Elk City mining news., April 23, 1904, Image 1

About Elk City mining news. (Elk City, Idaho) 1903-1913

Image provided by: Idaho State Historical Society

                
OK City Mining News
$2.oo The Year
Elk City, Idaho, April 23, 1904
Vol. I. No. 17
MINING IN BLACK HILLS.
The Last of Mr. Yates' Papers on the Homestake System of
Stoping Ore.—Comparative Table of the Cost of Tim
bering by the Different Methods.
On account of the uneven size of the j
rock, chutes are not generally used in i
these stopes, but the carmen shovel the !
ore into cars, from the ..level of
the track, there being as many
places to shovel from as there are
spaces between posts along the track.
However, where the rock is soft and
where it breaks fine, chutes are used to
advantage.
Should a large rock come down which
the shoveler cannot break with a rock
hammer, he moves his car to another
opening until the "blockholcr" comes
Two of these regular sets on each
side of the stope are carried up as fast
as the stope is worked, in which are
placed the laders and air pipes. These
A . , , f
Another plan of working these stopes
is now being carried out, by which at
least 50 per cent of the sill timbers will
be saved. Instead of the two outside
tracks being in the stope, a drift is cut
under the edge of each pillar of suffi
cient height and width to receive one
line of regular stope sets and tracks
are laid in these. The timbers are put
in place and the ore is broken down un
til the sifi chamber is partly filled, the
broken rock holding the timber sets in
place. An opening is made in the
broken rock through the center of the
stope, in which another line of sets are
No sills are laid between the rows and
only six rows of posts are required,
whereas eleven rows are required in
other stopes.
in these open sets and the two under
the pillai ; may bo used again when the
pillar is being taken out.
The operation of these stopes has
around.
open sets also assist in ventilating the
stope.
put up. the loose rock being shoveled
back against the posts to support them,
The tracks will be laid
brought about another change in the
general working plan of the mine,
which will make a material saving in
the cos! of development. Timbered
stopes cannot be worked economically
more than 80 or 90 feet high, as the
timber begins to crush of its own
weight, while the untimbered stopes
can be carried up 150 feet as well as
100. As a result the distance between
new levels will be made 150 feet, which
will effect a saving of one-third in de
velopment work, and one-third more
ore can be recovered from the stopes
with the same sill work.
TIMBERED STOPE
Lin. ft.
No. of or ft. Cost of ing and
Pieces B. M. material framing Total
421 3,650 $ 474.50 $ 96.83 $ 571.33
2,077 16,616 2,160.80 477.71 2,638,51
, 2,410 13,255 1,723.15 506.10 2,229.25
. 2,261 12,435 1,616.55 474.18 2,090.73
4,537 266.85 22.69 289.54
. 13,020 75,906 3,795.30 379.53 4,174.83
. 2,^110 4,025 64.82 30.00 94.82
2,352 784 13.33 11.76 25.09
. 327.93
824.12
Saw
Name of Piece—
Sill floor posts ....
Upper floor posts .
Caps.
Ties.
Sills—203 long, 382 short
Lagging.
Lagging strips ....
Wedges.
47 sill floor chutes, complete
215 upper floor bins, complete
Ladders.
Placing timbers arid chutes
Breakage—10 per c nt lagging, 5 of
posts, caps, ties
1.99 3.50
5.49
14 117
4,745.00
793.97
18,810.61
Total
STOPE WORKED BY HOMESTAKE METHOD
. 421 3,650
410 2,250
381 2,095
203 5,436
. 382 2,101
1,752 10,214
764 4,454
. 1,684 13,472
474.50 96.83 571.33
293.15 86.10 S79.25
272.35 80.01 352.36
121.80 12.18 133.98
105.05 10.50 115.55
510.70 51.07 561.77
222.70 25.27 244.97
673.37 57.36 740.96
1 12 1,00 2.12
22.08 121.92
10.08 44.40
10.08 44.40
2.80 30.80
20.98 230.83
22.85
4.00 7.00 11.00
. . . 758.16
. , 4,366.65
. . $3,108.15
500.34
-I
. . $4,366.65
Sill floor posts
Caps
Ties . .
