The Elk Mountain pilot., 1918-01-17
COLORADO MINEOUTPUT
COPPER HAS SLIGHT INCREASE
OVER PREVIOUS YEAR.
Geological Survey Gives Figures on
Gold, silver, Lead, Copper and
Zinc Production in 1917.

Western Newspaper Union News Service.
Washington.-The mine output OF
gold, silver, copper, lead and zinc in
Colorado for eleven months of 1917.
and the estimated output for Decem-
ber, according to data compiled by
Charles W. Henderson, of the United
States Geological Survey, Department
of the Interior. amount to about $16.'
100000 in gold, 7.327.0OO ounces of
silver, 67,500,000 pounds of recovera-
BILE lead, 100000 pounds of copper.
and 114,00O,O0O pounds. of recoverable
zinc having total value of nearly
$40,6O0,000, compared with $19.153.-
S21 in gold, 7,656.544 ounces of silver,
70.914,OS7 pounds of lead, S,624,OS1
pounds of copper. and 134,2s5,463
pounds of zinc, having total value
of s49,2OO,675 in 1916. This estimate
shows decrease of $3.133.Oo0 in gold.
$4,000 ounces of silver, and 100000
pounds Of lead The production OF
copper showed slight increase, but
that of zinc showed a decrease of
about 10000, 900 pounds. With the in
creased average prices for silver and
lead there was an increase of $685.
900 for silver and $1,317.OOO for lead.
The decrease in the value of zinc was
nearly $S.OO0,O0O.
The lead smelters in the state, at
Globe, Leadville, Pueblo, Durango
and Salida, were operated about as
in 1916, the ore coming from Arizona,
Canada, Colorado. Idaho, South Dako-
ia and other states, and including a
large quantity of zinc residues from
Kansas and Oklahoma smelters. The
flotation plant installed in 1916 at the
Durango smelter to remove the zinc
from the zinc-lead sulphide ores of the
San Juan region continued to be oper-
ated during 1917. The copper mating
plants at Ouray and Vulcan were
idle The United States Zinc Co.'S
magnetic INSTRUMENTATION mill and
zinc smelter at Pueblo were actively
operated on zinc ores from Colorado
and other western states. The West
ern Chemical Co.'S acid plant and
magneticseparation INSTRUMENTATION
mill at Denver and the Empire Zinc
Co.'S 20O-ton magnetic-separation
plant at Canon City were operated
steadily, both treating chiefly Lead
vile lead-zinc sulphide ores. The
River Smelling & Refining Co.'s plant
at Florence continued to treat zinc
lead-copper sulphide ores from several
counties in Colorado. part of the pro-
duct being forwarded to this COM
panys electrolytic zinc plant at keo-
xuk, Iowa. The Western zinc-oxide
slant at Leadville was operated stead
.ly on zinc carbonate ores. Copper
ore and cyanide precipitates were
shipped from Colorado to the smelter
at Omaha, and some copper and lead |
ores were shipped to plants in Utah.
As predicted in the six months re-
view OF operations in Colorado, the
production from Cripple Creek was
less than in 1916. but the production
during the last six months OF 1917
was somewhat larger than during the
first six months, and the total produc-
ton Of Cripple Creek for the year
was $101, ,549, 900, a decrease of $1.57o.-
900. During the year the Roosevelt
tunnel was continued SO as to end AT
the Portland mine. not at the Golden
mine, as originally
intended. A crosscut was also start
ed toward the Cresson mine. The
Portland Co. abandoned its plan OF
using the flotation process in its In
dependence mill. at Vindicator, and
continued to use the cyanide process
with considerably increased capacity.
The vindicator Co. continued its ex-
periments with the flotation process.