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Wednesday, January n, 1905
THE SUMPTER MINER
S
IGNORE OREGON'S
MINING INDUSTRY
"The mining men of Oregou, aud
particularly eastern Oregon, have a
big kick coming," said F 0. Buck
nam, the well known Sumpter tuiniug
man, to a Miner man la it nigbt.
"Here we are, putting in tbe
best licks in our repretoire totheeud
that tbe mining industry of this
elate may advance to a place com
polling rceognition as one of tbe
foremost, if not tbe foremost re
source of tbe webfoot country. And
yet all our work counts for little
when tbe paternal state government
and the fraternal western Oregon
prBB ignores our efforts like a white
chip.
"It was my proud privilege tbe
other day to see a copy of the New
Year's edition of tbe Portlaud Ore
gonian, an issue dovoted to a pre
eentmeut iu a statistical and photo
gravure way of the manifold aud
varied resources of this state. Much
space was devoted to showing that
the sock-eye salmon industry of Ore
gnn is a world-beater; that the tiuiber
business on the west slope has Puget
Sound bucked off the dump; that tho
growing of bops in tbe Willamette
valley is a high card in the industrial
deok; that the fortunes made from
quarter sections In the Umatilla
county wheat belt makei the hoard
ed wealth of Midas look like a plug
ged dime; that tbe cheese Industry
of Yamhill stands uuparalleled and
unapproachable as a mouoy-getter;
that wool growing Iu tbe sagebrush
region is hot stuff, aud that tbe bauk
rolls of truck gardners along tho
classic banks of tbe gratidly-movlug
Willamette are large enough to choke
a cow. Every notable industry, in
cluding tbe raising of rosy-cheeked
apples and roBy-cbeeked girls dowu
in Polk county was accorded its due
and proper place iu tbe Oregonlau
EXOEPf MINING!
"Now, what do you think of that!
"Not even a pasing mention of tbe
North Pole mine, whlob, duriug tbe
last seveu years has produced over
three milious of dollars in gold bul
lion ;or of the Columbia, which is en
riobing the world at a like rate!
"Not eveu a paragraph devoted to
the fact that over 5,000 minors and
prepectors in Oregon steadily plug
away aud add wealth to tbe needy
world without coming into commer
cial oompetion with a single other
line of business, but instead, create
ready markets for and maintain high
prices of the products of till other
jtate industries!
"This is tbe sort of wot blanket
tbe lending newspaper of Oregon
throws upon miuing in Oregon. Aud
it Ib merely a rsflex of tbe mossback
spirit wbiob actuates tbe cent-percent
merchants and narrow-minded
Portland bogs.
"So much for tbe Oregouiau aud
tbe preB of tbe west slope. Now,
how does tbe state government re
gard tbe miuing industry? I will
show you.
"Here is a copy of tbe first bien
nial report of tbe Bureau of Labor
statistics of tbe state of Oregon, pre
pared for submission to bis excell
ency, the governor, and of tbe
tweuty-tbird legislative assembly, by
O. P. Ho IF, commissioner. Tho ro
port covors the period from Juno 3,
1903, to September 30, 1004. It
contains 16-1 pages, is attractively
bound in greou, Indicating tbe nature
of is author, aud Is issued at state
expense fiom the print shop of J. R.
Whitney, state printer. It is a most
interesting document, devoted, as it
is, to barley, breweries, brick yards,
canneries, dairies, evaporators, farms,
fishing, flour mills, foundries, hop
yard, hotols, lauudries, livestock,
newspapers, nursuries (wet and dry),
poultry aud pine ueedles. Every
thing ueecessary for a complote know
ledge of these idustries is prluted in
tbe book. For instance, In a table,
due aud valuablo spaae, is alloted to
presentment of the faots that iu tho
state there is one lamp faatory; that
fivo wage earners are employed there
in; that tbe wages earned per anuura
reaches a total, of $2,800; that
12,000 is invested in the enterprise,
aud that the value of (he pioduat ag
gregates tbe phenomenal figure,
92,100. Oue hundred and six similar
Items are tabled as above, from u
to z, Alpha to Omaba, hnll to break
fast EXCEPT MINING t
"Now, what do you think of that!