(
Sills, long . . »
Sills, short,
Lagging
Lagging to protect track
Relief lagging
Wedges
66
200
Manways—
Upper floor posts
Caps.
Ties
99.84
34.32
34.32
28.00
209.85
22.85
96 "68
48 264
'48 264
96 560
720 4,197
. 1,440 457
28 235
k
Lagging, floors
Lagging, sides
Drift pins ....
Ladder '.
Labo» standing sill floor timbers
Total
HÖMESTAKE METHOD
Cost of material
Sawing and framing
Total
When the stope is worked up 80 or 85
feet, raises are made to the level above
through which the filling is to be dump
ed, and the ore is then drawn out.
While the ore is being drawn out the
walls, and roof are carefully watched
and all loose material is dressed down.
No accident of a serious nature has oc
curred in one of these stopes during the
two years in which this method has 1
been employed that could ih any way be l
attributed to the method.
When one end has been emptied of I
ore a section of the sill floor is lagged |
and the filling is dumped in until it be
gins to run over the lagging. In this j
way the filling follows the shovelers
and the walls of the stope are support
ed at one end by the ore and at the oth- [
i
WbcnBimU 1 ore bodies are worked by ,
this method no pillars are left in, but
when one section is worked up a suffi
cient heighth another is started at one
end and the ore is left in until the en
tire body is worked.
Stoping without timber is not con
fined to the Homestake mine, but there
are certain features of the method as 1
employed here peculiar to the Home
stake, and which are considered neces -\
sary to suit our conditions. In the
Treadwell mine the sill floor is not open
ed on the station level, but drifts are 1
run in the ledge and raises put up from
these drifts to a level some 15 feet j
which takes the place of the sill floor j
timbers used in the Homestake.
cost of the timber would in a great |
raises and putting in chutes. The ac-j
cessibility of the ore is another advan
tage in favor of the Homestake method
' and becomes a necessity in a mine
er by the waste.
-
above. No timber is required except |
for chutes, but a back of ore is left in,
The
measure be offset by the coat of making 1
... r ,
which furnishes nearly 4,000 tons of ore
every -4 loin».
As only a small per cent of the ore
can be removed before the stope is fin
j ished, there is of necessity a large re
serve always on hand, which allows the
mine to lay off whenever desirable,
The present broken ore reserve in the
mine is nearly one million tons.
Following is a comparative table giv
ing the cost of timber in a stope which
has been worked and timbered by square
!
sets . and the same stope if worked by
the "Homestake method":
JUMBO TO PAY DIVIDENDS.
Frank Brown Says it. will Disburse
$15,000.-Probably Monthly.
"We expect to pay a dividend on the
Jumbo in June," said Frank Brown,
manager of the Buffalo Hump mine,
who is at the Pacific. "It will be $15,
000, or one per cent, and after that
dividends will be a regular monthly oc
currence. ' '
Mr. Brown is also manager of the
Del Rio and the Cracker Jack, and is
up from the Hump to secure machinery
for the Jumbo.
r
"The Jumbo is working 35 men now"
he continued. "Fourteen of these are
0 n development and the balance are
milling and in the stopes. We are
milling the ore from tunnel No. 3 at the
500 foot level. Development work is in
tunnel No. 4 at the 800 foot level.
pleted and will be running by May 1
We have $35,000 or $40,000 worth of
tailings to put through the mill as soon 1
as it starts. We have been getting '
about $ 15,000 a month off the plates
, and about $6 000 a month has been^ go
mg into the tailings. All our work on
the Jumbo is now confined to the one
claim, but we shall probably start de
velopment on other claims during the
summer.
«The Del Rio is now working eight
men and is making a good showing.
1 Some new machinery, including a stamp
mill, will be put on the property this
summer.
«The Cracker Jack is working 20
men. The electric light plant is now
1 running, and the mill, which has been
s h u t down since la»t fall, will be started !
j up within 30 days. It has a good body ,
«The* Lucky Lad has started up again j
j and is working a full force of about 21
| down for two or three months, will be
"The Liberty Bell will start up about J
the first of the month. It has been
I shut down for about a year.
] «The Atlas, owned by Spokane men,
' 'Our cyanide plant is Dearly com
-
| 0 f ore.
