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Show SW11J1S IS " VALUE DF IDAHO OBEJUTPUT. Higher Markets and Stead-. Stead-. ier Prices Responsible for Increase in Net to Gem State Mines. GENERAL REVIVAL MARKED PAST YEAR Famous Coeur d'Alene Dis-trict Dis-trict Unusually Prosperous; Prosper-ous; Important Strike in Atlanta Lode. IDAHO METAL VALUES FOR 1916. Gross value metal contents of ore and bullion shipped. $40,000,00 Dividends paid by mines during dur-ing the twelve months 10,000,000 Increase In metal values In 1916 over 1915 Is over 1,000,000 With the qua n tii y mined about the same in 1916 as in IMS. the mines of Idaho in the year that has just passed Into historv mined ore in 1916 with a total gross value of over $40,000,000, as ifiinPt between $j.00'bo00 and $39,000.-a $39,000.-a venr aso. Higher prices for metal and a steadier market; are responsible for the increase. The owners of the rich properties in Icla.ho during the year closed were paid Sl.nfiO.OfiO in dividends. There was no material increase in the quantity oT the output, due to the fact that many of the larger properties had trouble with thf operation of smelters and mills. Suite Mine Inspector Robert N. Bell has made a careful inspection of the field and is well satisfied with the showing made. Each year the mines of Idaho pay more iTionev,' activity is greater," more prospects are opened. A general revival of the industry marked lr-16. The good prices paid ior me tills due to the European Eu-ropean war prevailed In 1016 as In 1915. Mam- properties that had not been in operation the previous years resumed work in 19 1. The encouragement the industrv received mnde prospecting general gen-eral with the result that some rich strikes wer1 made. Coeur d'Alene Prosperous. Jfr The famous Coeur d'Alene district, where the great lead and zinc deposits L of Idaho seem to he centered, was un-usually un-usually prosperous. The mine payroll at Wallace alone was $1.000,00 a month. At the same time the lead-silver proper-tics proper-tics of south central Idaho came Into prominence. The A hie mines. Latest Out, Pittshurg-Gilmore and other properties prop-erties in the Lemhi country were active, shipping- seventy ions of crude ore per moiuh. Up in the Canadian border north of the Coeur d'Alene district, the Continental Con-tinental mine developed 10 per cent lead ore and erected a new 150-ton mill. There was the same pronounced activity activ-ity in the Dome district, the Birch creek district, the Mackay district and others. They are all silver-lead producers. In the Kennedy group of the Mackay district dis-trict ti-ere were fortv-eicht cars of shipping ship-ping ore minc3. The Horse Shoe group ahn produced valuable ore. All of the properties in that section were active. Important Strike. Probably the most important strike in gold ore was recorded in the Atlanta district. dis-trict. In the Atlanta lode ore in a vein 150 feet thick, standing vertically, was uncovered. It assayed from ?.S00 to $1000. Rome forty years ago 1he same property was producing millions in gold. In recent re-cent years It has not been active. The discovery will result in a great deal of active development work. Under a new milling process the ore can be handled at a "good profit. Another strike was made in the Boulder district near Silver Sil-ver City on the Pemming group, where $2ij silver-gold ore was taken out. Some S50,000.nf,ows taken out of the Silver City mines some years ago. In the Marshall Mar-shall lake district there was also renewed activity and some new properties were opened at a profit. Zinc Ore Increased. Zinc ore mined during the year exceeded ex-ceeded that of previous years. The Jn-tcrstate-Callahan property In the Coeur d'Alene district was the heavy producer. It promises to maintain its reputation as the third largest z'.nc shipping mine in the country. The 'Frisco, the Green Hill-Cleveland, Hill-Cleveland, the Success and other zilic produce's were active. The Boise basin, the Owyhee country, the Wood river and other localities exposed ex-posed some paying zinc properties also. There gives promise of heing even more profitable deyeinpment in this mineral, which has proved to be a good dividend payer. The Mackay mining country holds the distinction of being the main copper pro-ducer pro-ducer of the year. The Empire Copper fc. company mine has been very active, mining min-ing SOfio tons of cooper ore a month. Its Cassock tunnel. 6(H)0 feet long, to a depth . of 9fi0 feet, gave encouraging copper returns. re-turns. New Mill Erected. In the Coeur d'Alene, on tiie Little North fork of the Coeur d'Alene river, there was some excellent copper ore mined. A 2fl0-ton mill erected there was active, developing a twenty-foot ledge of very good ore. High grado copper concentrates were shipped. The mining Industry in this state opens the new year with more encouraging prospects than it did the old. The industry in-dustry has always been a prosperous one j and the promised development of the past i twelve months is taken by mining men to Indicate that more ore will be mined in 1917 and the metal sold at as good, if not better, prices. |