The Pioche record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1908-1925, 1920-05-07
WORK PROGRESSING
AT THE PRINCE

pump: steam and sweat. steam and
sweat, and the roar OF the falling wa
ters: steam and sweat and the crash I
ing staceato OF the machines-these 4
are the first impressions of the shaft
bottom at the Prince mine. the shaft
which Is being sent down TO the orebed
two hundred feet below.
Chaos and confusion worse con-
founded crash between the rocky walls /
and in the small space the shaftmen
work. fghting for each foot of depth.
Grim and silent, earnest and alert. I
these men make the most OF seconds.
each inten. upon his task and each the
part of team.
GRADUALLY the impression OF chaos
fades as il is seen that amid all the
confusion there is method. a gesture.
nod or perhaps smile and each man
moves with certainty to start some de-
tail of the work which must continue.
The method, unseen. is the thing
of interest and to be noticed The plan
of work first done in the mind of an
engineer, then perfected with concen-
trated thought in the quiet of some
office, then worked out on paper until
the impossibilities become Impractical
bilities and until these were surmount-
blueprints, with the impracticablities
now mere difficulties, such as rock and
dynamite and drills, water and pumps
and steam and falling rocks and scald-
ing water
The engineer seems to do no work
usually quiet man with most abund-
ant leisure. He does no work because
all he has to do is to plan-and wonder
il his plans will fail and kill some man
or kill some men, or merely hurt some
families who have placed their savings
in his hands, hoping for return of
profit. This might be work, and until
pleasure loses it's accepted meaning the
work of planning will be called hard
work. The shaft work at the Prince
mine is being done by engineers and
men and mighty machinery called the
Walter Fitch Jr. Construction Com
pany, and the local work is directed at
Nthis time by r. D. Gardner. their west
ern superintendent, a brown-eyed gen
tlemanly giant in travelling clothes
and a black grimed, muddy individual
in business llahki and hobnailed boots
Utah boy and an engineer from the
~ and now directing six big Jobs
in four big mines and handling 45(
men 1t is the Walter Fitch Compan,
at the Chief Consolidated Company
mine at Eureka; the shaft which mold
the heavy swelling rorphyry. will
ribs of steel encased in stone. and be
hind this wall of concrete reinforce'
with bars the crushing swell Of tn
decomposing rock is so rigidly hell
that no movement has been notice.
during the period of a year.
This shaft was put down at an ex
pense which will compare favorabl
with the cost of timbered shaft an
at a greater speed than many tim
bered shaft of similar size. 1t is no.
1880 feet deep, with 700 feet to go {
reach the richest lime bed in the Tin
tic district, 100 feet below the waite
level.
Mr.. Gardner was asked about th
work at the Prince contract, but, lik
the dictionary, his stories We're sho
though clear. He said that they e.
pected to reach the orehed some tin
in July as by Friday night they wou
have completed the pump station az
have resumed sinking. The boile
were in good shape and there was
steam -driven compressor on the io
so there would not be further troub
with pumps and drills The shaft
minute, but when the second pun
station is finished the pumping capa
ity will be 500 gallons per minute I
contractors have twenty two men
work and have no difficulty in mai
tanning a full crew. although genel
labor conditions leave much to be
sired Jackhammers are used in t
shaft bottom and the ground, while I
an easily drilled material, breaks W
and the compartment shaft pi
crosses.
Superintendent ]. II. Hedges, anot
er quiet engineer, SUNNI I'd up the s
uation at the Prince mine with the t
words, "As usual" but skill will I
and the two reporters of the Reco
with expert inquiry by the editor e.
tied other facts. The development
the Davidson orebed is progress
from the winze on the third level,
this work is now down 125 feet to
objective. A level will be driven to
under the extension of the David
orebed to the south when another y
leyful Of ore should be available.
shipments are being maintained at
rate of 5000 tons per month and dur
the last three days the mine has
ceived all the cars ii needed.
shipments come from the Prince
from the Davidson simply as ma
of convenience in mining, as the 81
Of this ore is remarkably uniform.
Outside--the big mne with its bu
ings housing the powerful machin
pulsing with energy and busy
the work of supplying the demand
industry with the hidden ores. Ia
two quiet engineers, planning.
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