| Show ABBOTT GIVES HISTORY government agent says pioche has produced more than according to the report made by james V abbott a special agent ot the government the gross output of the mines of pioche and vicinity not including bristol jack rabbit anal comet districts from 1869 to 1899 totaled from 90 to 96 per cent of the values reported were obtained by the old washoe process long since abandoned in the united states excepting in a few places remote from railroads the balance was obtained from leaching methods imperfectly conducted with the crudest of apparatus and a little of it from two shelters smelters sm elters one a 25 ton plant built for experimental purposes and the other a ton plant still standing on the flat a mile from town in the early days of pioche 21 companies were operating era ting in the blocho section at that time were 12 reduction plants ot which seven were shelters smelters sm elters the old phocbe con property with that ot many others la now owned by the nevada utah mines and smelter corpo aaion which also controls other interests in the principal mining districts of utah this company was organized in 1904 george C learnard Lear aard of boston being president A P general manager ol 01 all the properties and C H swanton general supe in in nevada the holdings of the new corporation near pioche comprise acres covering a dozen or more of the most important mining propositions ot early days a narrow gauge railroad of 16 miles from pioche was built to the bristol mining district two in the valley and the ton smelter on the hill built in 1890 to work the ores of the yuba mine the underground workings of the nevada utah amount to over 40 miles the greatest depth vertically being 1500 feet the incline shaft reaching a depth of 1500 teet and still sinking there are 1430 levels with a vast amount of crosscutting cross cutting six to a depth of 1200 feet and over five shafts to feet in depth and 11 shafts to teet at no 3 shaft Is a ISO horse power hoise alth two fou drill compressors the company has men at work and could at the present time ship tons of ore dally the company will erect near pioche a mammoth smelling smelting sm elting works in order to treat all of the ores which may come to it As regards treatment of its own ores the cost of transportation after the advent of the railroad will have much to do with it experiments on an extensive scale to determine the proper method will mean the construction of several plants with latest improved machinery in the mantes and on the dumps are thousands of tons of ore with values ranging from 25 to 40 a ton k |
