Show the success of the orange oran ore blossom extension BY WILL C HIGGINS all of the readers of the mining review undoubtedly take an interest in mining for it is a most fascinating pursuit but this interest centers not in the sinking of a shaft the running of a drift or the mere operation of a mill but in the final results the retorts or bricks of gold and silver for without these bars of yellow metal these tangible matter of fact evidences of wall street currency these substances of enduring and imperishable we wealth aIth mining is a failure and monuments to such failures are to bo be found in almost every mountainside and in nearly every canyon and yet failure cannot always be attributed tri buted to mining propositions not lack ing in mer merit t for such I 1 failure can be traced back to the direct cause and this is the absence of good business manage ment the absence of intent first class business methods and lack of and ability when therefore one hears of a pronounced success in mining operation he inay rest assured that in addition to a splendid mine and equipment the affairs it I 1 the company have been under the diorec n and management of a man of more than ordinary rd inarY ability integrity and enterprise and who has the confidence of his people and their operation cooperation co and unity of action as well for without harmony no mining proposition can flourish and eventually spell success with capital letters at the camp of the 0 B X company the handwriting on the wall reads SUC CESS and the capitals employed are so large iorge that they could well be used in display poster work because we use the cabalistic symbols 0 B X it must not be thought that the writer is referring to some secret and mystic oi organization such as the K X K X K or the black hand for 0 B 5 stands for a corporation po ration whose operations are aboveboard above board and whose successful work means an increase in the worlds supply of gold velvet money for fortunate stockholders and the development of a district within whose environments there are wonderful deposits of gold bearing ore I 1 owl I 1 0 71 rd t 1 if 4 fa I 1 C mota br ifill C fliggins orange blossom extension nissen mill which are only awaiting the application of capital labor and intelligence telli gence in order that t they hey may be diverted into the channels of trade and commerce 0 B X in fact is the trademark trade mark of the ora orange ng e blossom extension M mining ining milling company and be it said the success which has crowned the com banys initial efforts gives eveia assurance that it will event eventually bally take rank as one of greatest gold producers many of our readers we know have stood on the brink of niagara and have witnessed the mighty fall plunging into the abyss below the sight is inspiring impressive press ive but must be witnessed in silence for speech is futile and unheard because of the thunder of the waters as the catastrophe to the river takes place in a stamp stam mill the same experience experienc a overwhelms the visitor for the thunder of the stamps as they rise and fall with clockwork regularity compels silence for words shouted into the ear are inaudible as soundless as would be a whispered conversation conducted by individuals stationed miles apart the millman mill man shouts something at the visitor his lips move but there is no sound the visitor smiles shakes his head yes or no and tries to look wise but he hears nothing and does not comprehend until the millman rubs the plates and piles up the gold bearing amalgam and then he understands later the millman touches the visitor with his hand motions him to come outside and then tells him of the weight of the stamps the number of drops to the minute and that the rock going through would average 10 to the ton this was the experience of the writer when he visited the camp of the 0 B X and was conducted through the companas comp anys up to date and finely equipped milling plant ea U 7 4 7 by james A hodgman the president of the company and its general manager the orange blossom extension the orange blossom extension M M company is a los angeles corporation owning and operating a group of twenty claims in san bernardino county california ten miles north of amboy the company was organized less than two years ago and yet in this brief space of time it has extensively developed its property and equipped the same with a fine hoisting plant and an eight stamp nissen mill the improvements and mine development to date costing in the neighborhood of and be it said the companas comp anys camp is a most ideal one and its counterpart would be difficult to find or duplicate in any section or portion of the west mine operation and development in the development and operation of the orange blossom extension 6 a double corn com apartment part ment shaft has been sunk to a depth of feet following the vein on its dip for practically feet or until the fissure straightened up from the to the the shaft was continued in the hanging wall side of the vein the bottom Is about eighty feet west of the ore body and a crosscut cross cut is now being run back to the ore the shaft is most substantially timbered from top to bottom and the stations are large and roomy from the shaft drifts have been run on the vein on the and foot