The Ketchikan Mining News
VOL. I. KETCHIKAN, ALASKA, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 1907. NO. 3
ANDREW CHILBERG, Pres. J. R. HECKMAN, Vice Pres.
MINERS & MERCHANTS BANK
Of Ketchikan, Alaska
Transacts a General Banking Business
The easiest way to establish your credit in a community is
to open an account with your home Bank.
Small accounts are welcome
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THE MINES
What Has Been Done at The
Jumbo-Minor Notes
In its last issue The Mining News
made brief mention of the Jumbo
mine at Sulzer, on the west coast of
Prince of Wales Island, owned and
operated by the Alaska Industrial
Company, as being about to enter the
list of the steady and profitable pro
ducing mines of the Ketchikan dist
rict.
The record of this mine, could it be
accurately related in detail, would
form an interesting chapter of the his
tory of the district, and of the trials
and tribulations attendant upon a
prosecution of the work of develop
ment. It would be a record of rare
faith and steady perseverance—on the
part of one man at least—leading to a
final success as well deserved as it has
been hardly earned. It was in the
summer of 1899 that Hon. William
Sulzer, then as now a representative
in Congress from the 10th district of
New York, came to Alaska, and be
coming imbued with a belief in the
great undeveloped mineral wealth of
this region, took over from the orig
inal locators, among whom was Mr.
J. L. Gould, then a missionary at
Howkan, now a resident of Sulzer, the
locations for the development of which
he proceeded to organize the Alaska
Development Company, with Hon. J.
P. Jones, then U. S. Senator, as its
first president. From that time on
until the advent of the present alto
gether conservative, careful and com
petent local management, the attempts
at development were but a succession,
one after another, of disappointments
to those who were induced to put their
money into the enterprise. First, a
“has been” expert, accompaanied by
a doctor, and since ascertained to have
been off his base mentally, was sent
up at heavy expense to do some work
and report on the property, the last of
which he never did, but on the con
trary disappeared after leaving Alas
ka and was never afterwards heard
from.
Then came an ex-Universalist
preacher, who knew no more about
mining than he was supposed to know
about the place of everlasting tor
ment,, in which he professed not to
believe, who established a camp, did
some desultory work in the way of
development, expended all the money
furnished him, incurred a goodly
amount of indebtedness, and then
wended his way back to the place
whence, so far as the welfare of the
company was involved, it had been
better had he never departed.
Then came, as his successor, a
harum scarum youth, a belief in whose
knowledge of mine management was
based solely on the fact that he was
the son of a somewhat noted English
mining engineer, and who, appropri
ating to his own use the funds sent
him with which to pay off the indebt
edness incurred by his predecessor,
like the latter folded his tent and
silently stole away and was heard of
no more in mining circles. Indeed,
until the advent of the present local
management, it is safe to assert that
the larger half of the large amount of
money furnished for development, was
either foolishly expended or misap
plied to other than development pur
poses. All this cost the company a
great deal of money without the ac
complishment of substantial results.
That a far different condition of
affairs has been attained under the
present management is fully evidenced
by the fact that nothing but transport
ation is now lacking to give the
Jumbo a leading place among the
profitable producers of the district.
It now has in its bins at the mine and
wharf 300 tons of ore, which is ex
pected to yield better than 6 per cent,
copper, with some gold and silver,
and which, not taking the gold and
silver values into the account, ought
to yield the company net returns, over
and above all costs of mining, trans
portation, smelting and refining, of
more than #50,000. The first ship
ment of from 1000 to 1500 tons is ex
pected to be made the coming week.
Tiie Jumbo mine lies in two distinct
ore formations, one known as the
magnetite and the other as the basin
group. The magnetite shows enor
mous outcrops of magnetite ore carry
ing a low percentage of copper, gold
and silver, in which a large amount
of development work has been done by
tunneling, exposing hundreds of thou
sands of tons of ore. The equipment,
however, is not at the present time
sufficient to enable the management
to mine and handle this ore economic
ally, and for the past year develop
ment and mine work has been almost
exclusively confined to the basin
group, the ore of which is a high
grade chalcopyrite.
The Basin part of the Jumbo has
been developed thus far by four tun
nels and large surface workings. The
main working tunnel is the lowest of
the four, and into it all the ore mined
above its level is delivered by gravity.
