Jerome News, 1906-04-14

The past week has been a busy one in the Jerome mining world. Favorable weather has enabled those companies doing development to push their work, and allowed visiting mining men, of whom there are quite a number here this week, to move out through the district. Among those here during the week were'C. S. Cochran, o f Pittsburg, Pa., executive officer of the Pittsburg-Jerome Mining Company; R. A. Thomas, president of the Black Hills and Mingus Mountain Copper Mining companies; J. R. Thomas of the same companies, and Mr. W. 11. Bradley, a noted geologist and mining expert, Mr. Bradley having come here to meet the Messrs, 'jjjiomas, for whom he werjt over the Black Hills and Mingus Mountain prop properties. - erties. properties. President Thomas and Mr. Bradley left Thursday morning for Pittsburg, Pa., Mr. J. R. Thomas remaining in Jerome. Mr. C. S. Cochran came to the district to witness the starting of the work in the 1,000-foot shaft on the P.-J. property, with the new and pow powerful - erful powerful machinery just installed. The Thomas Bros, have been very successful in financiering the Black Hills and Mingus Mountain propositions in the east and especially in Pittsburg, where the headquarters of both companies afe now located. In that city the Thomas stocks are known as the "Pittsburg Pets," and are eagerly taken up by the wealthiest men of that city of billionaires. Both the Black Hills and Mingus Mountain companies have now unlimited capital behind them and the development of their property is assured. For some months work at the Black Hills has been going on as rapidly as it was physically possible to carry it forward, and it was for the purpose of starting work on the Mingus Mountain group under the same con conditions - ditions conditions that brought President Thomas to Jerome at the present time. As at the Black Hills, three shifts will be put at work on the Mingus within the next four weeks, or just as soon as the ma machinery - chinery machinery jiow on that mine can be placed in position. Experts and miners alike, will tell you that the Mingus is one of the best pieces of property in the Jerome district, and that there is everything in favor of developing it into a great mineral deposit. The^ formations are right and the ledges are large and well defined. The Thomas Bros, were among the first people to come into the Jerome district and take up legitimate mining, and through them, more than any other agency, has the capitalist been given confidence in our min mineral - eral mineral resources and prevailed upon to place his money in their devel development. - opment. development. The starting of deep development on the Mingus places an another - other another company in the race for the ores that undoubtedly will be un uncovered - covered uncovered at all along the great Jerome copper belt. Like the Butte, Montana, and Bisbee. Arizona, districts, the Jerome-Verde districts has had to pass through a period of doubt, but, like both of these, she will, ere long, take her place among the world-enriching, mineral-producing districts. For years Butte was known to the mining world as a silver producer, and not a very heavy one at that, development being confined to the immediate neighborhood of her first pay mines. Later, prospecting was started a mile from these properties, and it was here, and a half-mile still farther dis distant, - tant, distant, that Butte's greatest ore deposits were first uncovered, and her great producers are now scattered for miles in every direction. Such undoubtedly, will be the conditions in the Jerome district when her belt has been properly explored. Again, we will take the Bisbee du trict, where the same conditions obtained for years. As to Bisbee district we quote from the speech delivered by Prof. Douglas before the American Mining Congress in El Paso, Texas, last winter. In that talk the Professor said:

Probably nc one is in as good a position to criticise and pass upon the methods of the eastern mining promoter as are those of us who live near the prop properties - erties properties he is promoting. It is a matter of very fre frequent - quent frequent occurrence for one of these pleasant gentlemen from the east to make a hurried trip to one of our mining centers, look over a property, make a contract to purchase, develop and operate it, then rush off back to his eastern offices and start his work of securing capital. Some of them'provide a little money for the commencement of the work of opening up the property, others wait until they can place the first is issue - sue issue of stock. If subscriptions come in to them quick quickly - ly quickly and freely the work is pushed along, but the trouble is that few, very few of them are able or willing to keep up that energetic work which is necessary to properly interest the investing public. Other inter interests - ests interests come into their offices and they divide the atten attention - tion attention they had at first given the first mining Venture between two or more propositions. The result is quickly seen, the public interest drops off, no more money is subscribed, the work at the mines is stop stopped - ped stopped for lack of funds and shortly the company they had formed with such glowing prospects, dies a nat natural - ural natural death. « - What is the result of all this? - % A loss to the stockholders in the company, you say. Yesl But far more than this. It gives a black eye to the district in which this property was situated as far as those particular people and their friends are con concerned. - cerned. concerned. That is where we suffer and that is what handicaps any mining community in the pioper de development - velopment development of its resources. * « These thoughts were forcefully brought to our mind during the past month by the visit to our town of a promoter of a very different kind. The gentleman we refer to is Mr. L, C. Haynes, of 20 Broad Street, New York, whose methods we can approve because by regular and constant business trips during the past six or seven years he established a high reputation in ourj! community as a man to be depended upon. It is men of Mr. Haynes' stamp that we want; men who will come out here, thoroughly examine our district, make a contract to purchase one of the many good de development - velopment development prospects which are to be found in this great copper country and then stick to it. There is big money to be made in legitimate mining around Jerome, but it takes a man with grit to get it. This is a country of enormous possibilities, but, like all things well worth having, it takes constant and steady effort to win the prize. - * The eastern stockholders must be taught the conditions of the country; they must be willing to wait for the tunnelling, drilling and shafting and for the proper equipment of their