levels principally to the south all in large and massive bodies of pay ore and it is estimated that in the mine workings at the present time there is now enough ore blocked out and in sight to keep the com banys mill in ift constant and successful operation for several years to come during the sixteen months that the company has been in possession of its property over feet of underground work has been accod shed the ventilation of the mine is accomplished complis hed through six and eight inch pipes a fan being used which is driven by a small fairbanks morse engine formation and geology the general formation of the 0 B X is an adelite porphyry and the vein which is a ledge which can be traced on the surface for a distance of five or six miles is a true fissure with a northerly and southerly strike and having a dip to the west of about 53 degrees down to the foot level to the north is what is called old dav mountain this is composed of gray granite and it is believed that with greater depth the orange blossom extension vein will be a contact between porphyry and granite two of the greatest mineral bearing formations known to mining science and practice the orange blossom extension vein is contained between no narrow walls stringers are unknown in the vocabulary of the camp and seams and ve I 1 inlets n I 1 ets are foreign to that locality it seems as if the underground workings had disclosed a veritable mountain of ore and twenty foot breasts of a first class milling product are of no uncommon occurrence while quite frequently the values disclosed border onto the sensational the of the fissure is well defined while the hanging lacks in definition tile the ore often making in large shoots with hardly a dividing line between the pay mineral and the country rock on the level the ore body as determined by a crosscut is all of twenty feet in width and the entire mass is a fine milling product the ore is an oxidized and iron stained quartz rather soft in the upper workings but gaining in hardness with depth th 3 small percentage of copper present often gives the ore body a coloring of blue and green which is beautiful to behold and this makes the proposition doubly attractive the ore is entirely free milling and carries 7 ri 4 of v flashlight on the soo foot level of the 0 B X showing a photos bj vill lill C higgins higgini flashlight showing full face of ore in north drift on the loo face of ore twenty one feet wide foot level of the 0 B X on an average from 8 to 10 in gold with a little silver present copper to the extent of 1 or 15 per cent is also present but this does not interfere with perfect amalgamation at the foot level water has been encountered below this level the ore may become base if such is the case concentration cent ration will necessarily be employed in connection with amalgamation and the milling plant has been designed with such a change of ore character in view mine equipment the orange blossom extension mine is equipped with a 24 horsepower fairbanks morse gasoline engine and hoist with 1150 feet of cable but it is the intention of the company to replace this equipment with a 60 horsepower plant of the same make rei moving the lighter engine to its moonlight claim where it will be utilized in develop j ment work in the operation of this hoist j the ore and waste is raised from the mine and dumped automatically into ore and j waste bins in n each bac level evel in m the mine ore hins bins and chutes have been constructed and the ore is handled by gravity from the time it is broken down until it is loaded into the skip for hoisting on the level there is a gould triplex pump with a capacity of fifty gallons per minute this pump is operated by a 15 horsepower electric motor and the water in one operation is raised to the surface through a four inch pipe and conveyed to three gallon storage tanks located above the mill the power plant the equipment of the power plant at the mill embraces a 60 horsepower fairbanks gasoline engine which furnishes the motive power for the mill a 25 horsepower fair banks morse gasoline engine operating the dynamo which furnishes the electric power for the mine pump in pumping back from 4 pump station on the yoo foot level of the 0 B X photos Pha iiii hj 17 will mil C Hig higgie gim flashlight showing portion of the nissen stamp mill on the 0 B X the settling tanks and in lighting the mill anine and the camp in general mill equipment the mill equipment consists of eight nissen stamps arranged in batteries of 0 four each the stamps being supplied by the firm of fairbanks morse co a gates gyratory rock breaker of allis chalmers charmers make one allis chalmers square jaw rock crusher one wilfley concentrating table manufactured by the mine sm smelter elte r supply company one frue vanner and one dimmick sizer the stamps weigh 1450 pounds each and the drop is times a minute crushing through 24 mesh screens the stamps handle dle about seven and a half tons of ore each on an average dropping twenty four hours dally daily the mill building is a most substantial structure the foundations are all of cement the framework is of heavy timber while the covering is of galvanized iron the mortar beds rest upon a solid dounda tion of cement concrete and when the stamps are dropping with all of their mighty