From this tunnel the ore is trammed
out and dumped into the upper tram
terminal bins, from which last it is
automatically carried a distance of
two miles by a Rlblet aerial tram, to
the beach, where it is automatically
discharged into the storage or ship
ping bins, the latter having a present
capacity of 1,500 tons, which capacity
can be doubled at comparatively small
cost. The tram is supplied with all
the latest improvements of the Riblet
patented automatic system, and was
manufactured by the A. Leschen &
Sons Company, of St. Louis, Mo.
The line is supported by fourteen
towers, the long, at span being 2,200
feet. At present the tram carries 22
buckets with a capacity of 1100 pounds
of ore each, and two timber and
freight carriers, the whole being
equal to a capacity of 12 tons per
hour.
The rich ore bodies at the Jumbo
occur in the shape of large lenses in a
wide vein, or formation, rather, of
garnetite, and in some cases in lime.
The largest lense thus far developed
has a width of 28 feet, a depth, as far
as shown of 150 feet, while its length
has not yet been determined. A large
number of these lenses have been cut,
but their extent remains to be de
termined.
At present a force of 25 men is
employed, and are breaking about
1,000 tons of ore per month, but as
soon as transportation that can be
relied upon is secured, the product
will be largely increased. So far
hand drills only have been employed
in development and mine work, but it
is the purpose of the management to
install a compressor plant and machine
drills early in the Spring, and thus
complete the mine equipment to an
extent sufficient to enable an increase
of product to at least 3000 tons a
month.
The further operations and develop
ments at this mine, now that its suc
cess is practically assured, will be
watched with great interest by the
mining men of this and other dis
tricts, as well as by the Eastern peo
ple who have their means invested in
the enterprise.
Martin Bugge, who is the owner of
several prospectively valuable mineral
locations at Smugglers’ Cove, Cleve
land peninsula, has been steadily
prosecuting development work on one
of them, and making the annual ex
penditure on the others during the
past year. He haa driven a cross-cut
tunnel over 200 feet in length to an
intersection with the lead, in which
be has drifted 50 feet or more with
good results. The bead of this drift
is now 50 feet below the surface outcrop
and the lead Is about '4 feet wide,
with an exceedingly rich pay streak
from which he has taken enough ore
to keep his 2-stamp mill steadily run
ning whenever the weather is such as
to justify him in putting it into
operation. Mprtin’s^patient persever
ance throughout these 'past several
years is fully deserving of the reward
he now has in plain sight.
Despite the untoward weather, the
Mt. Andrew mine is still achieving
a product of 100 tons a day, and send
ing it to the shipping bins at the wa
ter side. In addition to the shipments
of 1,150 tons and 1,200 tons mentioned
elsewhere as having been shippped
within the past two weeks, the man
agement expects to have another ship
ment of from 1,200 to 1,500 tons ready
by the 15tli. Certainly Mr. Freeburn
is making a record for this new mine
of which he may well feel proud
Many an old timer will likewise be
gratified to learn that their old friend
“Sammy” Lichtenstadter’s grit and
perseverance is meeting, in large
measure, with its just reward.
Transportation is the problem that
is seriously troubling some of our pro
ducing mines just now. This is espe
cially so with the Alaska Industrial
companywhich has over three thou
sand tons of high grade ore awaiting
shipment; the Cymru, which has its
bins full and its stopes clogged with
ore which cannot be moved, and the
Niblack which is similarly situated,
and further handicapped by an ice
blockade which makes it difficult and
expensive to get in supplies.
NEW COAL MINE
Victor Vigelius, the prospector,
miner and mine promoter, is nothing
if not altogether enterprising and
ever ready to take advantage of
opportunities that present themselves
for turning an honest dollar. Now,
he has taken time oif from his mining
operations on Prince of Wales, and is
giving his attention to mining coal
right here in Ketchikan. It will be
remembered that some two years ago,
nearly, if not quite, 200 tons of coal
was precipitated into the water by the
collapse of a section of the wharf be
longing to the Ketchikan Wharf Co.,
and it occurred to Mr. Vigelius that,
if permitted, he could recover at least
enough of the coal to tide over for a
time the existing famine. The Min
ing News is not informed as to how
much royalty he pays, but he is rais
ing from ten to twelve tons per day,
for which he finds a ready sale at $15
per ton.
