The Johnson City comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1916-1917, 1916-01-20
RAILWAY LINE
PART Of PLAN
ORES PRODUCING TWELVE PER
CENT PURE ZINC FOUND IN
HANCOCK BASIN.
RICHEST IN THE WORLD
CONCENTRATING PLANTS AND A
SHELTER AT SNEEDVTLLE.

expenditure Ol PlU,UVUUUU Vi IllOEt
in the development of rich zinc de-
pOsits in Hancock county is prom
ised.
Samuel P. Witherill, of Philadel-
phia, and associate capitalists of
that city and New York, have pur-
chased from r. B. Simpson OF Knox
Vile, and A. H. and w. A. Dougherty
of Russellville, about 10000 acres of
land in Hancock county. Upon this
land zinc has been found in paying
quantities, and it is the purpose of
the eastern people to mine and mar
ket this product.
The sale has been consummated,
the warranty deeds to the property
being held in escrow in the Knoxville
City National bank, pending the re-
suits of tests of the property which
are to be made within the next few
months. If the ores test out as to
be as rich as they have been repre-
sented by Messrs. Simpson and
great sum indicated will proceed.
Mr.. Simpson states there is no ques-
tion but that the property is all that
is claimed for it; that eminent mining
engineers have examined it and all
have reported it to be rich in zinc,
assaying a higher percentage than
any other deposits in East Tennessee
or in the Japlin or other zinc mining
districts.
A railroad will be built from Days
Siding, about one mile south of Lone
Mountain on the Middlesboro branch
of the Southern railway. This road
will penetrate the zinc properties,
and reach Sneedville, the capital of
Hancock county. 1t will be about
twenty-five miles in length, and will
be the first railroad to be constructed
within the limits of Hancack county.
In addition to the concentrating
plants, one or more of which will be
built at various points in the mining
district, large zinc smelling works
will be constructed at Sneedville.
This industry will mean much to the
little town which, heretofore, has had
no industrial activities. 1t will bring
about an influx of population. and in
crease the business of the place, into
that of progressive mining center.
AS to the worth of the ores, Mr..
Simpson states it runs about twelve
per cent. pure zinc, as against four
per cent, of ores found in Knox
county. A ton of Hancock county
zinc ore produces 240 pounds of zinc,
said Mr.. Simpson, as against eighty
pounds of zinc to a ton, of 1000
pounds, of Knox county ore. This he
considers one of the best evidences of
the gworth of the ore. In maxim
tests. entries have been sunk at in
tervals of about one mile around the
rim" of the Hancock county zinc
basin, and without exception the ore
obtained from these several entries
has proven of high quality of zinc.
In fact, Mr.. Simpson states, it is
without parallel in the history of
zinc mining. He predicts that be-
cause of the richness of the ore and
its abundance, there being quantities
almost incalculable, 1t will make
East Tennessee the zinc center of
the world. He says Hancock county
has sufficient zinc deposits to sup
ply the world for many years. Ard
this. he says, is a deliberate state
ment, made after careful calculations
and upon the basis of the opinions
of expert mineralogists.
f. ]. Conroy, mining engineer Of
wide experience, was instrumental in
bringing this property to the atten-
tion of the Wetherill interests. He
has been in East Tennessee for some
time, going over various mineral
properties, particularly zinc pros
poets.
AS to the magnitude and possibili-
ties of the property, Mr.. Conroy said:
For five years I had been search
ing over the country for just such a
deposit of zinc as has bee Mound in
Hancock county. / believed it might
be possible to locate it somewhere.
When I heard of this property
through Mr.. Joseph Dougherty. whom
/ met at hotel in Bristol, began to
make some investigations. | found it
to be more than was claimed for it
by Mr.. Sompson and his associates. l
made careful Investigations and tests
of the ores and went over the prop
erty in detail. In my opinion, and
that of other mining engineers who
have surveyed the tract. it will run
$4,000 tons of ore to the acre, and
this means 800 pounds of pure zinc
to the. acre. have told Mr.. Wether-
i'll that the ore on one acre of this
land will pay for the 10000 acres in
the purchase. pay for the construc-
ton of the railroad, pay for building
the concentrating and smelling plants
and pay for mining the ore on the
acre. This leaves the revenues from
the remaining 9,S99 acres absolute
profit, less the cost of mining and
milling. This statement may seem
inconceivable, but it s borne out by
competent authorities. There is suf-
ficient quantity Of zinc ON this ore to
produce 10000 pounds daily for the
next 100 years, and then the quanti-
ty will not be exhausted"