total value of $1,539. Only 42 tons of ore, yielding bullion containing 21.50 ounces of gold and 8 ounces of silver, were treated at an amalgamation mill, and 26 tons of crude ore, which contained 1.91 ounces of gold and 677 ounces of silver, were shipped directly to smelters. The Yaeger Canyon Copper Company, equipped with a small matting furnace, has been idle since 1907.

Black Rock district.-A small production of ore treated at an amalgamation mill and some ore shipped directly to the smelter is the record of this district for 1909. The mines of the district were under development, but the largest producer, the Interior, was closed in 1908 and remained idle in 1909.

Cherry Creek district.-Four deep mines yielded 330 tons of ore treated at amalgamation mills, producing bullion containing 329.41 ounces of gold, 127 ounces of silver, and 29 tons of concentrate, yielding 40.47 ounces of gold and 115 ounces of silver, a total value of $7,772 and an average value of $23.55 per ton. In 1908 the total value of the production was $5,821.

Copper Basin district. Outside of a small shipment of ore sent directly to the smelter, there was but little development work done.

Eureka district. Some ore was treated in the concentration mill of the Hillside mine, which yielded gold, silver, and lead. The property of the Big Stick Gold Mining Company and its milling plant, which was erected in 1907, were idle. No production has been reported since the construction of the mill.

Hassayampa district. Considerable activity was evinced by the production made in 1909 by the mines in this district, which increased its output of ore from 470 tons, valued at $7,470 in 1908, to 3,510 tons, valued at $9,642 in 1909. The metal output was $7,050 in gold, 2,092 fine ounces of silver, 585 pounds of copper, and 33,208 pounds of lead. The largest part of the tonnage was treated at mills equipped with amalgamation and concentration processes, which yielded from 3,475 tons of ore bullion containing 161.20 ounces of gold, 121 ounces of silver, and 62 tons of concentrate, yielding 104.64 ounces of gold, 1,488 ounces of silver, 585 pounds of copper, and 30,718 pounds of lead, the total valued at $7,729 with an average value per ton of $2.22. Crude ore shipped directly to smelters amounted to 35 tons, containing 75.20 ounces of gold, 483 ounces of silver, and 2,490 pounds of lead, with a total value of $1,913 and an average value of $54.66 per ton.

Martinez district.-No crude ore was shipped to smelters from this district in 1909. Practically all of the production was made by the Congress mines, which yielded $180,061 in gold, 16,176 ounces of silver, and 2,979 pounds of copper, valued at $188,763. This value was realized from the gold and silver bullion and concentrate.

Peck district. A small lot of silver ore was shipped from one mine in the district in 1909.

Tiger district.-One producer in this district, the Tiger mine, yielded in 1909 from ore treated at its mill, which produced gold bullion and concentrate containing $26,182 in gold, 2,726 ounces of silver, and 4,802 pounds of copper, valued in all at $27,738. The total value included the payment by the smelter for iron contained in the concentrate, which was reported as 143,170 pounds.

Turkey Creek district. Three operators of deep mines and one placer operator reported production in 1909, which yielded $2,310 in gold,

a Statement of gross product for the year 1909, published by the auditor of the Territory, 1910.

1,099 fine ounces of silver, and small amounts of copper and lead, in all valued at $3,136. At milling plants using amalgamation and concentration processes 109 tons of ore were treated, producing bullion containing 44.40 ounces of gold and 8 ounces of silver, and 5 tons of concentrates, which contained 34.55 ounces of gold, 6 ounces of silver, and 520 pounds of copper. Crude ore shipped to the smelters aggregated 25 tons, containing 16.35 ounces of gold, 1,083 ounces of silver, and 4,342 pounds of lead, valued at $1,088, or an average value of $43.52 per ton.

Verde district. The entire output of the district is represented by the production of the United Verde mine, the only producer in 1909. The metallic output consisted of $351,832 in gold, 495,479 ounces of silver, and 36,695,259 pounds of copper, valued at $5,370,766.a In 1908 the total value of the product was $5,460,818. The United Verde Extension property is opened to a depth of 1,060 feet, and in the winze sunk 260 feet from the 800-foot level 130 feet of leached vein material was passed through. Sinking is being continued. Prospecting with a drill on the Arkansas and Arizona property is said to have penetrated copper ore at a depth of 600 feet.

Walker district. The output of the district was reported by three operators of deep mines and the production of placers from two sources on Lynx Creek. The output of ore amounted to 280 tons. The total metal output from placers and deep mines was $8,366 in gold, 629 ounces of silver, 3,860 pounds of copper, and 14,485 pounds of lead, with a total value of $9,818. The ore had an average value of $26.88 per ton. All of this ore was treated at amalgamation mills equipped for concentration, and both bullion and concentrates were produced.