"Thousands of men, scores of
towns even whole counties in this
state supported solely and directly
by the mining ludustry hundreds of
thousands of dollars distributed
anuualy iu wages among miners and
yet tbe honorable commissioner of
the atato buroau of labor statistics
finds nothing in tbe matter worthy
eveu so much as one line in bis green
bound book !
"Wouldn't that make you dizzy?
"What are tbe faots? I said that
5,000 miners are today developing
tbe latent minoral wealth of Oregon.
I take it back. There are ten thou
sand. In southern Oregon, from
Cottage Grove south, to tbe Cali
fornia state line through Roseburg,
Myrtle Creek, Canyouville, Glendale,
Wolforeek, Merlin, Woodvllle, Grants
Pass, Jacksonville one fourth of the
merchants and one third of tbe men
are either directly or iudireotly in
terested iu mining. In Coos, Curry
aud Columbia coal mining employs
huudreds of men. In JoBephino aud
Jacksou evory other niau la a ground
sluicer, a pocket hunter, a quartz
miner, a mine promoter, and the
languago of miuea is spokeu by every
tongue.
"Here in eastern Oiegou, from
Snake river to tbe prairies of Harney,
it is mines, mines, minos. Twenty
towns, with an aggregate population
of nearly 10,000, are supported solely
and entirely by mines. Cornucopia,
Irou Dyke, Sparta, Sumpter, Bourne,
Cableville, Grauite, Alamo, Green
born City, Tipton, Susauville, Qurtz
burg, all these towus are mining
towns completely, without tbe mines
tbey would not exist. Prairie City,
John Day, Canyon City, derive tbe
biggest part of their life from tbe
mines and Baker City, tbe com
mercial metropolis of tbe inland em
pire, without tbe mines of Baker
county would be a water tank statiou
on a transcontinental railway.
"And yet tbe green-backed report
of tho high-salaried commissioner of
the State Bureau of Labor Statistics,
in all his J (54 pageB of facts aud
figures rulatiug to tho industrial life
of this commonwealth, finds no
room for mines!
"Wouldn't that give you keen
paiu?
"1 wuuder what a special writer for
tho Orogoniau and the busy com
miBsiouor of the Oregou labor bureau
would have to say after a trip to the
string of big gold tniiioa of tho
Cracker creek mother ludu, where
500 to 000 meu draw pay rauging
from $3 to $10 per day, aud whoro
tho nationally fatuous mines the
E. & E., North Pole and Columbia
cover a territory about tbe length
end breadth of Washington stroot iu
Portlind, from which more wealth
la created lu oue year thau all of
the Waebiugtou stroet merchants
create injtwo.
"Aud what would the Oregonlau
space filler and the over worked labor
commissioner say if they qould sniff
the smoko from tho Sumpter smelter,
watch the steady stream of oro com
ing iu from these surrounding hillB,
aud seo the carload after carload of
copper, gold aud silver matto
ahipped to roflnorioa. Would thoy
still portent iu ignoring a atate indus
try which supports teu thousand wage
earuora aud yield from throo to five
million dollars overy year?
"For geuuluo asslniuliy aud abort
sightod damphoolishnesH, com mood
me to the Portlaud Oregonlau and tho
commissioner of tho state bureau of
labor statistics."
NOTES OF THE MINES.
Soven feet of snow at tbe Morris
miuo, in tho Greenhorns.
Two full carloads of unusually
high grado oopper-gold matte turned
out from the Sumpter Binelter last
week.
Manager Bob Evaus, of tho Majes
tic, near Minenvillo, says he h
drifting In three feet of oro assaying
from $2.50 to $91.
Begiuning today, hoavy phlpmenta
of crude oro aud concentrates will
begin from tho United Elkborn miue
to tbe Similiter smoltor.
Jaok Hazelwood aud Tom Brown
are preparing for oarly spring work
at their Eagle creek plauirs, where
tbe pay dirt Is said to pay $1 per
yard.
