The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1922-11-09
ELIMINATE HIGH
FREIGHT RATES
Message to Idaho From
an Experienced
Dairy Editor
History Of the Mine

Inc W0lCu BOlQ mine ID uV0 mll0t
below Blackfoot on the left bank oil
Snake river and seven miles above
it's junction with the Blackfoot. Mr.
WEIGH took out upwards Of $4,000
Of -four gold in his operations cover.
ing long term Of years. but he
never could stop the gold from 60
ing over the plates after 1t had been
operating q certain length Of time
In practically all Of the methods Of
treating the sand and gravel, the
only efficient work was the first few
hours, after that the gold kept
wasting till the next cleanup and
was present in the tailings. Az
agriculture devepoled 1T was shown
that the value of agriculture pro-
duction exceeded the values In gold
production, and under our laws, and
this condition, title to placer gold
mines is not protected as against
agriculture.
The valuable gold deposits that
could be worked by the gravity sys-
tenn as heretofore operated, was
only a narrow strip by the river, but
the question of taking water for
gold mining and depriving farmers
Of the use of 1t for irrigation, sealed
the fate of placer mining on the
gravity plan. With gasoline pumps
and ability to lift water in any de-
sired volume to any desired height,
and then letting it run right back
into the river opens the way for
freedom Of operations il successful
treatment can be made to save the
gold.
The amount Of gold-bearing
placer Of this character in the Snake
river valley is practically unlimited.
In the Blackfoot country the gravel
deposit is generally from twenty to
fifty feet deep where wells have been
sunk. 1t is what is known as wash
gravel, having travelled far enough
to have worn smooth and round, and
the gold mixed with it has been
ground to -four or to fine particles.
Nuggets as large as peas are some
times found, but most of it is from
the size of fly-specks down to the
fineness of white -four.
Some of the last ventures in treat
ing Snake river gold were made by
operating dredges in the river, and
altho they could put the gravel and
the gold thru the system, the gold
was always present in the tailings
excepting the first few hours after a
cleanup.
Mr.. Rowdon tried all those
methods Of treatment some ten
years ago and failed as did the
others. Then he hit upon the idea
of treating the water to take the
gold away from it while it was pass
ing and by the addition of the chem
icals believes he has brought about a
condition by which the gold can be
made to surrender to his control.
After many tests in the laboratory
he built the system like he is now
operating at the mine, and made
demonstrations in the presence OF
mining men and engineers who were
familiar with the failures already
made in treating -four gold and they
decided to capitalize the demonstra-
tion plant to make the tests now in
progress, and II. it succeeds, then the
Rowdon process and patents will 60
down in the mining world as Of i'm
portance ranking with the discovery
and application of the Wilflay tables
and the lacking process in quartz
mining that turned many mines
from losers to winners. and changed
many from moderate dividend
payers to exceedingly rich ones.