Wednesday, November 14, 1900
THE SUMPTER MINER.
SUMPTER DISTRICT.
Mining Engineer Gives Con
cise Facts to Enquirers.
W. H. W. Hamilton receives dally en
quiries from parties at a distance about
the mines of this district. He has pre
pared the following concise statement in
answer to these questiens:
The now world famous Sumpter mlniuj;
district is situated in the northeast corner
of the state of Oregon, and comprises the
entire northwest portion of Baker and the
northeast portion of Grant counties, cov
ering an urea of about twenty-six miles
square.
Access to the district Is by the Oregon
Hallway and Navigation company's line
to Baker City, thence by the Sumpter
Valley railway, thirty-two miles in length,
to Sumpter.
Tin town of Sumpter lias an altitude of
4430 feet, and Is so situated that it Is the
distributing point not only for this vast
area, but for the Prairie City district also,
every pound of machinery and provisions
must pass throiiph Suuipter's principal
streets to get to the mines.
The principal mines of the dlstilct are
between 4700 and 8000 feet above sea
level, situated on mountains of moderate
steepness, covered with timber of good
tiuality and'conVeiflentsize for all mining
purposes.
The main rock masses of the district
are argillite (called slate by miners), gran
ite and various greenstones. In general
the district shows very little intrusion of
dyke rocks, although in a few instances
I have come across dykes of telsite. This is
probably the reason that there has been
so little faulting of ore bodies in tills dis
trict. 1 he widest vtjlns appear to be in the
argillite, (Bmianza mine for example),
and ate tilled witii a brecca of slate and
silica, varying in width from a few feet to
a hundred, the ore being from 30 to 75 per
tent tree milling, the balance of values
usually being in an auriferous pyrite, al
though in a lew parts of the district I have
lound a telluiided ore carrying very high
gold values.
Among the principal mines of this for
mation are the Bald Mountain, Mammoth,
iJolconda, Columbia, North Pole, Moun
tain Belle, Bunker Hill, Ibex, Cougar,
Magnolia, Red Boy and Bonanza, not to
mention scores ot others that are devel
oped far enough to justity the erection of
mills and that will be among the dividend
payers in the very near future,
Until quite mently, tor some reason or
other, the people' 'of this vicinity have
been under the illusion that if a vein was
not in a slate tor run t ion, that it would
never make a mine, the reason no doubt
beini.' that the above list ot dividend pay
ing mines are all In the so called slate.
Hut this Illusion is now last being dis
pelled, as evinced by tlie great activity
and splendid showing now teing made in
granite and gneiss In the Cable Cove
distikt.
'I his distikt begins about nine miles in
a northeasterly direction troiu Sumpter,
being connected with good wagon roads.
Among the best known mines of this
district are the California, Baby McKre,
La Bellevue, Last Chance, Imperial,
Crown Point, Golden Kule, Lucky Boy,
Morning Star, livening Star, Lucky KIJ,
Gipsy King and Gipsy Queen. All of
these properties are being systematically
developed, and it is my opinion that more
paying mines will be found closer to
gether in the Cable Cove district than
any of the other districts tributary to
Sumpter, consequently this district alone
should double the population of Sumpter
and sustain it within the next three years.
From a careful consideration of the data
I have obtained In my travels over the dis
trict the last twelve months, I am con
vinced rhat within two years that there
will be more paying mines in this granitic
formation than in any formation In the
district.
Most of the properties in the Sumpter
mining district are owned by men of very
little mining experience, and it is only re
cently that they are beginning to see the
necessity for having a thorough mining
man as manager.
In a word, if you own a tarm, don't hire
a miner to A'ork It, hire a farmer; If you
own a mine, get an up-to-date mining man
to take charge of it, not .1 farmer, or some
one else simply because he is a nice old
man, or owns a little stock in the property
or has some other pull, and it will be lar
cheaper for you in the end.
Water is abundant for domestic pur
poses and in a gieat many cases the mines
have enough for power.
Taking into consideration the natural
advantages of the district, such as plenty
of water, line timber, the fact that snow
slides are unheard of here, the accessibility
of the mines and the soft nature of the
ore, I see no reason why the ores of this
district should not be mined and milled at
a cost not to exceed four dollars per ton.
