Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1921-05-26

TINS magnitude, my impression of you
property is a favorable one"
Subsequently Mr.. Thomson prepared
and attached to his report a detailed
statement OF results obtained from
eleven paintings taken during his visit
They show three blanks; four carrying
one color; two carrying two colors
one carrying three and one four. He
also mentioned that a sluice test was
made by employees of the company
while he was on the ground, but not
under his detailed supervision, from
which about $3.50 was taken from two
cubic yards, or an average of rs cents
per yard.
AS to gravel in the deposit Mr.
Thomson says that the most conserva-
tive calculation shows 200 600, 900
yards and that there might easily be
double that amount. He adds that
large boulders are scarce and will
cause no trouble, while there should
be no trouble in cleaning badrock.
Employees Show UnbOunded Faith.
Perhaps the most convincing argu-
ment on the side of those who aver
that great placer proposition is in
the making lies in the fact that since
the inception of the enterprise labor
has been paid for either in stock or in
company notes to be redeemed from
the first net profits" The amount
so llquidated reaches close to $500 900
according to the company's statement,
In addition, labor and supplies of total
value OF S275,000 have been liquidated
by treasury stock. While it is true
that some men have quit the job from
time to time matchmaking the man
agement and decrying the enterprise in
unqualified terms, it nevertheless is
also fact that the assistant manager.
the superintendent and several other
men OF more than average intelligence
nave stayed with the project for as
long as eleven years andsappear per-
1ectly content to await their pay until
the project is upon an earning basis.
Meanwhile they and their families are
supplied by the company with living
quarters, plenty of good food, other
necessaries in reason, medical attend
ance and money for emergencies
Wages are on scale about 100 per
cent higher than is usual
1t may be said that Boulder creek.
upon which the project is located. first
attracted attention in the early seven
ties and report says that for many
years fair wages were earned by pio-
neer operators. There are certainly
evidences of early sluicing operations
and it is not probable that they were
conducted upon gravel containing no
values.
Alaska Operators Experience.
Finally, upon the question of values.
the writer may add that at the time
he visited the project two weeks ago
an Alaska operator of % years ex-
perience in hydraulic and placer op-
erations was also a visitor So far as
the writer knows he has absolutely no
interest in the project in any way and
was therefore presumably capable of
an unbiased opinion. He spent the
whole of one day panning in the creek
bed and along the banks and reported
to the writer that he secured good
values and in fact was never
"skunked"
In view of the claims made by the
management, it is interesting to re-
fleet upon the percentage of values
that has proved profitable in other
projects of the kind In Osborn's
'Prospector's Ffeld-Book and Guide"
generally accepted as an authority. it
is recorded that one cent yard has
paid well in New Zealand and from 2
to cents a yard in Australia and the
United States.
Ambitious and Interesting Project.
With the question of values out of
the way it becomes nothing less than
a pleasure to describe the work that
has been accomplished Visualizing
the country as it was when operations
were commenced, about IL years ago
one can better understand the magni-
tude of the task and the iron will .
needed to bring the project to its
present stage, Approximately $425, 900
in cash has been used in producing
work that has cost nearly $1,000, 900.
The writer has travelled through the
mining districts of the wes* from
Mazatlan to Ketchikan in the past 30
years and can truthfully saw that this ;
project at Leonia is in many respects |
the most ambitious and interesting he {
has seen. In this particular part OF II
the country only one other enterprise /
compares with it in difficulties met |
with and overcome-the Idaho-Contf- 1
mental which represents the life strug- I
gle of A. Hickman, of this city. and |
which by a coincidence is in the same '
county of Boundary Idaho. 4
Dates Back Fifteen Years. t
The Idaho Gold e. Ruby project I
dates back to 1906, in which year the v
property was visited by j. M. Schnat- Il
terly. of this city, who had previously p
been for many years connected with o
the United States Steel Co. at its
and other plants near Pitts
burg. Since that time Schnatterly has q
been the moving spirit of the enter q
prise and has thus accumulated mater ?,
ial for a story that would fine few n
equals in the romantic history of min Il
ing development of the west. Two re- a,
three shooting scrapes in q,
which he was the target and in which II
three hits were scored, an investiga-
ton by the postal authorities innum-
cradle financial reverses and other
Lroubles-petty. big and of medium m
size-have all conspired to undo him nj
but. so far. he has surmounted all OBJ p'
stacles and says that from now on all W
will he Dlain sailing liu