The Eureka sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1902-current, 1919-07-26

o;neer. who has been actively inter-
ssted with the mining industry for
over a half century and who is prom
;neutIy identified with interests which
are planning to rejuvenate the FAM
ous old camp of Eureka and to swing
the tide Of prosperity and activity
Inward mines which have already
produced over $lO5. .0OO. 900. arrived
from New York yesterday. Mr.. Cat
lin stopped in the city at the Hotel
Utah for day before resuming his
trip to Eureka. Nevada.
An era of activity for western
mines is predicted by Mr.. Catlin.
Eastern mining men are confident
that silver will maintain its present
high price and some are so optimistic
a 10 state that silver will soon be
put on parity with gold.
Resources Of Eureka
Enormous deposits of high-priced
low-grade ore which will average
straight through at very conserva-
tive estimate from s12 to SIS per ton.
exist at Eureka, says Mr.. Catlin. AL
though the more valuable ores have
been taken from the old mines. mil
lions of dollars worth of ores await
development at the old camp. Eu-
reka enjoyed its days of greatest
prosperity from 1871 to 1887. With
the building of smelters was inaugu-
rated the period of great activity.
An English syndicate. the Richmond
Company. owned and operated the
largest smelter. For years the Rich
mond mine and company controlled
the world price of lead. At one time
$1,000 tons of pig lead were piled up
on the Richmond property at Eureka,
according to Mr.. Catlin. In the best
years the mine produced between
SOC. 200 and 400. 900 tons of lead. in
addition to silver and other metals.
An Old Smelter Contract
Some little time ago Mr.. Catlin
had occasion to go through some old
papers. and among them he found a
copy of an old smelter contract. un-
der the terms of which the Dunder-
berg mine sold 5000. 900 of ore to
the Richmond smelter. This contract
allowed 81 per cent of the silver re-
covery, 80 per cent of the gold. no
allowance was made for lead unless
1t exceeded 20 per cent to the ton.
and charge of $3.50 was made for
smelling. Inasmuch as the lead new
er equaled the limit set. no credit
was ever received for the lead values
of the Dunderberg ore. Previous to
the period for which this contract
applied. the smelter charge had been
$3.50.
In a measure this high smelter
charge was due to transportation
difficulties. Before the railroad was
built from the Southern Pacific sta
ton at Palisade. New. the coke which
came from Wales around Cape Horn
had to be hauled a distance of eighty
seven miles over the desert. As a
matter Of fact, said Mr.. Catlin, no
ore worth less than $50 per ton was
ever shipped to the smelter.
Activity Wanes
In 1887, owing to the low price OF
lead. due to a glutted market. the
declining price of silver. the rapidly
dwindling production of high-grade
ore. the prosperity of Eureka began
to decline. In 1889. when smelling
was discontinued and the smelters
were dismantled. mining activity at
Eureka received its death blow. ac-
cording to Mr.. Catlin. Since that
time leasers have worked the old
mines in a small way. The high
grade ore has been shipped to Utah
smelters and the low-grade ores
thrown on the dumps or piled up in
In slopes.
For years the vast deposits of low
grade ore, both mined and unmined,
have awaited development at the