Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-02-10
GOLD FIELDS OF RUSSIA
NEEDING DEVELOPMENT
Hrcat Wealth Still Untouched In
Siberia and in the Ural
Mountains.
AMERICAN CAPITAL NEEDED
Mines Declared Much Easier to
Work Than Those in Alaskan
Niondii<e-Only Primitive Meth
DDS i'll Use Now.
ny COLONEL RoUsrAM nEk.

!
by COLONEL RoUsrAM HEX.
LONDON. Feb. 9.-The greatest gold
iieldS in the world arc in the Russian
rails and in Siberia. They are easier
Alaskan Klondike. and they are many
aimeS richer than the gold fields OF
me Iransyaal But they arc not for
G,apital is needed to wo or them land and
ltmSsa hopes that American capital
Will ma its way into them
The ancient gold fields OF the Trails
are ar: only the smallest fraction Of them.
,r I.anr are the fraction which has been
Tobolsk region of the government of
feniseE. In Siberia. in the basin of the
i;ann N'T%r ,,,n ana on eastward to the
existence Of rich gold mines mines" who's i"S
have thus, far been tapped only by the
natfsnihsiT prlmt.tive methods OF the
department of the Russian Eovernment
Il GiSahtic amount OF dat; on Siberian
very Shortiy-will be opened to foreign
BIOLOGISTS as the beginning Of fur
thcr exploration.
SUFFICIENT TRANSPORT
FACILITIES ARE ISCI<INc
What is lacking at present. even
were exploration already complc,eJ 10
SUI; sn,,'ci"n in transport for tapping the
under the new government which us is
bound TO come to Russia. the conrcs
Hioms can an, be had by foreign capital.
ment for builders OF railway lines 70
zap proje,'ted gold mines.
Of i The oi4.S, OF ,he mines arc those
worked in the early Years Of -. 20 pc
a sGem,h century The UraI mines are
them have been made ay;,iIa III. OF OF
miners. brilliant results were DRAINED
, mprr LOT a while by placer mining. and
u.
uncovered the Tobolsk mines. Thn
i"nnn!SE mines have never been made
rltory is covered with virgin Tn, h v,
1870 WY nlhcutt OF penetration. by
are .S fniI OF OF ne fact that the forests
- Ntr'E OF the winters in this region
~. ayo, IS very sparsely populated. and
ontsidnr .t''r Il, roads are so scarce that
this district; way INTO
kINER LENA MINES .nc
VERY DEEP AND RICH
Inc IaiEa region in the Yenisey gov
usually called. WAS for n time very al
.ractNe To gold hunters bur- Inc
sradHa! disclosure of other rich mjnrs
20 IN; inc eastward emptied this region
me most Interesting Of these dis
coNtrleS TO the eastward We're tho
RIVER Lena mines. which are very deep
ana which demand for their prodtablr
working the most improved meihods
OF quartz mining. This has closed IL
80 me native miners. by whom what
sources have had has been made. Eff
i"Fls are being made n; quartz mining
however. following the temporary cN-
hauStion OF the placer mines in the
The native miners have done much in
Siberia. but think it may safely be
said that the Siberian mines would
Of hn
Transvaal mines If they had received
hundrcdih part of the scientific de-
velopment which the Transvaal has re E.
ccived. EnterpI Using people OF the
sort needed TO work the gold mines Of
Siberia have been afraid OF Siberia. in
spite of the fact THAI most OF its mines
are more favorably situated for de-
vclopment than was the <londike.
GREAT Capital. NEEDED
TO DEVELOP MINES
The great gold fields OF Ycnisey.
Lena and Amur are We'll known. but
the Knowledge concerning them is only
a very general one. They have never
bean exploited by powerful industrial
enterprises on a large scale, and u Is
only larSc-scale operation which will!
be able to cope with the present handi-
caps o! Siberia.
\ large number Of local companies
without sufficient capital TO employ
any bu. the most primitive methods
nave tried to work the siberian hclds
some Of them have grown rich. some
nave cCllaDScn. n II OF tncEl nave us
couragei foreign enterprise and have
put diSCouragcmcnts in the paths or
foreigners. learned mining engineers
and government officials. But new
day viii dawn in Siberia. Already
Siberi;, has shaken off the Bo!shcvist
yoke, and with the recognition Of the
pr,Sen; siberian government VIII come
4 welcome for foreigners ready TO aid
IN the development of Sibcrias vast
resources.
/ have in mind one of these native
miners. whose strange story viii illus
trate the present status of gold mining
in Siberia. ] cal vouch for the truth
OF The story. 1 knew the man per-
sonaiiy. have been in his elegant
home at ElagoveSi chcnsk. ana ] have
spent weeks with lim in the Bellevue
HOicl at NagaSaki
MADE GREAT FORTUNE
WITH SIMPLE METHODS
HIS name was l;ic!okopiton. and his
mines were situated about sixty miles
from the village III which he was born
and lived most Of his l.fc. He was very
well known among The Siberian gold
field owners, and, although he died re-
Gently, his business is still carried on
BY his sons
He was absolutely illiterate. and
could scarcely sign his name He was
simple peasant in his youth, and
used to work with has wife washing
vessels in the Kitchen Of the village inn.
lie is typical Of the native miners OF
siberia He made Il tremendous for
tune out of the gold fields he dis
covered, hut he developed them with
only the most primitive methods. Ills
siberian gold mines win not Amcr-
can miners with American IDEAS and
American energy help TO give us the
cihci"nt development Of Sihcria's gold
mines which we so badly need
Copyright, 1919.
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