Bisbee daily review., 1917-04-08

late particularly marked and is at tended by the transfer and consolida- ton of acreages in increasing number As matter of fact the Big Bug dis trict has the advantage of the Verde district in the number of producing mines and is taking on an importance in mining affairs second only to that attaching to the latter. In the mat ter of tonnage-well. that is another story Later on it will probably prove as interesting a story to write and read as the S15.,000. 900 produc- tion record of the United Verde mine and the S9000,, ,,000 production record of the United Verde Extension mine for the year just closed.
 Eight Producing Mines
 There are eight producing copper mines in the Big Bug mining district as against three in the Verde district Namely the Blue Bell and De Soto. owned and operated in conjunction with the Humboldt shelter; the Hen rietta. Butternut and Sterling. owned and operated by the Big Ledge Devel Opment company; the Blackberry, own ed by the Pheips-Dodge interests; the Binghampton. owned and operated by the Stoddard Mines company; and the Copper Queen. owned and operated by the Copper Queen Gold Mining Com pany. The producing mines of the Verde district are the United Verde. United Verde Extension and Copper Chief. As before stated, the copper production of the Verde district is. however. far in excess of the present production Of the Big Bug district There was a time, though. when the copper production of the first men, toned was no larger than the present production of the last mentioned; and ! there will probably be a time. with | the development of copper ore bodies al greater depth in the Big Bug dis 1 trict. when the copper ore output there | will rival in tonnage and value that | of the Verde district
 New Properties Rising
 Properties other than. those men 1 toned are being developed with con siderable success in various portions | Of the Big Bug country and their num- Der is increasing with the advent of | warm weather and open trails. A num- | Der of the ore bodies undergoing de- yield a product that is in | demand as a smelling fiuX The Ster- | ling. for instance. is producing a lime | schist copper ore that is being used | as flux at the Great West | ern shelter. a subsidiary of the Big | Ledge Development Company. This l plant has an ore reduction capacity of | 175 tons. An additional unit of 200 | tons capacity is being installed The | of the Big Reef copper Com | pany carires a experiencing schist | for a length of more than 25OO feet | the deposit being in places 150 feet | wide. Like the Sterling ore. the Big | Reef deposit is valuable fleXing as l of the Loma Verde Company | offers similar advantages in the way | of a copper-fuX ore.
 General Range of Assays
 The general range of copper assays | along this schist belt is from to 44 | percent. In connection herewith il | is well to state that the schist belt in | question extends unbroken from !, Grown King, 10 miles south of the | Big Reef property, 10 a point north oi Jerome. -25 miles distant, where il | beneath overlyins stratf | of more recent origin. IL is not the | intent. however, to convey the i'm pressiOn that this belt is one cOntin-