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About The Sumpter miner. (Sumpter, Or.) 1899-1905 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 2, 1904)
LubtHmnmHn- a .. Wednesday, November 2, 1904 THE SUMPTER MINER WEALTH IN SANDS OF SNAKE RIVER Another man baa discovered another infallible proaess for savins fine gold in Snake river sandi. Tbia latest addition to the already long liBt of inventors who have made big olaimB born to unfulQUment, is T. L. Gregg, an old prospector who makes Ontario his headquarters, and whose gold-saving machine, be says, is the result of twenty years of study and experiment. The machiue consists of a hopper, n leud trough, and a concentrator and amalgamator. A small model has been operated with good success on one of the bars off No Mau'a Island, and tho invoutor is uow making proportions to construct a larger macbiuo, with a nine-foot travel, which he iutends putting to work on the same oar, where he says tbero is almost any amount of pay gravol available. With this big machino ho proposos to handle fifty tons of gravel a day, and he calculates that to do this will require the services of INJUNCTION INVOLVING VIRTUE MINE TAILINGS Au important, suit was begun iu the circuit court ot this county by the Virtuo Mluos Development com pany against Judge E. D. Owens' to restrain tho dofendant from removing tailings from the old workings of the Virtue miuo. The plaintiff alleges that the defeudant is removing tailings from that property without right or authority, and asks judgment for the value of the tailings already taken away, and alleges that the value Is two thousand dollars. The defendant admits he has been removing such tailings and In bis I answer pleads or will plead that be purchased all the tailings upon that property for.lhe mm ofj. tMPQdy has a right to remove as many as he sees fit up to the first of January, 1900, under bis oontraot of purchase. The planltiff has procured the issuance of an injunction against the defendant, and has retained O. A. Johns as it attorney, and the de fendant is about to move for a dis THUNDER MOUNTAIN FAKIR IS CINCHED The jury which has been hearing the suit against Frank 8. Ilobbi, who has been iu the Ludlow street jail for the last ten months, in the Supreme oourt in Brooklyn, New York, before Judge Diokey, involving the sale of an "iutereat in' the Com sotook Mines company during the boom days of Thunder Mountain, Idaho, brought in a verdict for the plaintiff for 17,900. three men aud a spau of horses. The gravel will be fed into the hopper by means of a large shovel, and as there is always a plentiful supply ot water in the river, operations may be carried on without interruption. The macbiuo differs from other sluice-boxes in that the bottom of the hopper aud lead trough are covered with a ocarso wire screen ou top of the blanket. The cross-wires press iuto the blanket by tho weight of the netting, aud thus a large number of small pockets aro formed, iu which tho couceutratos are caught. Gold escaping the pockets iu the hopper invariably will lodgo iu tho pockets of tho lead trough, but, should it be so Duo as to again slip through, the quicksilror-oovorod coper plate ou tho last box will stay its progross, and thus every particle of the yellow metal will be savod, though It might bo as fluo as powdor. This is tho content iou of Mr. Gregg, tho inventor, and ho is willing to stake his all on tho outoomo. solution of the same through his at torneys, ilart aud Smith. It has lioon demonstrated tliHt these tnlllngs are of great value, as under tho system of working used n the pioneer days much of tho va were allowed to float off aud is now to bo found iu tueso tailings. It appears that toits of them at the uew Sumpter smelter show that the de fendant made a good aud profitable luveitmeut, and the tight will be to a fluish aud for blood. Evidently the whole case will turn upon the questiosn of fact more than upon legal propositions. The motion to dissolve will be beard up- ;on.the return of Judge Eakin to La Grande from Enterprise, where be is now holding bis regular term of oourt. Recently the Virtue company, under the Duck bee management, sold its tailings dump to Assayer Davey and eon, of Maker, who iu turu sold to Owen. The actiou was brought by Edward B. Tustiu, of Bloomsburg, Pennsyl vania, last year's treasurer of tbe Greene Consolidated copper company, to recover $7,500 from Hobbs, who lives at Boise City, Idaho, alleged to have been paid by tbe plaintiff for securing an interest in tbe property of tbe ComBtook. During tbe course of tbe trial it developed that ueitber tbe promoter nor tbe prospector who had sold tbe properties in New York was desirous of beiug held to accouut for having issued a prospectus, iu whiob many of tbe statements advanced were shown to have been misleading. The testimony showed that Frank S. Hobbs came to New York iu 1903 with a view of disposing of Ilia claims, which he purported to own at Thunder Mountain, Idaho. Ho was introduced to Charles W. Kay, a promoter, of No. 00 Broadway, who organized the Comatock Mines com pany with a capital stock of 81,000, 000. The stock was placed on tho market, and through associates Bay was lutroduoed to E. B. Tustiu, who agreed to put 920,000 into the com pany and advauced 87,500 as a first payment. During the trial it was shown that Ray never had a separate, accouut for the funds of the compauy, but that tbe money received tor the sale ot stock was placed to his individual credit. It was also showu that in several iustauces instead of selling treasury stock to various applicants, Ray disposed of some of his own persoual holdings. Kay tostitled that after tho preliminary deals bad bou arranged he wont to Idaho to look ovor tho property. After his arrival there bo found that the facts regard ing tho locations bad boon mis ropresonotd by Hobbs. Tho property was at a considerable distance from tho Dewey mine, a property which attracted some attontion at the time of tho boom, Rowing to tho extent of tho mill runs that wore being niado. Ou bis rot urn Ray is alleged to have turned tbo proposition down, but it was shown that ho had given out soveral favorablo interviews regard ing tho property. Tho most interesting featuro of tbe case was the testimony secured regarding the facts printed iu tbo prospectus. Both Ray aud Hobbs deuiod having written it, though they each accused the other of being its author. It was shown that there wai a wide variatiou between the facts aud tbe statements In tbe proBpeotus. On the front page ' of this document it was stipulated that as thoro were no brokers all com missions would be savod. Ray on tbo stand testified that be had re ceived thitry-three per cout com mission for the treasury stock which he sold. Depositions taken from minors at Thunder Mountaiu showed that the various tunnels of which illustrated pictures were giveu iu the pros peotus wero not there aud Hobbs on tbe witeuss stand testified that he bad understood that tbe word "proposed" had preceded tbe word tuuuel when used in tbe prospectus. Iu the prospectus such statements as "Mountains of Gold," "$14,000, 000 In sight in tbe Dewey," and "Dividends Will Roll In," were used to describe tbe Comstoak prop erty and adjoining mines. A letter sent out by tbe promoter, Charles W. Ray, as trasurer of tbe compauy, was also put In evidence. It said iu part: "Why is this oppor tunity is bettor than any other represented to you? The promoters and brokers are all eliminated, thus your money goes right fur the stoak." Again: "Tbe four big properties of the Comstook Mines company are paid for, titles are clear, aud we are on tbe sane ore as tbe Dewey. Tbo ore runs directly through the Dewey aud the Comstck mines," As a postscript It was added: "Examiue the pictures of tbe property aud sue that the Comatock mines are au exact duplioate of tbe Dewey." Tbe testimony showed that tbe claims wero but partially developed and that some six meu had beeu employed to work tbe properties It was admitted tbat tbe company is uow practically defunct. iimsnamim 106rfWtMH Only transcontinental line daBsihg dlroclly through Salt Lake City Leadvillc it. i Colorado Springs and Denver Three splendidly equipped tra ns dally TO ALL POINTS EAST. 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