Angeles on Broad
way.
Nadeau hotel in Los Angeles in early
days, and many other of the early i'm
provements of the southern city owe
their beginning to the mines of Inyo
county.
This part of the mining country of
the west has lain practically dormant
for many years. Some work has been
done right along and every one who
knew realized that this section was
one of the most highly mineralized in
the west, but for some reason little
work has been done within late years.
The strike made by Bert Shively re-
Gently near Darwin bids fair to change
this condition of things, for the new
strike is proving to be wonder. The
ore being mined, or it might better be
said quarried, as it is right on top of
the ground Four 8-horse teams are
now. engaged in hauling this high
grade silXer-lead ore to Keeler, and
other teams from Skidoo and the
Owens valley will be put to work this
week. The character, extent and size
place that section in the front ranks
of the silver-lead sections of the coun-
try. While eight. feet is the lowest
they are dewn,, they have thousands
tainly the greatest strike of the kind
ever made in this country.
It is one of the cheapest countries
in the world to mine in provided it
had the proper transportation and
smelling facilities The ground is dry
and the formation is such that very
to this there would be no trouble from
a smelter as there is in some sections
A combination. of the interests in
looking towards the building of a
smelter either at Keeler or Olancha
and also toward the building of .
II the present broad gauge road is con
tinued UP Owens valley 1t is very pos
sible that the old narrow gauge road
will be torn up and used in building
a road into that section. The matteT
has already been placed before some
of the Southern Pacific officials and
they have agreed TO look into the mat
ter If the tonnage can be guaranteed
them they will undoubtedly build the
road
this county is the Cerro Gordo, which
will soon begin shipping ore again.
Millions have been produced from this
old mine and millions more will be
produced.
Mr.. Morrow of the Argus pronertv
has secured estimates from some Of
the biggest concerns in the country
regarding the building of a smelter in
that section. They have given him n
estimate of $4,000 for 5O-ton sn,al-
ter and $50. 900 for a 100-ton smelter-
Inyo Independent
CaIaveras Development
J. D. McCarty, a we'll known land
owner and sheepman, has begun system
attic development of his mining prop-
ertv near the Royal Consolidated at
Hodson and about two miles and a ha
from Copperopolis.
For wears a large section of the Nc
Carly property was known to contain
bodies of rich quartz and good offers
were made McCarty to sell, but he pre-
ferred to wait and develop the property
himself The quartz is Just under the
surface, banked in large quantities and
is What is termed a blanket ledge >
The surface dirt which also Contained
gold was sluiced from the ledge which
has been cut into in order to build a
tramway connecting the center of the
ore body with the mill, which is at a
distance of about 15O feet There is
ore enough quarried out and stacked by