The mill, which has been shut
men.
1 started soon.
j ,s working a full force and is making a
1 good showing.
«The Concord Mining company, of
Boston, is work? g 20 men on the Ajax.
It intends to start work on St. Louis
and the Mother Lode. No. 2 early in
the summer. 1 hese claims have nevei
before been worked.
"j have just sent down eight men for
the Diamond Hitch property, in the
Elk City district, on which I took a
bond recently for one year. The prop
erty is owned by Orin Lamb of Lewis
ton, Idaho. I expect to do 700 or 800
feet of tunnel work on the property',
which has a good showing." —Spokane
Spokesman-Review.
CAN GET A SURVEY.
New Ruling by the General Land
Office.
The following is an ecerpt from a re
cent decision of the general land office
in the case of W. M. Crandall, ex-parte
on appeal from a decision of the U. S.
surveyor general of Idaho denying him
an order for the survey of certain pla
cer mining claims of irregular shape on
Salmon river:
"Upon making a preliminary plat of
the claims prior to the issuance of the
order for survey you found that the
Coarse Gold and Morton claims were
long, narrow and irregular in form, and
acting under departmental decisions in
the case of the Miller placer (30 L. D.
325) and the Wood placer (32 L. D. 198)
you refused to issue an order for sur
vey of said claims informing applicant
I that you would approve an order for
survey of the remaining claims but that
if he desired to include all of his loca
tions in -Paid survey his remedy would
consist of an appeal from your action.
"Appeal was filed from your action
alleging that you erred in applying the
! decisions cited to the case at bar for
, the reason that these claims were loca
ted long prior to the survey of the
township; that they were not located
1 and designed to control the water sup
ply but are bona fide placer locations
and include only such ground as is val-
-uable for its deposits of placer gold;
j that to require applicant to conform
j the system of public land survey would
be a hardship upon him and ré'sult
the taking in of a considerable area
non-mineral ground. The survey
I township 26 N. R. 1, E, was approved
BOARD OF TRADE FOR. ELK
The Miners, Business Men and Operators of Elk City District
Held a Meeting Sunday and Organize for the Purpose
of Advertising the Mineral Resources.
The miners, business men and operators of Elk City District
held and enthusiastic meeting Sunday, April 17, and organized a
Board of Trade, the objects of which are set forth in the preamble
which reads as follows:
"The citizens of Elk City District, County of Idaho, State of
Idaho, believing that our interests will be furthered by association,
hereby organize ourselves for the purpose of advertising the merits
of this district, facilitate examination of its resources and encour
age capital to invest in its properties and aid in its development."
The constitution limits-membership only to those "who are in
terested in the development of Elk City district." The admission
fee is two dollars, with a. monthly due of fifty cents. The officers
consist of president, vice president, secretary, assistant secretary
and a board of directors. The regular meeting days are the first
Sunday of each month. Andrew Brader, manager of the Mam
moth and Great Eastern, was elected president; G. V. Herrington,
v i ce president; J. L. C. McCaffrey, secretary, and G. L. L. Baskett,
assistant secretary. The following is the board of directors; Wil
.. TT _ , T t , 7 T r • . T r r-. n n n
ham Hogan, Frank Hye, G. \. Herrington, H. D. Poyneer, H. P.
McCarthy, G.-L. L. Baskett, B. S. Cullen, N. B. Pettibone ot
Stites, John Olçen and S. W. Smith.
The officers were instructed to secure a suitable building for a
mineraI displav,and headquarters for the board. This was prompt
. ,, , , , , . -, . u u
L' attended to Monday, quarters being secured in the old Bennett
building and carpenters set to work constructing tables and shelt
illg. When these are ready, collecting the ore for the display will
immediately begin, provision is made for labeling each sample
brought in. as well as listing the group of claims or claim the ore
. „ , , » ,, , , ,, , ,, • -,_
13 ^ ror y 1, ^. le by-laws of the board allow S a mem lei the pnv ege
, of listing in a book kept for that purpose a certain numbci of
claims free of charge; those not members will be charged fifty
j cen t s per claim. Of course the number of claims will be limited in
j
As time passes, however, no doubt many of the by
each case.
laws will be remodeled and changes made wherever and whenever
I necessary to fit changing conditions.