NEW STEAMSHIP AGENT
Frank Bold has been appointed
Ketchikan agent for the Pacifio Coast
S. S. Co., and has taken charge of the
office on J. R. Heckman & Co.’s
wharf. A good selection and one that
will give general satisfaction to the
business men of the town, however
well satisfied they were with the old
regime,
COPPER DEMAND
Development of Electricity is
the Cause
With the development of electricity,
the world has just begun to realize
how it needs copper. Everywhere
throughout all civilized countries the
uses of electricity in trolley lines, for
the telephone and telegraph, have
been growing at a swift snd increasing
pace. The demand for copper has be
come almost frantic. The mines which
produce this metal are now receiving
for every pound which they produce
ten cents more than they did a year
ago. This means a tremendous in
crease in their profits—a million
dollars, with every two-cent rise in
copper to the profits of a mine pro
ducing 50,000,000 pounds a year; and
there are several of these. It is esti
mated by high authorities now that
the actual dividends fx’om copper
mines in 1907 will reach the huge sum
of $75,000,000.
The necessity for copper is becom
ing greater, also, on account of the
growing use of brass in Europe, as
well as in America. Brass is two
thirds copper; and the brass foundries
are actually curtailing their opera
tions because they cannot get enougli
of the red metal. Naturally, this
means climbing prices and moi’e
millions of profits. It is believed by
competent authorities that the price
of copper metal will continue to rise
steadily, because the period of elec
tric construction and extension
throughout the world is only just be
ginning.
During their lifetime less than a
score of copper mines in the United
States have paid in profits more than
$300,000,000. It is this money which
has made the fortunes of many of the
country’s new financial kings.
A list of these will include names
which are familiar not only in mining
and financial circles, but which are
daily becoming more prominent
—Clark, $100,000,000; Heinze, Gi-een,
each $20,000,000; Dodge, Douglas and
many others—men who have made
fortxxnes by their share in the vast
earnings of this country’s copper
mines. Bankers, steel and iron men,
manufacturers, who were shrewd
enough to get into copper, are profit
ing richly by it. Among these are
James Stillman, H. H. Rogers,
Charles M. Schwab and others.
But the most fortunate feature of
the whole situation is the fact that
the copper millions do not go into the
coffers of any clique or small ^handful
of millionaires. This enormous sum
of money is distributed widely
throughout the entire United States,
among men in the varied walks of
life who happen to be the holders of
shares in copper producers.—Thomas
W. Thorne, in Leslie’s Weekly.
FIRE AT BELL ISLAND
A fire at the Bell Island Hot
Springs last Friday, destroyed a cabin,
the inmates of which were a woman
and her baby who had a narrow es
cape from death by burning. Had
it not been for the assistance of about
twenty miners and a few other men
staying at the Springs both the bath
houses would have been burned.
Some of the men were badly scalded
by the hot water which they were
obliged to use in fighting the fire,
but they stuck to their posts like
veterans until the flames were extin
guished.
DEATH OF MRS. GRAHAM
Mrs. Robert T. Graham died at Los
Angeles, Cal., on the 2flth of January
last. Mrs. Graham left here last fall
in the hope of benefitting her health,
which had been greatly impaired, and
sojourned for a time in Seattle, thence
going to Los Angeles, where she
steadily declined till the end came.
She was well known in Ketchikan,
having held the office of postmaster
for several years, a position she re
signed to become the wife of Mr.
Graham, who may still be considered
a resident of this town.
HARVESTING ICE
The Hunt Lathrop Company had a
force of men at work at the fresh
water lake, near the entrance of Car
roll Inlet, harvesting ice, which is of
a quality suited to the use of their
cold storage plant on the water front.
They will cut and store about 250
tons for use in packing fish, and in
their meat refrigerator.
STEAMER MARION
Commencing with Monday last the
Steamer Marion began on a regular
Schedule as follows, sailing at 8:30
a. m.
MONDAY—Hadley and return
TUESDAY—Mount Andrew and
Kasaan bay points
WEDNESDAY—Hadley and return
THURSDAY—Open for charter
FRIDAY—Open for charter.
