Year: 1873

/ 4 FALUABLE DlSCOFERY-IMnEN
/ QUALITIES OF TIN ORE on The


SHOaE ES OF LAKE SUPERIOR.


T. fais@overy of mineral deposits on the shores
and beneath the bed of Lake Superior there seems
be no end. The extraordinary rich mines native
copper of that region have the attention of
the world while its mountains of unsurpassed iron
nearly widely known More recently exceed
ingy rich deposits of silver have been found and prof
taby worked on the north shore, Thunder Bay,
while other deposits of the metal have just been
discovered the Iron River in the vicinity of Porcu
pine Mountains ON the south Reports of gold
discoveries in the immediate vicinity of the lake,
various points about its westerly end reach u.s. with
/ every evidence Of Ofcredbility.


/ But more valuable far than ali these is the recent
discovery of in the prolific quantities and
richness that characterize all the deposits of that
wonderful country This discovery the latest and as
vet the least developed of any of the mineral discover
les of the region promises TO be the most valuable be-
of the scarcity of the metal this Continent
and its universal in this age of the world. Tdere
have been several slight traces of tin found in
rous localities Of the United States and Mexico but
none of them have developed the metal il sufficient
quantities to repay the cost of mining Some years
ago the United States government realizing the value
and Importance of this metal, offered reward of
800 900 for its discovery in quantities sufficient
justify its mining and the Canadian authorities also
offered liberal reward for the object Both of
these offers, after standing open for years without
:
withdrawn. Now American enterprise and energy
have brought light what these large rewards failed
to disclose The deposits which have been so recently
discovered virtually inexhaustbe, and according
to the analyses of the that have been made are
like the other metallic deposits of the Lake Superior
region. of unexampled richness.


A few years ago a vein Of virgin silver was discover
ed on nearly submerged iset, just off the entrance to
Thunder Bay, on the north shore of the lake. This
discovery was followed by the formation of company
9Olrl nit hat * NJ
one of the most successful silver mines in the world.


This discovery stimulated the zeal of explorers, with
whom the whole north shore soon covered. These
enterprsiug searchers after hidden wealth un-
earthed other beds of silver along the coast in the vi
cinty of Thunder Bay and 100 miles back in the inte
rior in the region of Shebandowan Lake, brought 10
light promising beds quartz richly studded with gold
This discovery has remained in abeyance until the
present time it is alleged because of dispute between
the Provinces of Ontario and Manitoba as to the
ownership Of the soil and the consequent inability of
the disCoverers to obtain patents for the land But
the adventurous exploring parties that pushed out in
other directions from Thunder Bay were equally sue
cessful in their discoveries and in their ab-
tv to scclre title the lands. One of these parties,
following the down the southeastward, in the
vicinity of Otter Head on the main land, north of
Michpicoten Island, upon series of well defined
veins Of mineral deposits cutting through the lofty
cliffs that line that coast and losing themselves IN the
fathomess depths of the lake. These veins yielded an
exceedingly hard dark and heavy ore that was un-
known to the explorers, but supposed to be iron


Specimens secured for ASSAY, but when tested
for iron failed to yield that metal Traces, or
less of copper and silver found in some of the
specimens and some did WELD fair show OF iron, but
sufficient percentage to account for the high spe-
cific gravity of the ore. The assayers to whom the
specimens submitted either wholly unacquain-
ted with tin, or else because, that metal COM
petelv unknown this Continent, they failed to sus
pect its presence and therefore made no tests for IT.
and the value of of the discovery was for a long
time unknown Some ASSAYS that made OF The pro-
duct of these veins did produce white metal which,
as silver was the metal sought was taken for silver
without much scrutiny. But later and more thorough
and more scientific analyses made by Professor Viii
liams of the Missouri School of Mines at Rolla Mo-;
by DR.. Aug. f. Jennings, chemist and assayer OF the
Detroit Neurological, Mining and Assaying Assccla-
tion and by Dr. Torrey of the United States Assay
Office in this city, established the presence Of TIN in
prolific quantities Dr. Torrey says


1.-THE ere is true tin cassiterite mixed with
quartz; some of it is massive but considerable portion
of the specimen examined is in the form of small,
translucent quadrangular prisms, of which are
perfectly terminated. The average OF the samples
Yielded 1913 per of metallic tin. 1t would be easy
concentrate the puverized mineral to considera-
bly higher percentage of metal"


DR.. Jennings analyZed great number OF specimens,
producing aggregate average yield of PSI per cent
of metallic tin Some ofhis specimens yielded as high
as 57.7 Il reporting his analysis he says


THE ores examined free from any injurious min
erals and especially woframite which Is often asso-
cated with ores and whenever present always de-
preciates the value Of mining property and product.
The spec;fc gravity of woTamite closely approx


mates the oxide of tin that any amount of mechanical
washing cannot separate the two satisfactorily


Tha results of nv Investigations have convinced me
that the metal produced from these cannot be
ceed as regards its purity nor In the cost of working


The tin producing region, so far explored and
veyed, extends along the lake shore from Otter Head
southtasterly for distance Of about twelve miles