Weekly journal-miner., 1911-10-11

Wana GldceT MiHlhg CompdHNy NhIOH will conserve I5O,OO0,OOO gallons of water and enable this company to work its 5000 acres of auriferOus gravel in the famous San Domingo field nine miles east of Wickenburg, and about four miles back from the Hsssayampa river. The ground aver ages over four feet to bedrock and carries above 10 cents a cubic yard. There will be two dams. All work, including 400 feet of tunnels and 600 feet of heavy rock work, has been done for the pipe line to the placer ground from the dams, and the water will have 9 feet of heads when it reaches the sluices. In 30 days plae- CT operations will be in full blast in Rogers wash. which is two and one half miles long. 1000 feet wide, nine feet deep, and for the entire dist ance carries more than 40 cents a ward As fast as possible this work will be extended to the other ground of the company, and eventually there will be three 2OOO-yard dredges in operation. In the requirement of the 1000 acres in the holding. in estab- fishing and maintenance of camp, and in the thorough testing of 800 acres and prospecting of many hun dreds more, some S30.000 has been expended and by the time everything Is in full blast the total initial out iav will have been approximately S75.OOO. Estimates of numbers of en- gineers who have investigated this project place the amount of gold that can be profitaby saved at SsO,- 100000. This is the greatest placer ing operation in the United States today; and the work here will dem onstrate that sufficient water may be conserved for this class of opera tion on large scale using the meth ods of the government in retaining the arid lands of the country.
 Three years ago Mr. and Mrs. John Sanger. both experienced placer min CTS who made money in the Nome, Alaska fields. started across country with pack train to prospect south western Arizona for 25-cent ground. They heard of the San Domingo field. and investigated. They eamped on the ground. and prospeeted very carefully, the results astonishing them as the ground was so rich, the gold so generally distributed from surface to bedrock; but it was told them That # was practically worthless, be- cause there was no water. But after careful investigation MT. Sanger de cided that there was a watershed of sufficient size to furnish all water necessary for operations on large scale if there were points where 1t could be saved. Natural damsites were found in both the San Domingo and Blackberry washes. The first will save 5O.OOO.OO0 gallons, the other twice as much. All this occupied more than a year; when the Sangers organized their company, and, return I1rg. devoted all their attention to testing the property. The Rogers wash attracted their attention first, and Mir. Sanger tested 800 acres very thoroughly; but later he found other equally large and rich washes, which :are now being tested. The first Op- oerations, however, will be in the Rogers wash.
 This placer field is east of the Hassayampa river, lying flat. with benches on either side of numerous deep washes. The gold is coarse and ID angular fragments, so little alloy ed that it brings $19.25 per ounce. The gold is from surface to bedrock, about the same richness throughout. Probably it was not brought here by floodwaters, but is the result of the erosion of the mountains which once covered this flat. The ground is not packed as it would be if brought by water; and there are no large bould- ers to hamper placer operations. In the wash is found a great deal of quartz, some granite, diorite, sehist, shale, lime. porphYry. The country rock at the head of the washes is generally granite, with great DOT phyry dykes passing through. and there is considerable schist The placer ground has some growth of mesquite and palo verde, and there IS much cacti of different growth. Bedrock is conglomerated, and in a | thousand years or so would be the typical Gila conglomerate of the sec tion. It is fairly soft now. so the Fop caD ba aaSi1v fal-ap off and tbus