Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-05-02

with but two ounces of his product,
nor will the market sag if he comes to
it with tons upon tons Of the precious
metal
Worlds Greatest Lure
To the layman, gold mining Is still that
mysterious calling which induces men to en-
dure hardships in far away places seeking
new mines, and it has been facetously re-
marked that the North Pole would have been
reached many years ago if news OF strike
had reached the ears Of the humble prospect
ors. There Is undoubtedly something IN the
lure Of gold that does not obtain with the
other metals. Curiosity perhaps, but however
that may be. without the prospector, without
the Independent engineer 1t would not be
long before gold mining would wane, ard we
who enjoy the fruits Of his courage and faith,
Individually. communities and as a Nation
would be the losers It Is the prospectOr who
has laid the corner-stone-the metaphor may
not be apt. so let US say it is the prospector
who has done his BIT towards making gold
mining one Of the worlds great industries It
is owing to the prospector that today gold
mining is worldwide in its scope from far
north OF the Arctic circle down to the equator
and stin farther down to the Antipodes, even
10 New Guinea, the land of head hunters
where but few years ago monster gold
dredges were landed on the beach and sim
dis-aSsembled we're flown In BY airplane
Mountain ranges Of some II 900 feet In height
to establish great gold-dredging project in
q savage land. -Four dredges are now digging
some $4,000 yards daily and according to ac-
counts, sim larger dredges are being con-
templabeu
This is an epic in mining some s3,O0O0OO
was expended before any return, but the
ground had been tested and proved to a point
Of certainty and the S4O0. 000 600 so of gold
contained in the billion yards OF virtually
proved gravel is as definite II 1t we're In
the bank and possibly much safer. This opera
ton viii approximate net earnings OF the or
der Of s5.oooOoo annually for century or
whereabouts.
Prom Ashanti on the Gold Coast Of Africa I
where accounts relate the discovery Of gold
regions the most Important find Of this CEN
tury-to the intense gold-mining activity now
extant in the frozen wastes of northern Can I
ada Is merely matter OF miles which 1 mem
ton to crystalize in your minds the fact that
gold mining Is worldwide in It's scope and the
gold miner the most ubiquitous OF men Wheth-
er his mine be situated in the Andes noun
tains accessible by trail with machinery de-
signed for mule-back transportation or trans
port By plane. or whether his property be
crossed by railroad. makes little difference.
It is all part Of the days work. Il
This Is the kind OF mining that the layman
knows little about. the kind Of mining that is
adding some 1850 million dollars (3i 100000
ouncesl annually to the worlds store Of
monetary gold. the kind that has attracted to
It brilliant executives, scientific methods and
engineering talent. fraternity Of which the
prospector is a humble member upon whose
efforts the perpetuation Of the industry large
" depends. fraternity comprising an army
Of skilled who have taken the guess"
out OF mining, who have replaced the ruie-of-
scientific research and have made gold-mining
safe for legitimate investment as TO en- I
list the financial support Of our more dis
corning bankers. t
Miner Brings Prosperity
The gold miner is the magician whose 7
wand viii bring prosperity out Of the hat,
as he has again and again in the past. The y
discovery Of gold in the Witwatersrand In the 1
finance her overseas trade on the credit Of =
some 5000 100000 annually Of newly mined !,
Argonauts the '49'ers Of California laid the y
basis for the building Of an empire Oh the
west coast and financed the building Of the
first OF our transcontinental railways. Ne
yada in the SOS voted for the north, and by Il
the treasures Of gold and silver from her II
Comstock Lode-popularly reckoned as Of the d
order Of s600. 000, 000-enabled her to finance a.
the Union; in 1898. the beginning Of a golden Il
stream from the Klondike the Canadian Yukon g
and Alaska filtered down to the cities OF the 10
west coast to Seattle particularly, bringing a,
prosperity in its wake. and again the panic el
Of 1907 was materially mitigated by the gold m
from Goldfield, Nevada. AS newly mined OF
gold has done these things In the past merely y
as a concomtant Of ordinary everyday min 10
ing activity, so do persons well qualified to Us
judge declare that the economic ills we are III
now experiencing has its roots in a long az
continued and cumulative scarcity Of the al
precious metal. and as the cause Of these
ills can be traced back 10 that shortage. so RI
lies the remedy In the production Of greater
and still greater quantities OF the precious iii
metal, the very ne-blood Of trade. II
R. r. C. Loans to Miners II
Gold mining TODAY Is not merely a question III
confronting the industry, but is OF national
and International import. That this is rec iii
ognized BY WASHINGTON is manifested by loans iii
OF the Reconstruction Finance Corpora tion. Ill
popularity termed aid to the mining industry" Ill
but in effect IL is laid to an industry upon III
which the credit OF the nation depends" 1t II
Is not q relief measure 1t is not designed to III
pressed activities. but for the expanding OF H. III
the making Of new mines. new sources Of HI
wealth Loans thus far have been Of material III
aid to the gold miner but unlike many ether iii
government sponsored loans, not only are III
they fully secured by proved ore, but Recon- III
struction Finance Corporation IS making q II
profit from them The enelneers III
Of Reconstruction Finance Corporation en- III
brace q body Of experienced men, sympa- III
thetic to the needs Of the gold miner men III
whose judgment Is fully adequate to pass II
upon the merit of a property for the develop
ment Of which loan is sought. The baianc-
Ing Of the probabilities pro and con is an |
art, rather than science. Few indeed are
the inactive properties where a measuring III
tape and a mol suffice for establishing its III
merit, but on the other hand there are many III
worthy properties in which judgment alone ii
INST form the basis Of a recommendation FOR III
development loan. JUDGMENT which comes Il
from long experience. In time 1t is to be hoped
hat engineers Of Reconstruction Finance Cor
oorntion win have evolved speculative"
lactor allowing OF greater latitude in the III
5lass loans, such failures as do occur being
,rnrnted amongst all loans. both Glass and III
D. 1T Is 10 be expected that the operator III
xhoSe property qualities for the loan on II
definitely proved ore viii object, but the in II
luetry as a whole win benefit so greatly that III
his very modest premium should not be o III
laxxfer 10 q reconciliation Of the various in III
erests. After all an operator who can borrow III
rom q banker for the development Of a III
nine-she day OF miracles appears to have III
eturned--at reasonable rates Of interest, is ii
ar better of than his colleague Of yester-
ear who paid back large share Of his earn
ass for financial aid.
T,rue the gold miner derives benefits from III
lese loans: the community benefits stin more III
nd finally the nation benefits TO a st'l III
reater degree. What other industry can show III
Ike reeord9 Til
Geld Helps Canada I'll
Caa~Sa Is now well on the road to recovery III
"a this has been nscribed In great measure III
Ehe intensive DEVELOPMENT Of her gold
gNf's~ swema particularly Ia the Province Of
aEario. II ths gear 1910 Just four years be-
re shs bestnnina Of tina war the gold out
4 fnDm the gold mines Of Ontario amounted -