S. C. Richardson and wife have
sold to tbe Greenhorn Gold Mining
aud Development company two claims
near Windy Gap for a nominal con
sideration. A ihort carload of oro from the
rluh shoot reooutly opened lu the
east drift from tho 70-foot level iu
iho Snow Creek wab received Friday
at tho Sumpter smelter.
11. A. Mitchell, of Baker City, bus
sout a forco of miners to the Long
staff group, uear Alamo. A 4 -foot
pay streak in a 40-foot veiu oarrieB
values better thau $8.
Shipments from the Imperial
duriug tbe remainder of the winter
are expected to equal if not surpass
tbe record fur December, wbeu 217
ton were brought to the Sumpter
smelter.
High grade ore has been cut iu a
325-foot tunnel ou tbe Jilalto mine,
uear Granite, owned by O. U. Hon
son, of Portland, J. W. Tabor, of
Granite, aud Grant Thomburg, of
Sumpter. A porphyry dyke faulted
the veiu, but persistent driving
eventually entered a fine body of free
milling ore.
Johnuy Stowart is preparing to re
open his California gulch placers,
uear Granite.
Work on tho Comstook, near the
Red Hoy, has been suspended, and
Manager MuGorry has gono to Baker
City.
A heavy shipment of oto and con
centrates from tho E. &, E was re
ceived at tho Sumpter smelter Thurs
day of last week. Manager James
Wyatt personally supervised the
sampliug.
Al Gulser is iu Sumpter today from
tho Gom miuo. "The (Jem looks
bettor than It over did before," he
says. "Moro oro is iu sight thau at
any time in tho mine's history.
Development work Is belug kept up
with a big force."
Captain E. Simpsop, of Susanvlk,
is in Sumpter today, en route home
from a trip to Walla Walla and Pen
detou. He holds a bond on the Gem
ml no, near tbe Badger, and Ib form
lug a company to take over tho prop
erty. Tho captain has mined in
Moutaua, Utah, Colorado aud Nevada
for 40 years. He thinks the Susan
ville camp tho boBt over.
A number of fofolture notices are
boing published in tho Granite Gem.
W. E. Hurd la "advertising out"
W. I. Lopmau ou the Kentucky and
TounesHoo claims, on tho head of
Heaver creek, claiming to havo ex
ponded 9000 In throo years. Mr.
Hurd also desires tho world to know
that during tho lint threo yoars he
has spout $300 ou the Heaver quartz
claims, on Heavor creek, and that J.
W. Curren has failed lu cough up his
ahare. A. F. Wright la also not! fled
by Mr. Hurd that $200 of the latter'
money baa boeu aunk in the Big Elk
claim aud that if Mr. Wright desires
to retain au Interest hi bad better
aute. J. C. Mnorolaud, W. A. King
and A. A. King aro alleged by Mr.
Hurd to havo failed to pay for their
ahare of assessment work for four
yoars lu tho Sunday Night claim.
K., W., S. Gompany s Laboratory.
Tho Killon, Warner, Stowart "om
pany la fitting up a complexly ap
pointed laboratory and assay oftlco in
Sumpter Townaite company's brick
block ou South Mill street, the whole
of whlob building the company occu
pies. E. Nordyke is now at work
putting iu the wooden fixtures, and
tho apparatiia will bo installed In a
few days. A. F. Kirchen will have
ohargo of the Jabaratory, under
Professor Niuholaou'a supervision.
This has become au economic neces
sity with tho company, its assay aud
test work having growu to such
dimensions.
Greenhorn City Election.
At tho municipal election in
Greenhorn Tuesday, the following
ofllcera were elected : Geo. A. Carter,
mayor; W. S. Jacksou, recorder;
M. M. Itlardln, treasurer, and Ira
Lemmons, J. Bosenthal, A. E, flut
ter, H. Philamber aud W. F. Diaper,
counoilmen.
ESTRAY NOTICE.
Taken up, at the ranch of Henry
Panning, near Whitney, last spring,
two 2-year-old colts, oue grey,
brandod "C" on left shoulder, aud
on bay branded s . Owuer may
regain property by paying expense
of their keeping since the date of
their taking up.
HENRY PANNUNG,
Whitney, Ore.
December 30, 1004.
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