There is every Indication of permanency
to the veins here; the larger veins being
strong and persistent and otten traceable
for thousands of feet, being (as before
stated) wider and of lower grade in the
argillite than in the granitic rocks.
The district north of Sumpter needs bet
ter transportation facilities, such an an
electric road to Cable Cove, but I think it
only the matter of a short time when some
enterprising individual or company will see
the need of it, and I confidently expect to
see an electric road, at least as far as the
California mint, in the very near future.
I believe that the Sumptrr mining dis
trict offers a better opportunity to the min
ing investor than any other district in the
west. Of course there me wild cats title,
as in every other mining district, but one
can almost hear them howl before he
reaches them, so to anyone selecting a
property in this or any oilier district, I
wculd emphasize lire necessity of a caie-
ful examination and report by a competent
mining engineer on the property.
While it is true that considerable pros
peeling has been done hi the district, still
it has in n great many cases been run
over more than prospected. I know of no
more inviting field than the Sumpter dis
trlct tor the practical, close prospector,
especially the Colorado prospector.
By taking the average of several him
dred samples which I have a record of,
taken from the leading mines in all parts
of the district, I find that the ore as it
goes to the mill, month in and month out,
will average from $o to fi$ in the aruil
lite, and in the granitic formations from
f 15 to 25. What better would be asked
ot any district?
Scenic Line of the World.
For .111 enjoyable trip east, take the
Denver & Klo Grande railroad, Scenic
Line of the world. Three daily trains be
tween Denver, Colorado Springs, Pueblo
and all eastern points, and all points on
the Pacific coast. Most magnificent seen
cry on this continent. The leading fea
ture in connection with the trip is that the
through trains pass through the scenic
attractions of the Rocky mountains in
Colorado by daylight, thus affording pas
sengers a cool, pleasant and enjoyable
riJe, free from dust and the annoyances
experienced via other lines. Superb din
ing car service on all through trains.
Service a la carte, pay for what you order.
Through standard and tourist sleepers.
Stopovers allowed on all classes of tickets
anywhere between Ogden and Denver.
Call on your nearest ticket agent for
tickets, rates and all information, or ad
dress, C .B .NICHOL,
General Agent, Portland, Ore.
Never fails Giant powder.
F
I
R
E
&P
I R E
FIRE!
TJR Saw Mill and Dry
Kiln were totally
destroyed by fire, but
we still have a large
stock of Lumber and
General Merchandise so
we can fill all orders
promptly, j
Sumpter Lumber
Company v
J. B. STODDARD, Mgr.
$S$$$S$$$$$S$:
Delmonico Hotel
M. St'ANCI I'M. IWiU'ior
A First-Class New House, Well Fumi-hed and Superior 'Inhlr
Service. Trnnscient Kates KcaMinahlt. Spnhl Kales to Local Pit
runs by the Week. Located One Block hast ot Depot, Comer Co
lumbia and Auburn Streets.
SUMPTER. OREGON
Avenarius Carbolineum
1
KKilSTI KID)
BEWARE OF IMITATIONS
The world famed Wood Preserver for mining lim
bers, fence posts, house props, shingle roofs. A radical
remedy against Chicken Lice and all insects that prey
upon timber.
hhKKUBKON Paint (aiitirust). A permanent contingH
for ipon roofs. Fire prool forstacUs. Send lor ciiculars. 1
Basche Hardware Company Agents
8UMPTCH d
OAKCR CITV. ORCOON
GRAlNSTROM'S
AND OYSTliK
HOUSli
Baker City, Ore.
NO'IIIING IN I: AS II UN
OREGON '10 SURPASS
IT ... ALL KINDS Sill II.
:ISII A SPECIAL! Y
Nlll I.IOMII
I M)ll ANIIINS HOI 1 1
h--.- "
George W. Weigand...
HIGH GRADE LIQUORS
AND CIGARS
t
T hi.. i. U...I.. U....I. ......,..
a mining men a cuutjuaiici.s
T DAiliiMi: rMic"".f"w
IJWUmil., MU JV-M!
t
Next Door to Wondei Store
' " '' "