The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1917-08-23
MODEL OF UTAH COPPER
BUILT IN WASHINGTON
FAITHFUL REPRODUCTION OF
ONE OF THE WORLDS MOST
REMARKABLE MINES.


washed burrows into. the sage-coveret
. slopes of the Wasatch mountains, {
half hundred hungry steam shovels arr
now eating their way into the hear
of a mountain of copper ore-not cop,
per ore as ordinarily seen, rich anG
heavy, in conspicuous seams ant
veins; but a new sort of copper ore
rock with such a scant scattering Of
copper minerals that to the ordinary
eye 1t looks no more like ore than
common granite; rock so lean in cop
per values that to old line mining
methods it remains as improbable t.
mine as common granite. Yet this
new type of copper ore, developed
not only at Bingham, but recently also
as result of it's leadership at several
localities in the southwest, as well as
in Mexico and Chile, is now producing
more copper than the whole United
States provided a decade past.
Here is an object lesson of the pre-
sent, vision of the future, that all
should see. 1t is now available for
all to see. for a model reproduction,
larger than an ordinary room, true in
detail as we'll as in general effect, has
been completed and installed in the
division of mineral technology of the
United States national museum. The
model has been prepared with faith
full elaboration because it represents
not only a unique application of the
relatively new open cut steam shovel
type of mining operation, but also a
specific and important source Of the
essential metal, copper.
Vision Of One Man.
This achievement of adding millions
OF tons Of copper ore to the worlds
output Is due to the vision and con-
structive imagination of a single mind.
Twenty years ago the mining of rock
in which the copper minerals could
scarcely be seen was undreamed of.
But one man dreamed-and acted;
and the dream came true. He is
Daniel C.. lacking, first vice presi-
dent and managing director of the
Utah Coppr company.
In 1898 Bingham canyon was dis
trict of small and none too flourish
ing gold mines Low grade copper
ores had long been known to be pres
ent ever since. in fact, the Third CAL
ifornia infantry stationed at Salt Lake
in 1868. varied their activities by pros
pecting in the neighboring mountains
and drove a tunnel into the copper
bearing rock. But rock carrying in
each ton only 30 pounds Of copper, and
that in the form of complex minerals,
had to await large scale engineering
ideas to materialize.
lacking made an examination of
this ungainly copper occurrence in
1898. He saw its possibilities. He
reported that millions Of pounds of
copper were scattered through
mountain of rock and that the copper
could be secured ats profit if opera
lions were planned on large enough
scale: in other words, II the whole
mountain were demolished in the pro-
cess. But the idea was staggering,
and not until five years later did cap
ital venture into this tremendous UNI
dertaking.
Mining of the Future.
Success now has crowned the ven-
ture, not merely material or financial
successes, but success of deeper sig
nificance. We have here the turning
point between the mining of the past
and the mining of the future. The
bonanza type Of mine, in which rich
values are gotten from the earth with
little effort. is fast becoming obsolete,
even in the undeveloped regions of
the globe. The world must turn more
and more to low grade ores for its
essential metals, and the achievement
at Bingham has blazed the trail.
Bingham canyon is easily reached
from Salt Lake. After skirting the
spurs of the Wasatch range and pass
ing the enormous mills and smelter
at Garfield, placed at the mouth OF
the canyon, 20 miles from the mine,
to handle the thousands Of tons of ore
that come down daily, the visitors
train turns into narrow valley. Near
its head, he dismounts in mining
town., pressed between precipitous
slopes, smoky and noisy from passing
ore trains. II he climbs the steep
slope surrounding the place, he can
gain a panoramic view Of the mining
activities.
He sees a whole mountain, resting
against the crestline of a snow clad
range, stripped bare of Its mantle OF
soil, raw and naked in its demolish-
ment Terrace after terrace of gray
rock, rs in ALL rise step like from
the valley bottom, and extend like
giant stairs to the very summit, sup
porting nearly SO miles Of railroad.
As the eye wanders up to the top
It catches here and there puffs of
white vapor, accompanied by raucous
noises, where ponderous steam SHOW
els, looking tiny in the distance, are
scooping out tons Of copper rock and
loading their charges into long trains
OF cars gaping for their burden. 1t
is ugly, yet fascinating, this unwilling