The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1919-04-03
Mother Lode.


This property. which Is owned by
Mike Melley and John +. Murphy. o.
Murray, Idaho, is situated on tn,
south side of ophir gulch about 200t
feet from its mouth on Prichard creek
and just below the forks of the gulch
1t comprises the Mother Lode grouI
of claims, in which are included sew
eral blanket quartz veins that outcror
on the top Of the ridge west of ophir
gulch.
These quartz veins were mined fol
gold several years ago and have been
described by Ransome.
| Ophir gulch Is a small ravine which
debouches into Prichard creek almost
opposite the Golden Chest mine, and
the quartz veins mentioned above evil
IDENTIFY belong TO the same system of
naturalization as those in the Golden
Chest. They may be continuation
of the same veins or beds. No tung-
stem was observed in the quartz veins
and so far as the writer is aware none
has been reported from this property.
A very good showing Of scheelite ore,
however, occurs about half way be-
tween the gulch and the ridge. A dia-
base dixie which contains narrow
seams of quartz and punches of schee-
lite has been exposed by open cuts for
a distance of nearly 100 feet. The
open cuts have stripped the dixie in a
northeast and southwest direction, but
its strike and dip could not be deter
mined from the present amount or
development. The surrounding coun-
try rock is Prichard slate, Scheelite
occurs distributed more or less all
through the dixie, but appears to be
concentrated in shoot or chimney on
the north end Of the open cut. A
sample taken across IL feet of the
dixie gave return of 2.S4 per cent
WO3. Many specimens on the dump
show pieces of scheelite or 8 inches
across, but none of these were en-
ccuntered in sampling.
greenish rock. consisting principally
Of hornblende and pyroxene and con-
tanning considerable fine pyrite and
probably some pyrrhotite. This dixie
evidently does not extend very far to
the north, as the slate outcrops on the
ridge and no diabase can be seen in
that direction beyond the open cut. To
the south the mountain side does not
show many rock exposures and the
slide rock is fairly deep, so nothing
definite can be said as to it's extension
in that direction. The general ap-
pearance leads to the belief or suppo-
sition, that this exposure constitutes
the apex Of a rather extensive stock
of this intrusive, rather than a dixie
The word dixie being taken to mean a
more tabular form of intrusive, or
one in which length greatly exceeds
the width. The quartz and scheelite
are evidently requirements of the
dixie, derived undoubtedly from the
same Undertaking solutions as depos-
tied scheelite in the Golden Chest and
Golden Winnie veins.
The small amount of development
gives but little cleu to the mode OF
occurrence and origin of the tungsten
naturalization. 1t Is highly probable
that it will prove to be contact met
deposit in which the miner
alizing solutions attacked the cooling
intrusive near it's contact with the
slate, rather than the slate itself, but
this of course is merely a supposition.
Whatever it's origin the showing is
remarkably good, considering the.
small amount Of work that has been
done An open cut driven straight