The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1914-06-18
Still MUCH WORK
FOR PROSPECTOR

1.-THE Passing of the Prospector"
SENS to be pleasing theme in certain
circles; but those who hold to the be-
lief that the pioneering Of the mining
field has been accomplished and that,
hereafter, new mineral discoveries
win only be made through the efforts
of technical men in the employ Of
capitalists. are evidently but little &c
painted with mining conditions in the
west, says the Mining Review.
There is considerable truth in the
assertion that has been made that the
mining sections of this itermountain
region have been quite extensively
prospected during the past fifty
years; but it is quite evident that
they have never been thoroughly pros
pected, as is evidenced by the fact
that new discoveries are being made,
almost yearly, in some of our mining
districts in which heavy operations
have been carried on for quarter Of
a century or more. In many districts,
also, there are large areas which have
been given but slight attention in the
past, possibly because Of inaccessible
ty or prevalent belief that the sec
tions in question were not mineral
bearing. In many such instances,
however, it has been found, after
many years of neglect, that import
ant discoveries have been reported in
localities but little removed from the
center of great and producing mining
camps; and these finds, without .
question of doubt, were generally
made by the old-time prospector.
There are many sections in the
west today, that have never been
visited by white man; and these
are not far removed from main roads
of travel It is inconceivable to be-
lieve that these are barren of mineral
deposits and it s more probable that
they viii be the scenes of most inn
portant discoveries in the near fu-
ture; and these discoveries, also, viii
undoubtedly be made by the old-time
prospector.
The told-time prospects," has not
passed away. He is still in evidence
in our outlying mining districts, and
lis just as active and just as am
bilious as were his forbears a genera
tion or two ago.
1t is doubtful if there is hardly q
man in the west, with red blood in his
veins, who Is not imbued with the
prospecting spirit. In any mining sec-l
tion, let report Of big strike be
Ebrought i1s and there Is inv8riably n
stampede for the scene Of the dis
covery. The bank clerk will leave his
wicket to join in it, the merchant will
neglect his customer, the blacksmith
win let his forge die out, the doctor
will forget his patient, and the faro
dealer hardly waits to play out his
deck before joining in the wild seram-
Bile n the stampede to the new-found
bonanza As for the man who makes
prospecting his profession, he is like
lily to be on the ground before the
multitude arrives and it is the pros
pector who, pushing further back in
to more virgin fields, makes still fur
ther discoveries. The prospector ID
on the job all the time. He has the
true spirit and only financial en-
barrassment can efface him from the
position he has held 50 long in the
public eye. But he cannot and will
not be kept down for many months at
a time, and we hope he never will be
eliminated for, if he ever is then We
may look for no more big mineral dis
coveries.