White Pine news weekly mining review. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1910-1920, 1911-03-19

ou%teropping over a district for thous-
ands of feet, or even for miles; at
some points this vein may locally
show large and valuable deposits of
ore and give rise to one or two i'm
portant mines, but to assume that 1t
will be equally or nearly as rich gen.
orally throughout its extent is un-
warrantable and experience common
ly shows just the opposite. Nature
is inclined to drop the most of her
eggs in n basket" or her values
within a limited area. The expert
ence of the extensions of the veins
of notorious mines has been, as a
rule, far from encouraging, despite
the use that promoters make of such.
And, as regards depth, the verdict is
that mines as a rule do not grow
richer but poorer with depth, and
that within the first 500 feet is gen.
orally the richest portion.
1T is impossible to accurately
value any mine, owing to the various
uncertainties and speculative ele-
ments connected with it. The best
can be DONE" says Mr.. Hoover in his
Principles of Mining. lis to state
hat the value lies between certain
limits and that various stages, above
the minimum given, represent var
ious degrees of risk. Again, owing
to the limited life of every mine,
valuation of such Investments can
no be based upon the principle of
simple interests, nor is any invest
ment justified without a consider
alton of the management to ensue."
A property may be excellent in
every natural respect, yet its future
depends very much upon whether it
is wisely and economically managed
by competent and reliable men. If
a mine is very rich and the ore very
abundant, it may pay (for a while,
at least) under almost any manage
ment; but il. presuming on the
wealth in the ground, the manage
ment proceeds TO blow it in" on an
ex%traYagant and expensive scale, 1t
will take a good mine indeed to
stand the drain that is made on IT,.
One of the mos difficult mines to
manage and make a success of, and
n that needs the very best skill and
closest economy is n in which the
ore body is just on the edge of be-
ing too low grade for profit. One of
the common extravagances and mis-
takes Is 10 erect too costly buildings
and boarding houses, and to build
mills unnecessarily large and elabor-
ate beyond the capacity of the mine.
The result is that in a short time the
mine. being unable TO keep up with
the mill. only half of latter institu-
tion is used and, later. it will prob
ably be found idle and both mine
and mill closed not from any fault
of the mine. but from exacting of il
more than its capacity can steadily
produce. Added to this it is some
times found, after an elaborate and
costly mill has beer erected, that the
processes are not adapted to the To-
cal ores, and either their machinery
is thrown out and committed to the
scrap-iron heap. and new ones put In
their place. or there is a general shut
down, the fault being laid on the
mine. 1t stands to reason Thai be-
fore the erection of a large and cost
ly mill the ores should be thorough
ly tested by establishments which
make a business of this, and the
right treatment oil process decided
on before a stamp or a table is in
place. Again, much unnecessary ex-
pense Is involved in long crosscut
tunnels. and at al early stage of the
mine much unnecessary or injudie-
ious developments. added to which
may be an elaborate and little requir-
ed haulage system. including tram
ways, etc. IL is so repugnant to many
to go slow" TO creep before they
walk and gradually and patiently
to build up to an INC that they must
need go ahead with a big splurge on
a large scale before the mine is ripe
for Ii, and often when the mine will
never be ripe for things on such a
scale; hence disaster, shutting down
and eventually an abandoned camp,
mine and mill. with monuments in
every canyon on which their cpl
taphs and history are plainly TO be
read. Ii would like an exag-
geration or a joke to state that men
of business intelligence have more
thar once located a big mill and
actually gone out to hunt for ore to
supply ii. Yet such is the case. A
big mill also has been erected at the
mouth of some erosscut tunnel be-
fore that tunnel reached the vein or
before there was a pound of ore in
sight. Ig one instance that came to
the writer's notice. when by good
luck they did find the vein it proved
fairly sufficient for the mills pur-
poses. But such a risk is certainly
not to be followed or encouraged.
even if there is every reason IN ha-
lieve hat the vein when eventually
struck will be a good one. Prefer
ably, after much testing and sampl-
ing, a mill may be contemplated
after there has been abundant prov
ing of the vein. and after there is
laid up on the dump sufficient ore to
keep that mill steadily going for Il
year or more. The best mining
motto is: go slow and go sure
Mining Science.