force not a tremble or tremor can be felt in the foundation which supports the batteries from beginning to end the plant operates by gravity and therefore upon an economic basis and the mill operation is so simple so free from all complex practice that no wonder is expressed when results exceed all expectation the fhe mill flow As the ore comes from the mine it is dumped into bins beneath the hoist here it is loaded by gravity into cars and tram med about feet to the stop of the mill where it is dumped onto a grizzley afif fifty ty per cent of the ore passes through the grizzley and into the fine ore bins the coarse ore passing over the grizzley and into the coarse ore bin and then through the gates gyratory crusher at the option of the operator the fines from the breaker pass into the fine ore bins the coarse ore going into the square jawed crusher when it is ready for the stamps the crushed and fine ore is fed to the stamps over automatic trippers grippers trip pers water is fed into the stamps with the ore the flow from the screens going over copper plates which are heavily charged with quicksilver the recovery of gold on the plates is about 90 per cent of the assay value of the ore and this is a recovery which means dividends to company stockholders the wilfley table and the frue vanner are not in use as the recovery on the plates is too close to admit of the of the tailings at a profit but below water level it is believed the ore will make into sulphide form carrying still greater values thus presenting a milling and concentrating product in the meantime the table and vanner are being us used ed for experimental purposes A picturesque camp the camp of the orange blossom extension is most admirably located on an eminence overlooking the valley below the outlook is picturesque in the extreme and a road of easy grade leads to io amboy the companas comp anys shipping point on the main line of the santa fe railroad in addition to the equipment and improvements prove ments above alluded to the company has constructed a number of fine buildings of oregon pine and california redwood including a large and nicely furnished office boarding house rooming house two cozy cottages stable and corrall all of which are painted the houses barn and corral arc all electrically lighted and water is piped into every building every provision is made for the health and comfort of company employed emp loyes and sanitary measures are of prime importance with the management everything about the camp being in order and clean and neat the assay office and laboratory is one of the most finely equipped establishments of the kind to be found in the west and this equipment consisting of scales and balances furnaces and grinders and crushers the finest to be had comes from froin the well known los angeles house of F W braun the company also owns a one half interest in a four inch gravity pipeline which brings a fine quality of water from willow springs on old dad mountain eight miles distant the line having a fall and head of about feet the water from this source is only used for culinary purposes as the water supply from the mine is adequate for all milling purposes which is a a factor of the utmost value and importance to the company at amboy the company has a frame lodging house for the convenience of visitors who come in on the night trains and also a storage and warehouse building feet in dimension where supplies are housed preparatory to haulage to the mine A auto is maintained which makes one or more trips daily between the mine and the railroad and it is the intention of the management to put on two more seven passenger autos at an early date as the company with a farseeing far seeing policy is arranging so that every person who so desires may visit the orange blossom extension mine and mill and a hearty welcome is assured to all be they millionaires or plain everyday mining or business men who wish to see for themselves if the very flattering reports from the property be true or otherwise and by all means all who can should avail themselves of this kind invitation it is well worth while to go just to see and appreciate the magnitude of the 0 B X mine to witness a model milling plant in successful operation then if this is not enough to satisfy the most exacting of its employees this will contain pool and billiard tables reading room swimming tank and bath rooms when work was begun in mill construction twenty six fine mules were purchased and the management estimates that these are now velvet to the company as their purchase price was more than saved in the difference in the cost of hauling by company teams as against contract work mr I 1 hodgman is extremely proud of his stable of big sleek mules and well he may be for they are equal to any emergency and give the camp an appearance of importance and stability for mules cannot be bought for a song but run into big money in a hurry I 1 the town of hodgman just below the mine and mill a short distance just far enough so that the music of the stamps will be subdued and softened to some extent the town of hodgman will INA rizw id 0 sr ing of a new wagon road to the railroad through amboy pass making the distance from mine to station about ten miles when completed the road will be oiled by the company and it will |