Show OREGON sumpter miner fred D smith manager of the snow creek mine left this afternoon for the city of mexico to be gone until about may 1 mr smith goes to mexico on important mining business but his return to sumpter is assured since as he told the bunch of friends who were at the train to see him off that he is leaving his wife and baby behind and they will bring him back sumpter american from the face of the cracker summit drift superintendent gambs sent down samples this week that assayed between 40 and 50 this is the best ore encountered for some distance considered with the other reported which fa fact et that the formation is firmer and more in place satisfies the management that will find the ore depth on the property bodies largely improved and more regular grants pass journal col john S crawford one of the original owners of of copper mines returned the cleopatra group to the pass on thursday morning after an absence of some six months the colonel says he is now enjoying the best of health after having an operation performed upon him last december he says he is glad to be back to southern oregon and grants pass he believes grants pass has a great future and he says he has never ceased while east telling about the possibilities of oregon we are glad to have the colonel with us again sumpter miner L van hecke of sioux falls south dakota director in the midway company spent yesterday at the mine with al geiser he is more than pleased the way things are going there and expects soon to see the midway among the list of cracker creek producers the company is steadily operating and adding improve improvements improvement men ts as work progresses esses the next addition contemplated tem plated is a fine drill compressor which will go in as soon as the snow leaves sinking will be continued to the next two levels there are cross cuts now at the sixty and and it is the purpose to go and before crosscutting cross cutting again mr van hecke expresses himself as well pleased with the way things are going at the property he left this afternoon for portland to spend a few days with harry hendryx who is now there on business and will then return east 1 baker city herald dr L T brock of sumpter returned to the hill town yesterday after concluding con chiding an important mining deal in this city he secured a bond on the golden cha chariot riot mining claim generally known as the bear gulch property on I 1 which wade and camp held an option for some months and which has expired the ledge is on patented ground owned by the oregon lumber company and the bond which dr brock has secured is signed by david eccles its president the exact price the parties to the agreement will not make public but it is understood to be somewhere in the neighborhood of thirty or forty thousand dollars the bond runs for ten months month s from yesterday dr brocks bond provides that he can mine and sell the ore under certain conditions and he and his associates will probably work the property during the coming season sumpter american A mill test has been in progress at the sumpter sampling testing works for the past week or more I 1 on ore from the taber fraction A gold brick of good proportions was the result I 1 but what quantity of ore it came fromor from or the general average value are not given put out by the management this tact fact stimulated the rumor that has been heard fre during the winter months regard reg arditi ln a mill for the fraction or the P probable of the cracker oregon mill for a time on taber ore the owners of the fraction Frac tio geiser and hendryx make no statement in the premises other than thit that they have been handling a considerable quantity of ore and that the test has beet been in progress As the cracker oregon mill is very near the fraction and the haul haig down it would be easy the management ol 01 t the latter would doubtless find the plant very convenient and economical if it could be secured for custom work for a period |