| Show THE GOLD DUST AT leesburg in a letter descriptive of the gold dust and other gold mines near leesburg in the salmon river country idaho george forrester the well known mining engineer says through the courtesy of W S burton engineer for the gold dust mining company which is largely owned by salt lake parties I 1 was shown all through the property which has a fine water supply and wood for any and all purposes from the old original shaft house an incline was driven down seventy feet cross drifts were driven forty and twenty feet respectively that work being done by former owners and all in good free milling gold ore clear from the grass roots down since the present company acquired the property a tunnel has been driven to tap the vein feet below the collar of the original incline at a distance of feet the tunnel struck the vein continuing on twenty feet farther an upraise of eighty five feet was run to the bottom of the old workings and all in solid ore showing values in gold of from 8 all the way up to 14 per ton the tunnel has been driven in sixty five feet beyond upraise and as yet no indication of a wall showing the ledge to be at least eight five feet thick by a known depth of feet enough A ore has been blocked out ready for to keep a ten stamp mill running for years to come the mill is of the most modern design consisting of complete machinery stamps copper gold plates with all the necessary appurtenances which go to make up a first class amalgamating plant provision has been made in the mill building so that a concentrating or leaching department part ment can be added in the future if found necessary W S burton the corn com banys engineer can look with justifiable pride to the mill which is a bonu monument ment of praise to his handicraft eleven thousand feet northeast of the gold dust lies the free gold mines owned and operated by the same company both of which are on the great mineral zone which crosses the entire mackinaw district the free freehold gold is developed by a shaft seventy feet deep with cross cuts and sloping done where former owners made considerable money by the primitive method of hand mortar and panning ore going 1500 per ton was often encountered a i general average sample from the bottom of the old shaft going 18 per ton the present company is running a tunnel to tap the ledge at feet below the old workings the tunnel I 1 is s now in feet the vein being struck at fifty feet with sensational assays essays so far as penetrated looking from the northeast to southwest along the great ledge the eye takes in the moose mine dolly varden haldee italian and the gold flint whose end lines adjoin the gold dust by the kindness of manager kirkpatrick I 1 was shown through the gold flint workings which consist of two tunnels and a shaft on the apex of the vein the lower tunnel is in feet encountering the vein at fifty feet ninety five feet of crosscutting cross cutting and all in 9 ore an upraise up raise of feet to upper tunnel which struck the vein at sev enty five feet feet of crosscutting cross cutting in upper tunnel tons of ore at mouth of lower tunnel assays essays 10 per ton the vein averaging thirty five feet thick enough ore is in sight at a conservative estimate to be in the neighborhood of tons all the mines enumerated are promising properties and easily worked the abandoned mine two miles west of the great gold dust recently located has a tunnel in feet with a twelve foot vein of 25 ore and many encouraging prospects which I 1 did not visit taken altogether the mackinaw district is one of the greatest and richest gold camps that I 1 have seen and before very long is bound to become a great factor in the production of gold for the state of idaho |