SATURDAY—Hadley and return
SUNDAY--Open for charter
Louis Levy, the Juneau fur buyei
for a New York house, has been ir
town the past week, plying his voca
tion and incidentally wrestling with
the problem of how the game of pin
coble should be played to win,
I. O. O. F.
On Tuesday evening of this week
Ketchlikan Lodge, No. 4, Indepen
dent Order of Odd Fellows, was insti
tuted by Colonel D. W. Figgins, past
grand master of Idaho, now residing
in Hadley, he having been specially
commissioned by the Grand Sire of
the Sovereign Grand Lodge of the Uni
ted States to institute the new lodge.
For several years the question of
forming a lodge at Ketchikan has
been discussed at intervals, but not
until a few months ago were definite
steps taken looking to this end, at
which time eight members of the or
der held a meeting and decided to sub
mit the question to the Grand Sire
at Baltimore, Md., for his approval,
which was promptly forthcoming, and
as a result a lodge of the order in Ket
chikan has become a reality.
The officers selected for the new
lodge are as follows: Willis A. Bry
ant, P. G. ; Jno. R. Beegle, N. G.;
Chas. Deppe, V. G. ; Frank P. McCur
dy, Secretary ; Neil Mcllravie, Treas
urer ; Rev. J. A. Chapman, Conductor:
Patrick Hamilton, O. G. ; John Fur
long, I. G. John Furlong, Willis
A. Bryant and Chas. Deppe were chos
en Trustees. The new lodge starts on
its career with a membership of twen
ty-three.
After the work of institution and in
itiation was completed, the members
and their guests repaired to the Scam
mon Cafe, where a splendid lunchoen
was in readiness, the dining room hav
ing been decorated with the colors of
the order and the tables transformed
into one long table lengthwise of the
spacious dining room, at which were
seated twenty-seven members of the
order with Deputy Grand Sire Figgins
presiding. After luncheon speeches
and mirthful conversation was in
dulged in, during which it was discov
ered that the twenty-seven present
represented by nativity twelve states
of the Union and six foreign countries,
all of which reminded Dr. Myers of a
story, as follows:
Johnny—“Papa, where was mama
born?
Papa—“In New York, dear.”
Johnny—“Papa, where were you
horny”
Papa—“In San Faancisco* dear,”
Johnny—Where was I horny”
Papa—“In Kansas City, dear.”
Johnny—“Papa, don’t it beat the
dickens how we all got together!”
It now being 12:30 the assemblage
broke up with the usual “good
nights.”
MORE DELAY.
The Citizens Light, Power & Water
Co’s damaged dynamo, which was sent
to Seattle for repairs, and which was
expected back on the Cottage. City,
but did not come, likewise failed to
arrive on the Jefferson, yesterday
morning, and the town is still without
electric lights. It is now promised by
the next ship, which is not likely to
arrive before the 12tli, until which
time, we can make up our minds to
endure the ills we have rather than
imagine others we know not of.
RESOLUTIONS OF SORROW AND
SYMPATHY
At a regular meeting of Tongass
Council, No. 1, Degree of Pocahontas,
held Feb. 7th, 1907, the following
resolutions were unanimously adopted :
Whereas—It has pleased the Great
Spirit to call to the happy Hunting
Ground, our beloved sister and friend
Bessie V. Graham, a true and faith
ful member of our order, Therefore
be it
Resolved—That we the members of
Tongass Council, No. 1., D. of P.,
Hunting Grounds of Ketchikan, Res
ervation of Alaska, do express pro
found sorrow, and that while we bow
with humble submission to the will of
Kishe Manitou, we do not the less
mourn for our sister who has been ta
ken from us.
Resolved—That we express the high
appreciation of the character of our
sister—a character replete with the
virtues of Freedom, Friendship and
Charity—who was ever ready to prof
fer the hand of aid, and the voice of
sympathy to the needy and distressed;
her name is on our charter, and she
was an active member of this council,
whose utmost endeavors were exerted
for its welfare and prosperity ; a friend
and companion who was dear to us all.
Resolved—That the heartfelt sympa
thy of the Council be extended to her
husband and relatives in their afflic
tion.
Resolved—That these resolutions be
spread upon the records of the council,
and a copy be sent to the husband of
the deceased, and to each of the news
papers in Ketchikan.
The Washington correspondent of
the Seattle Times wires his paper that
the interstate commerce commission
will assume jurisdiction over com
merce in Alaska, in cases involving
joint rail and steamship rates, where
freight originates at any point in the
United States, pending a decision by
the Supreme Court of the question
whether Alaska is a “district” or a
“territory.” If the court rules that
Alaska is a territory the commission
will assume it has jurisdiction under
the law. Until a judical decision on
that point is rendered, however, the
commission will hold that it has the
broadest power to supervise railroad
land steamship operating in Alaska,
§ r
«*- .
