Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 19, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 June 1877 — Colorado’s Wonderful Wealth. [ARTICLE]

Colorado’s Wonderful Wealth.

The mines here, as nowhere else that I know of, are rich from the very surface, so much so, in fact, that they pay for their own development and leave a comfortable margin to those who work them. Tests by actual assay show silver ruuning from thirty to as high as two thousand ounces per ton from a depth of not more than ten feet, the same ores producing at the mills from thirty to five hundred ounces per ton by the quantity. What this country now wants is capital. There are already millions of dollars invested and room for millions more. Mills and reduction works are springing into existence on all sides; the lixiviation works at Lake City, the reduction works of the Crook Brothers, at the same point, Green’s smelting works at Silverton, and the new reduction and smelter works now in course of construction or proposed on Henson creek, in Burrow’s park, at the mouth of the Cottonwool, Mineral City, Silverton and other points, one and all promise to be scenes of unexpected activity, the tide of capitalists and miners now pouring in being unparalleled in the years past. The new reduction works of the Melville Company at Silverton are about ready for occupancy, the works of the Walker Brothers lightning amalgamator being in position and requiring but the fiuisliing touches to put them iu working order with from forty to fifty stamps. There are fully live thousand mines in Sau Juan, with the indications

strong that before this yenr has expired the number discovered will increase the sum total to half as many more. Since the first discovery of gold in the nowfamous Saugre de Cristo mines—November, 1871—quartz lias bee steadily taken out ruuning from SSO to SSOO per ton, while one load is running at tho enormous rate of $40,000 per ton. The Summit is, however, the great gold-bearing district, being exclusively confined to that most precious of metals. There are now no less than six mills in the Summit dis trict—tho Adams, Little Annie, Golden Queen, Bowen, Consolidated and Golden Star, and the gold saved in those hulls alone the present season will reacli fully one million dollars. Last year the bullion product of Colorado was, gold $5,165, 000 ; silver, $3,200,000, or a total of $6365,000, independent of lead and copper, which is estimated at $140,000. This year it is confidently expected that the total bullion product will reach ten millions of money. The average silver ore of San .’Juan runs from $l5O to $2,000 per ton, the smelting works at Silverton averaging $220 per ton the season through. No silver-mining country in the world can equal this showing of yield, nor can any other mining country equal the San Juan in tho ratio of expense in taking out the ores, it averaging but $8 to $lO per ton. — Rocky Mountain Tourist.