| Show ophir euphi r mine to be reopened BY CHARLUS CHARGES copenharve the ophir one of the earliest patented mining properties in the butte district situated in the southwestern part of the city a few hundred feet east of the iravona Tr avona one of the properties recently taken over by the anaconda copper mining company is about to be revived by a new corporation known as the butte detroit copper and zinc mining company incorporated under the laws of delaware and capitalized with 2 shares at 1 par the butte detroit has the backing of some eminent capitalists of detroit philadelphia boston and canada george F barclay of new york and philadelphia austin aa M pinkham a prominent corporation attorney of boston and freeman I 1 davidson of boston representing the new interests have been in butte for several days engaged in closing local plans for a resumption of work on the ophir among the prominent men interested in the new company are sir henry M of toronto and sir frederick borden of ottawa it is officially stated that work will be started within sixty days and that the new owners of the ophir are prepared to spend at least in the development of the property the ophir was a good silver producer from the upper levels years ago and later was developed for copper and while some good copper deposits have been opened there were also developed some very good zinc indications and recent examinations of the mine disclosed prospects of making of the ophir a producer of zinc as well as copper and silver of course the copper possibilities in the ophir have already to a very large extent been proved and it has always been the opinion of former mining men and engineers connected with the property that with sufficient depth big bodies of copper ore will be found the increasing zinc indications merely add to the assets and possibilities of the ophir the plant there is a three compartment shaft 1065 feet deep on the ophir and levels have been opened on the and upon all of which mining has been done and and on each of which considerable ore is now blocked out the mine has a splendid surface equipment including a ton mill and a hoist with ca capacity p acety to work to a depth of 2000 feet it is the purpose of the butte detroit to sink the shaft to a depth of 2500 feet and to aid in this work a station hoist will be put in at the 1500 and later when the present plans for sinking are completed a new surface hoist will ibe be installed the company will go after zinc as well as copper and all indications are favorable to the development of a big zinc mine as a body of zinc ore running 14 per cent was encountered on the level of the mine the new owners of the ophir basing their opinions on reports of engineers believe the ophir may repeat the performance of the butte superior and the emma mine which later property is distinctly zinc lies but a short distance north of the ophir and is being developed for mining by the anaconda company while the Tra iravona voila is but a few hundred feet to the west of the ophir there are several known veins in the twenty acres of the ophir claim including the two main veins known as the north and south veins and a cross fissure vein known as the blue vein the mine has about three and a half miles of workings and on oil the foot level two parallel veins have been opened for a combined distance of 1100 feet and on the level for feet the equipment of the ophir is excellent including a horsepower steam plant and the hoist good for 2000 feet in depth and a seven drill rand air compressor there are seven buildings including an engine house eighteen by twenty four carpenter shop smithy and office the mill de signed designed and built by john E rothwell is designed to treat the quartz ores by concentration with subsequent of the quartz when freed from sulphides sulp hides the mill has recovered 90 per cent of the value of the ore treated ore treatment the mill is regarded as one of the most complete in the west and with little additional cost its capacity can be doubled ore is broken in a sully gyratory crusher is reduced to 24 mesh in a chilean mill passes to five deister concentrating tables whose tailings go to atkins classifiers the resultant sands go to the five by twenty two loot foot tube mill grinding to mesh this product passes to sloughing off cones the underflow to eight delster deister slime tables tails are de watered agitated with cyanide in atkins rothwell continuous agitation tanks for thirty hours and run into portland continuous slime filters the filtered solution is treated in zinc boxes the mill is in a splendid condition and ready for immediate operation itis it is the intention of the tl butte detroit to start the mill soon on custom ore of which there is enough in sight to run the mill at capacity and mr rothwell is authority for the statement that the mill can earn net profits of to a year the mine and mill are situated on the railroad line of the butte anaconda pacific pa ap no property in the district being better situated as to railroad facilities for transportation additional sidetracks are to be built surrounding the mine and mill are three acres of surface ground ideally situated for free and economical operation of the property different operators and engineers connected with the ophir have had great faith in the property believing that with depth it will prove a big producer in the last issue of the copper handbook walter harvey weed after a critical review of the mine and its various former managements says its future lies in deep development and the proving of the veins below the 1000 foot level it is well located and worthy of legitimate prospecting william L creden the well known mining engineer and manager of tale tle davis daly daiy in butte one of the most conservative operators in butte will have charge and direction of the work on the ophir under the butte detroit mr creden has just completed an examination and report on the property made for tile the men who are backing the butte detroit financially and the report was sufficiently encouraging to warrant them in pledging a fund of with which to carry the development work through to a point of demonstrating the value of the property |