KETCHIKAN
Terse Tales of Town and Locality
Local Happening’s
The barge Will W. Case, in tow of
the tug Mary I). Hume, went to Had
ley yesterday with a small cargo of
coal—enough it is thought, to enable
the smelter to blow in her furnaces,
now that there is likely to be plenty
of water, the lack of which as much
as anything else, caused the tempo
rary shut down.
THE ONWARD
Is the name of the new gasolene
launch, built by Knight & Morrow,
for E. W. Gurney, and recently
launched. She is a “thing of beauty,”
and that she may be a “joy forever”
to her owner, is a wish that will be
most heartily echoed by the gallant
captain’s friends in this community—
and their name is Legion. She is 49
feet in length, over all, with 10 feet
beam, and built of the very best ma
terial—oak and fir. Her shoe is of
solid iron, weighing a little over a
ton, and it would take a worse breeze
than is apt to be encountered in these
inland waters to capsize her. She is
supplied with a 17-horse-power double
cylinder Hercules engine, and will be
fully rigged with canvas so as to pro
vide against accident to her machin
ery. She has ample cabin accommo
dations, and every care and precau
tion has been taken to provide for the
safety and comfort of those who take
passage in her. She will ply on the
route between Ketchikan, Hot Springs
and Unuk River.
PAST TIME.
The Steamer Jefferson, which ar
rived here about midnight Wednesday
made up for her tardiness on her last
preceding trip, by making a record
of 47 hours from Seattle to the wharf
at this place. Her oil burners work
to the perfect satisfaction of her
officers, and unless some of the new
ships promised for the route make
better speed than may reasonably be
expected, she will most probably be
able to carry the broom for the bal
ance of the year.
GONE AND DONE IT.
Michael Wadding and Miss Lucinda
McGee were married at the residence
of H. E. Heckman, Loring, on the
18th inst., Rev. J. A. Chapman, of this
place, officiating. The editor hereof
surmised that there was a happy
prospect in the genial Michael’s (
miners optic^, when a few daysvprevi- \
ously he sailed into this office and
planked down three solid plunks as the
Hrst Loring subscriber to The Mining
News. The happy couple will reside
at the Portman Hatchery until the fish
ing season opens.
We would like to say something real
pretty anent these “two souls made
happy, these two hearts that beat as
one,” but to tell the truth our courage
fails us. One of Burns’ little couplets
transposed to meet the emergency,
would seem to be altogether appropri
ate as a reminder to the happy bride;
“Now how the marriage theme may
Ri'iiR.
Let time and chance determine;
Perhaps he may turn out a shark,
Mayhap turn out a salmon. ’ ’
Nevertheless The Mining News ex
tends hearty congratulations to the
genial “Mike” and his fair young
bride, with earnest wishes that theirs
mav be a life of unalloyed connubial
bliss.
A WELCOME CHANGE
It is not often that the people of
this immediate section havo occasion
to pray for rain, but whether or not
the change in the weather which
took place during the night of the 5th
inst. was due to the efficacy of peti
tions sent up by the more devoutly
pious among them, it came as a
partial relief, at least, from a situa
tion that had grown well nigh intol
erable. It served to break the, to
this section, longest cold spell, with
the lowest temperature of which there
is any record, during which time the
water mains were frozen up, thus de
priving the town of water for do
mestic uses and the small manufactur
ing plants of power, the electric
lights, which would otherwise have
been extinguished, having previously
suffered that fate by the burning of
the power-house. The water w’as
turned on in the lower part of town
Wednesday afternoon, and the rain
together with the comparatively low
temperature, has served likewise to
discount the intensity of the coal
famine by enabling residents to heat
their houses with less fuel, and with
out the necessity of employing a fire
man to constantly feed the only avail
able kind of fuel-soft wood—into their
coal burners. The Mining News was
a sufferer from the want of lights and
power to the extent that it was com
pelled to abandon any attempt at
publication last week, and the change
in temperature bringing with it the
power absolutely necessary to the
operation of its plant, came just in
time to enable it to issue the present
number. However it was brought
about, the weather clerk has its heart
felt thanks for this most welcome
change,