small beginning has grown into a system approaching 1,000 miles in extent neces necessarily - sarily necessarily linking our mines with the great railroad center of El Paso, thence to reach coal ami coke, which, of coarse, is the food of every mining enterprise. We developed Bisbee from a production of 500,000 pounds a month, which, t wenty wentyfive - five wentyfive years ago, was supposed to be a very large production, to a production today from our own mines, of about (>,000,000 pounds per month, and a few years ago, there stepped into the field, even more energetic and courageous miners than ourselves, some gentlemen from Minne Minnesota, - sota, Minnesota, who lmd been stipulated by success in iron mining, to try their hand m cop copper - per copper mining, and who are now known as the famous Bonanza group of mines, They looked for ore where our courage had failed and where we did not look for it. and the result is that some dozen de development - velopment development or extracting companies are now working in Bisbee extracting ore, where we had, with all our experience, not the slightest conception that ore ex exested. - ested. exested. The result is, that Bisbee today, has undoubtedly become one of the most prosperous and one of the most produc productive - tive productive copper region* of the world. As I say, our own production is about 6,000,- 000 pounds. The production of the Bo Bonanza - nanza Bonanza group is about 3,500,000, making the production of Bisbee today, some somewhere - where somewhere in the neighborhood of nine or ten million pounds of copper per month. So much (or the development of Bisbee. have prevailed in the Jerome dis-

LOCO WEED KILLING CATTLE ON OAK CREEK RANGE. King Bros. Have Had Thirty Horses Ruin Ruined - ed Ruined From Eating the Weed - Government Taking Interest. J. P. Storm, who was in the citj Monday, is authority for the statement that nearly all of the horses an the Chino valley and upper Verde ranges have died or are in a useless condition from effects of the loco weed, which is now to be found all over that seetion. Within the past week thirty fine saddle horses belong belonging - ing belonging to King Brothers have been ruined from eating it, many of which died, while the water holes all over the ranges bear mute evi evidence - dence evidence of its poisonous effects by the number of dead animals to be seen which have died from its nse. says the Journal-Miner. He brought with him from the valley a sackful of the weed, which has laid low many useful equines, and ruined forever a num number - ber number of others. He gave the con consignment - signment consignment to J. C. Stephens, the stockman, who immediately ex expressed - pressed expressed it to the agricultural de department - partment department at Washington, which has taken the matter up with him with a view of finding some remedy for its fatal effects on horses. At first glance the weed resembles, to some extent, alfalfa, but a closer examination discloses the fact that it bears no relation to that useful fodder plant.

trict during the past few years, but which are being changed by the splendid work now in hand by such companies as the Black Hills, Mingus Mountain, Cleopatra, Pittsburg-Jerome. Jerome Mines De Development - velopment Development company, North Verde, Verde Chief, the Eureka and Dow Real Estate and Mining company, with prospects that others will be at work in the very near future. At the North Verde the change in the formations during the past few days has created a ripple of excitement through the local mining circles. A great deal of iron has been coming in and the ground has been getting softer, all ot which is very encouraging, especially as the change is coming much earlier in the work than was looked for. At the Harryhousen, Contractor Mitchell has the drill down nearly 200 feet, and, with each foot of depth, indications are more favorable for ore. Good progress is being made, the ground being favorable for the work. At the Cleopatra, President Hnll is keeping the work moving and is making satisfactory headway with good results. Favorable weather will now enable him to proceed with the erection of the smelter.

I have been very intimately associat associated - ed associated with the mining resources ot the -outheru section of Arizona for the past twenty-six years. When I fir6tcame in into - to into the territory, the Southern Pacific had built as far as -Deining, and no fur further. - ther. further. The Santa Fe ran a construction train as far as what we called Colorado, the present Rincon. Front this point we had to take the stage to join the Southern Pacific at Denting. The Copper Queen had been in opera operation - tion operation for only three months, and was working on a very remarkable outcrop of ore which gave a production, in their small 36 inch furnace of something like 25 per cent of copper. The deposit was in limestone and at that day, and more or less still since, there has been a very distinct prejudice against limestone de deposits, - posits, deposits, which are supposed to begin no nowhere - where nowhere and end nowhere, and you had what you could see, and nothing else. Therefore we are all warned to avoid limestone deposits, but when I saw' a de deposit - posit deposit of Buch extraordinary size, about

-60 by 60 feet in its outcrop, I could not believe that providence had intended that it should end before it reached the next claim, about 150 feet distant. Therefore I recommended my friend to buy the next claim, which had not ten dollars' worth of visible value. The next claim has proved to be the real ba basis - sis basis of the prosperity of the southwest, the famous Atlanta claim, because the outcrop extended for about 400 feet in depth and then petered out absolutely and there was nothing left. The old Copper Queen company began drifting along their sideline, with a scrupulous regard for our sideline and found noth nothing. - ing. nothing. Thecompany that had been organ organised - ised organised to work the Atlanta, had been grop groping - ing groping about among the surface limestone to find ore and found nothing. I t was decided by both companies that they would continue their explorations for about three months longer, and if noth nothing - ing nothing was found, then absolutely abandon it. Within the next three months we both of us struck ore, what at the time

J. C. Stephens, when inter interviewed - viewed interviewed concerning the matter, which is an all-important one to stockmen, said: "I called the at attention - tention attention of the agricultural de department - partment department to the great loss in the herds of our horses on the ranges from the effects of eating this weed during the psst winter and spring months and sent two con consignments - signments consignments of the weed to Wash Washington, - ington, Washington, upon which they desired to make tests with a view of dis discovering - covering discovering an antidote for it. The authorities there have sent for another bunch which I sent today and in addition to this a govern government - ment government expert is expected to arrive here in a very short time to make a personal examination and a re report - port report of the conditions as now ex existing. - isting. existing. | "Dr. Day's attention was called | to it some time ago. and he has ( been ot a great deal ot assistance (Continued pn T*a.ge 2.)