Show e TIMELY timthy METHODS ROUT MERCUR GHOSTS am X mercur canyon in boom days r by GEORGE W SNYDER AMP FLOYD an early military C CAMP post in the oquirrh mountains six miles south of 0 great salt lake gave its name to a district ill strict which has never ceased to astonish metallurgists by the diversity and complexity of 0 its ita ores mercur one lot 0 its subsidiary camps has been a veritable test tube of 0 mineralogy there nature outdid herself in devising obdurate combinations of metallic elements and the tha miner countered by working out no less ingenious solutions of 0 her metallurgical lurg ical and mechanical problems it was the tha lure ot of mercurs gold which led to the general use of 0 4 cyanide in leaching to the building 4 ot of the first long distance electrical transmission line and to the de development t ot of vacuum filtration aj D discoveries isco verles began in 1896 finding f a of I 1 a vein ein ot of silver in alof the sparrow liv arrow hawk brought ex I 1 soldiers sold sio Idlers lers farmers and prospectors to lepisto n canyon exposures ot of 14 cinnabar sulphide ot of mercury and gold addel addea to the excitement one capt shaw built a mill in the canyon in in 1872 some silver was saved a ved the gold however was wag elusive assays essays were good but the c 0 ore re cont containing aaning it would not yield to any known method ot of treatment mill changes proving ineffectual capt shaw gave up the tha scrugg struggle str 13 and tile the little town ft became a ghost camp y ay ss north of camp floyd lead mines and smelters shelters sm elters sprang up but mercur slumbered then in some nebraska farmers were induced to invest in the gold bed the mercur cold mining milling drilling co was organized less than 20 of 0 the gold was saved by the small pan amalgamation amalga matlon mill installed at Me manning talling coards saved the day this chemical was being tried experimentally peri mentally at denver tests testa of 0 small samples from mercur proving encouraging a carload ot of the tha ore was forwarded more than 85 of 0 the gold wa was s recovered A 50 ton cyanide plant started at manning in was able to show a profit and in 1893 its capacity ws wits doubled two years later capt J L delamar bought the golden gate cate group next to the mercur claims pyrite sulphur and carbon in hla his ore made mada trouble two years more and experimentation proved that with finer grinding and roasting the base ores could be aya delamar built the golden gate mill in 1897 1997 8 an and 1 in 1899 effected a consolidation with the mercur company under the name consolidated mercur gold mines co the two companies had produced tons of 0 ore at a profit ot of during the 11 years following con mercur milled tons ton with a gross value of 0 and paid in dividends extraction was at the rate ot of after the closing of the golden gate cate mill la in 1913 the camp languished gui shed in 1917 the mill machinery was sold houses were moved away and the railroad torn up mercur was a ghost town again adjacent properties had been operated tor for years with va varying ryang success the sacramento just south had paid in d dividends I 1 vid ends ell chiefly efly from profits on its quicksilver ore the beys geys geyser er and marion mines had bad united I 1 in 1897 to form the geyser marion company comi until unit i 1900 their respective mills ran to capacity and about 1000 0 00 was paid to stockholders thereafter little w was as done until 1933 4 when a cyanide plant was completed and a steam shovel turned loose to scoop up low grade gold ore in quantities four miles south of 0 mercur the sunshine gold mil mining ning co with a 50 ton mill was ope operated rated with indifferent d iff erent results the con mercur r took control in 1908 and incorporated the boston sunshine company the mill was remo remodeled daled and in the 14 months ensuing was paid in dividends the nearby overland property treated to gold ore in a ton in mill ill but was unable to finance its operations and closed down in 1902 beginning in 1933 new life was infused infuse d into the mercur area by the W fi snyder sons co the snyders plant at manning to leach the old J i manning and mercur dumps the t issue hung in the balance when the increase in the mint price ot of gold v horn from 2 no 20 67 to 35 an ounce turned ti tb the e scale snyder sons imme hinline j closed a deal for or the pur f i chase ot of the con mercur prop fi i arties under luder a lease and option contract incorporating the lewis f ton peak mining co they ai arranged ranged j tor for the removal ot of their manning plant to mercur leasing opera i blons in some of the mercur claims P profitable and with the j were vc very ry p prospective recoveries from corn the old ft tailing dumps another period ot of a prosperity P ro for or the twice ghost ji ha haunted anted camp could be foreseen fj tile the recent er era a 0 if activity has V of t the he district the payrolls se seen ell k hundred dollars in few rise from a 1930 to approximately per f month which is steadily lly increase ing this means about men employed on company account with 75 to loo lessees lessels also prodoc 1 mining supplies to T ing food and the value of aro around ind a month j are procured locally lacall and from salt ij lake city while ele electric atric power at y a cost ot of 30 00 a month Is con tj ot of fumed insurance 1 and taxes various kinds together with in misa is account rt cella cel laneous neou is expenditures for or another monthly it I 1 Is j estimated that oo 00 to t ft a month la Is being put into ciraula y tion instead ot of noth nothing ing at all |