Bisbee daily review., 1911-08-25


 sider ne present an opportune time to acquire said mining properties in Mexico, and suggests a comparison ot prices of the best mines at present With price0 prevailing a short time ago. For example. the Santa Maria dc Ia Paz, tho premier mine of San Luis Postoi. oi June l. 1910. was sell ing around s5Sc per share. At present 1t IS quoted at about $320 per sharc.
 Barrano on the ablve mentiones rate was quoted at s2S0 per share and can now be bought for about S45 per share
 Throughout the list this discrepancy Is noted, although the mines of San Luis Potosi are mostly cid producers whose value is not subject to great Appreciation from political causes. The Seguranza on June 1, 1910, was sold for>20 pesos per share, while at present it is dragging around 9. but special causes have entered into the course Of this stock.
 Few of the mines of San Luis Potosi are publicly quoted, for the reason that they are old and well established properties, many of them in privaie hands or in the hands of small. close corporations; yet the districts of Matehaula, Catorce, Charcas. Dedral and San Pedro are richer in mineral than many newer districts more ir the public eye Guadalcazar still re tains substantial showing of it's ancient glory in it's production of quicksilver. and the Moctezuma dis trict has in recent times taken a good place as Q quicksilver producer. The mercury production of the state of San Luis Potosi is about 20O0 fiasks per year. The older quicksilver camps of Venado and Santa Maria Del Rio are abandoned while the camps of Ramos and Salinas have but a his tOric interest.
 Modern mining publications do not deal much with the mines of San Luis Potosi, probably for the reasons giFen above, and for the furtacr req son that promoters have not been active in this state. A recent French writer on the mines of Mexico. Le-| jeune, accomplished the feat Of writing book on Mexican mines without mentioning one of the mines of San Luis Potosi, althopgh mining IS the chief industry of tha sta3e, and mineral products, amount 10 more than S9,000.000 per annurl, while the smelter draws ere from all the sur rounding states and far to the north 1 SThis is lead smeIter and must have lead ores 70 recover silver and { gold but ca1as+ use d great deal 9. t0rp5r ore, it has a speciai plant for producing copper but only operates this plant occasionally. The smelterf i'd ID { ( per month. The smelter at Matehuala | is working only on copper ores, using some $50 dry tons per day. They 1 have two electric furnaces, and the plant belongs to the American Smelt- Ing and Refining company, which has now bought the Ttro General.
 The mines actually working in this state at present include Cat Mato- hualal La Paz, Esmeralda, Eueva Paz. Dolores, Carmen and Veta Grande at Catorce, Dolores Trompeta. Conrep cion, San Agustin. HuniIdad. Padre Flores, La Abuudancia: at Cedral. La Sorpresa; at Charcas, Tiro General; at San Pedro. Victoria Anexas, Bar reno, San Jose.
 The anumony smelter at Wadley. belonging to English interests. is working steadily and drawing ore from the other states. This is the only plant of the kind in Mexico and. therefore, controls the antimony sit. uation; its product all reaches the Cooksons at Newcastle-on-Tyne
 The zfne possibilities in San Luis Potosi are faJering, but nothing is being done; these interests are merely law aiting more favorable tariff terms with the United States, and in the meantime shiraiag a small amount to Germany for smeltiug. The zine terri tory is located at Sslado aEdCharcas in the northern end of the state and produce ore as high as 45 per cent metal. Zinc ore shipments 10 The United States stopped in 1905. when the Payne tari9 law went into effect.
 Aside from the previous metals. lead, copper, zinc, quicksilver and ar | timony. there are large deposits of sul- phur now being worked in San Luig Potosi, notably at Cerritos. Tin. fu6n and salt also exist, the Iasr named al Salinas. where it is evaporafed at the rate of some 1S,000 tons per an- nun al present.
 Of all the mines in the state Of San Luis POtosi probably the best known outside. and certainly the most bsstor ic, are those Of Guadalcazar, although at present they are Of minor in portance. The vast, devious and con stricted galleries of the quicksilver mines in this district tell of most as siduOus working in old Spanish days. TOrtu1us chambers show a search for inc metal wherever it led. without much regard f0r-TrodeTn mining ideas. and the vast heaps Of burned slag near by indicate the extent of the old smelling processes.
 4 tremendcus amount of ore WAS taken from these mines. and in the most difficult and primitive way. When water was encountered the shaft. if it may De called a shaft, was abandoned and new spiral hole started Quigksiiver vas much de sired in those times not for itself en- irely but for its value In amaleam- sting with silver and gold for ez- ractson. So much was this true that as late as lS4s the government Of. cred a premium for the mine Bgodac