, February 20, 1903, and survey of town
I ship 25 N. R. 1, E., has been made but
1 not yet approved by your office. As
appears fl . om tracing - submitted with I
the record, the claims, with the excep- 1
don of the Coarse Gold and Morton lo
|
!
j cations, lie along the : w est bank of the
Salmon river and while they do not eon
f orm dle ij ncs 0 f the public survey
as established, are nearly rectangular
1 j n form.
"The Morton and Coarse Gold claims
I
are long and narrow locations including
the bed of Crandall and Cow creeks, j
respectively. A contour map submitted
shows that the locations have been 1
made, with the exception of small areas
at the ends of the North Star, Dipper
and Morton claims, as to lie within an |
altitude not exceeding 125 feet above
Salmon river. The affidavits of appli-1
cant and of a U. S. mineral surveyor i
are submitted in support of the appli
cation and it would appear therefrom
that the claims have been worked for !
their placer deposits since 1894; that
the locations were made long prior to
the township surveys and are so made
as to cover and include the precipitous
banks of the creeks which are valueless
for mineral purposes. It is stated that
there is no intention of monopolizing
the water supply to the exclusion or in
jury of the interests of others, and that
should the department refuse to grant
the survey as applied foi applicant
would be deprived of ground where
many expensive improvements have
been placed by him in good faith. j
"Upon consideration of the above
showing made in connection with the
rule announced by the department in
the case of the Wood Placer Mining
Company, on review. (32 L. D. 36 and
401) it is believed that the application
should be granted. Your action in de
nying same is accordingly hereby re-,
versed, Quasi Contest 2557 declared
closed, and you are authorized and di
rected to issue the order for survey."
T. H. Bartlett, of Grangeville, acted
attorney for Mr. Crandall in the
to
in
of
of
as
above matter.
The ELK G. M. & M. CO.
The Property Vi-sited by a Mining News
Representative.
The Newsman, while in search of
news, visited the Elk Gold M. & M.
Companys properties on lower Red
river Thursday of this week. He, was
courteously received by J. A. McEach
ran, the company's manager, and kind-1
ly shown around by him. While it was
generally known in the district that the
surface showing was remarkable fox
both size and good appearance the re
ports convey but a feeble impression
compared with that of actual observa
tion.
The outcropping of this dyke at the
point the work is being prosecuted at
present will exceed 200 feet in width
and rises mass after mass of huge out
croppings from the creek to the apex of
The character of the
the mountain.
ore is the same as obtains in a genera^
way in the other dykes in this district,
especially the great Buffalo Queen and
Friday, the Crooked River company's
principal claims. The general charac
ter of the ore is sulphide but a fair per
centage is also free milling.
There is no doubt that with the com
pletion of the projected tunnel and
drifts, the Elk Gold Mining,and Milling
Company will have a property second
to none in the district.
On The Oregon Croup.
Frank Corbus left of Friday's stage
for Spokane on business connected with
die Oregoh groüp on Summit Flat,
which is under bond to a company rep
resented by Mr. Corbus. As soon as
dle roads permit a hoist and mill will
be installed> The shaft is at present
down gg f ee t, with three feet of very
high grade ore in sight. The gentlemen
compr xsing- the company are solid busi
ness men of Spokane' and Kendrick,
q^ey are Messrs. Herman, Frazer,
Browîlj Anderson an d E. M. Corbus, all
of Spokane> and Mr. Jacobs, the Ken
dr ; ck banker,
(
n ies contemplate WOl'k as SOOU as
snow leaves has done much .to
Hump Stock Quotations.
The report that many compa-
stimulate speculation in Hump
properties, thinks the Spokes-
man Review, and gives the fol-
lowing quotations, among others:
American
2c bid 2 l-2c asked.
3c " 3 l-4c
Cracker jack 15c " 16c
I Del Rio 5 l-4c " 5 3-4c
Hamilton 3 3-4c " 4 l-2c
35 l-2c "
j
The feature of the week v as
the bidding on Beatrice a Hump
' property of very recent promi-
nence.
Beatrice
i i
i i
Jumbo
34c