The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-03-24


 apertures eyer before the cltys front as day is from dark.
 The real ore mines cannot be seen from the city at all One reaches them from out near Bessemer, such mines as Wood ward No of the Woodward Iron cont pany. Ralmund of the Republic Iron and Steel company. and those giants in the Ishcooda, Fossil and Muskoda groups mines operated on modern scale, with modern machinery and according to pres ent day principles of scientific manage ment.
 Yes it is only after reaching Grace s Gap, away wonder down the mountain. that you begin to hear the Nordberss sing.
 Take now. for example, Woodward No. g. There is an instance of the real thing, an absolutely ideal proposition in the way of a red ore mine in this district up to date, effective, clean. quick and alive.
 Been out to No. yet?" the boys will ask What do you think of her?'
 And for the life of you you can't he blasc, but must out with it, that she is a little beauty-no mistake about that! Right up in the A No 1 class, and build ed on such quiet, simple unobtrusiYe lines you scarcely know she's on the mountain until you see the fifuresl
 Come of the sorry stripplngs around Birmingham which make such a grand stand play in the souvenir line could take few lessons from Woodward No. 3. There isn't even puff of smoke and scarcely d man to be seen.
 Makes less fuss. and has more to show for it than almost any mine you hear about"
 Yes, sir, she's right there with the goods."
 And as a matter of fact, this mine as an instance where increase of output has been gained with an actual reduction of cost, has it's points for mining men every where and the methods and machines by which this end has been attained are well worth investigation.
 In the first place there is, of course, pretty good ore to start with, a good share of the cream of Red mountain, ore that is more than self huXing.
 Extent of Ore Holdings
 The Woodward block of the mountain at this particular locality, situated be- tween the Sloss and Fossil mines, com prises 750 acres, in which three openings are operated The company holds 3009 more acres of ore lands just beyond, in Shades valley, together with it's recently acquired territory, some $500 acres of ore lands.
 Thus, the first consideration, raw ma terial abundant and of excellent quality, is looked to- Secondly, the location, which is less than three miles from Woodward furnaces, with which the ore mines are connected by the companys own rail- road, Then, too, it is but a stones throw from the South Bessemer car line.
 Thirdly the ways and means of opera ton that have made of Woodward No. a success from top to bottom-just what are they? It isn't told in a paragraph.
 There seems very little to see at the outset. There is first the great huge bulk of Red mountain looming up, 1t seems, to the very clouds, as 1t closes in on your creeping ore train and suddenly out of the red hillside springs a lofty. slender steel tipple, 1.-the and quick moving, self acting.
 Not workman, miner or mechanic, Is in view.
 There seems indeed to be nothing else besides the quivering tipple and the quiet barren hillside. Then one finds, peerlng out of the dwarf red blackjacks a little 30 foot square engine house of red pressed brick, with a red tiled roof. It straddles the main slope out of which springs the tipple, and with It's sturdy electric Allis hoist f1ings the ore burdencd trips, five trnms at throw, into a revolv- ing cylinder dump. which mounts the tipple. Down then into the huge crushcr "a Gates No. 9 K. the largest on the mountain-rurnbles the ore, where it is ground fine, down to from two inches to ono and quarter. at the rate of 200 tons per hour. The tipple, made of concrete