The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1916-03-08
To DEVELOP NEEL
MINING: PROPERTY
PITTSBURG CAPITALISTS EX.
PECTED HERE IN INTEREST
OF GOLD MINE.

The probability of further develop
ment Of the Neel gold mine property
in Abbeville county again looms
large, according to one of the owners
U. S. Marshal C. J. Lyon, of Green
vile, who said today that Pittsburg
capitalists were expected here soon
to confer with him. Mr.. Lyon was
recently in Abbeville in the interest
of the project and this week he
brought back with him several speci-
mems which geologists say contains
gold and pyrites. The mine was op-
Grated several years ago but lack Of
financial backing caused the owners
to close. Renewed interest is now
being injected by reason of the fact
that additional discoveries have been
reported made and there is evidence
of rich, productive vein.
The Neel gold mine property is To-
Gated on 361 acres of land lying nine
miles south of Abbeville and about
one and one-half miles southeast of
Parsons Mount. 1t is about six
miles from the old Dorm mine which
yielded something more than a mil
lion dollars. The entire section
about Parsons Mount is heavily min
eralized, and the veins seem to have
localized in the Neel property says
a recent report. There are five
clearly marked veins of ore, three of
which run entirely across the tract
of land and which have been more
or less developed by shafts to water
level. Work has been done on the
property at long intervals, beginning
with slave mining, before the Civil
war. None of the works have been
driven below water level, and no ef-
fort has been made to save more
than the free gold that could be
caught with an ordinary stamp mill
and copper plates. Even in this
crude way several thousand dollars
have from time to time been taken
from the veins above water, and
yet there are many tons of ore
above water Level that have not been
touched, in the main veins and the
new veins more recently discovered.
The two main veins on the proper
ty are from eighteen inches to two
feet wide at water level, and have
every indication of continuing down
to great depth. The values improve
with depth-onc sample at water
level showing the very high value of
$1.39 per ton.
The ore is a quartz pyrites, partly
decomposed. The decomposed py-
rites contains free gold in excep-
tionally rich values, while fully
three-fourths the value is in the un-
decomposed pyrites. A simple process
of treating the ore would be by the
use of the regulation stamp mill
and copper plates to catch the free
gold, and concentrating table. Such
a table, if bought new, would cost
about $500. Fully three-fourths the
value of the ore will be found in the
concentrates, which can be saved by
an inexpensive process.
It would not be advisable, espec-
tally in the development stage Of the
mine, to put in chlorinating or cya-
nide plant or s,nelter, for when
such high values can be handled in
such small concentrated bulk, the
cost of shipping and reduction should
be nominal. There are several reli-
able plants that treat refractory ore
in easy reach of Abbevile. One of
these located in this state worked ore
at profit, the averaged value of
which was only S1.49 per ton, taking
out $58,000 in round numbers dur
ing 1907 according to U. S. Geolo-
gical Survey, 1907.
This was possible because of the
great quantity and accessibility of
the ore deposit which is veritable
The Candor Mine of North
Carolina that has an averaged value
of $500 per ton, has a perfect reduc-
ton plant, and the owners would
probably treat concentrates for other
companies at a low cost per ton.
This mine is being successfully oper-
ated, and from first to last, has pro-
duced over 100000 of bullion
The Neel property has been .ex-
tensively sampled and assayed. The
following are some of the values per
ton, found in recent openings:
Old dump front of Dansby's house
north vein $67.80.
Shaft IL feet deep, main north
vein $7.64.
From dump near same shaft $780,
"a.
From parallel vein 1876 feet from
north vein S22.73. l.
=. Same vein IA mile southeast, pit
8 feet deep, S18.19.
From parallel vein No. 3, taken in
road, S36.17.
From shaft 43 feet deep, main
south vein, $13.47.
From shaft across vein, same depth
S18.19.
From 500 lb. rock taken from bot
tom of shaft $3.50.
From same vein IL inches wide at
surface where cut by branch 200
yards from shaft $22.74.
From same point, part of large
rock S75.45.
The forapoinp ASSAYS were made |