Weaver district. The total production of placers and deep mines was $34,112 in gold and nominal amounts of silver and lead, with a total value of $34,438. Through the operation of milling plants most of the ore mined, or 3,205 tons, yielded bullion containing 1,301.88 ounces of gold and 555 ounces of silver. Some concentrates were made containing lead, and a small tonnage of ore containing gold and silver was shipped directly to the smelter. Besides this production the placers at Rich Hill produced in 1909 $6,980 in gold, as against a production in 1908 of $6,089. The principal producer of the district was the Monica mine.

YUMA COUNTY.

In 1909 the production of Yuma County represented a yield by 24 deep-mine operators and a small production of gold by 10 placer operators. The ore mined, 99,804 tons, was an increase of 21,982 tons over the production of 1908, when only 19 deep mines produced. The total yield from placers and deep mines was $779,567 in gold, 17,728 ounces of silver, 144,783 pounds of copper, and 92,339 pounds of lead, having a total value of $811,579. The ores mined had a total average value of $8.05 per ton. This average value was an increase over the average in 1908, which was $4.82, and was almost entirely attributed to the increase in gold and silver contained in the ores mined, which in 1908 was valued at $4.68 per ton and increased to $7.82 per ton in 1909. Nearly all of the ore produced in the county is treated by the cyanide process and but a small part of it by amalgamation. The

a Statement of gross product for the year 1909, published by the auditor of the Territory, 1910. 97547°- -M R 1909, PT 1—17

number of tons of crude ore shipped to smelters increased from 309 tons in 1908 to 1,131 tons in 1909, which yielded 761.72 ounces of gold, 4,523 ounces of silver, 144,783 pounds of copper, 92,339 pounds of lead, valued at $40,891 and an average value of $36.15 per ton. The total value of the shipping ore in 1908 was $19,679 and the average value was $63.68 per ton. The largest shippers of gold bullion in 1909 were the Golden Star Mining Company and the King of Arizona Mining Company. The former produced from its ores $506,233 in gold, 9,937 ounces of silver, having a total value of $511,305, and the latter produced gold valued at $245,017. These two mines are situated in Kofa district. The county output for all metals, particularly that of gold, was increased. The Castle Dome district supplied the lead ore; Ellsworth, Planet, and Plomosa districts, the copper ore; and the Kofa district the increased gold and silver output. A 450-ton copper plant with 2 converter stands was constructed for the Clara mine, at Swansea, 20 miles from Bouse.

Castle Dome district. Three operators reported a production of 75 tons of ore, which, with the placer output, yielded $2,200 in gold, 2,453 ounces of silver, and 92,339 pounds of lead, having a total value of $7,446. The ore was shipped to the El Paso smelter. The production from dry placer diggings aggregated $2,200 in gold and 10 ounces of silver. In Castle Dome Range a large number of promising prospects are said to have been opened in 1909.

Cienega district. Three operators reported a production of 36 tons of ore, containing $269 in gold, 32 ounces of silver, and 11,233 pounds of copper, with a total value of $1,746, and an average value of $48.50 per ton.

Ellsworth district.-The reports of 4 deep mines gave a production of 598 tons of smelting ore and the treatment of 299 tons of milling ore, producing gold and silver bullion and aggregating a yield of $8,994 in gold, 184 ounces of silver, and 59,099 pounds of copper, a total value of $16,773, and an average value of $18.70 per ton.

Kofa district. The total output of gold by 2 deep mines and 1 placer operator was $753,084 and 13,105 ounces of silver, having a total value of $759,898. This was extracted from ore treated on each property at milling plants using the cyanide process. The dry placer diggings in this district were operated with good results during 1909. In this region are situated the King of Arizona, North Star, Alvarado, and Amavisca mines. The North Star is located on a wide quartz-porphyry dike, and, in addition to a large body of milling ore, shows a streak of specimen ore worth from $6 to $20 a pound in gold. This dike is an extension of that on which the King of Arizona mine is located. Both the properties are equipped with cyanide mills, which were operated the entire year.

La Posa district. Two operators reported the production of 23 tons of ore, containing $1,364 in gold, 23 ounces of silver, and 133 pounds of copper, valued in all at $1,393, and an average value of $60.56 per ton. These shipments were made simply as tests shipped from the district by the 2 operators.

Planet and Plomosa districts.-The combined output of these districts reported by 8 deep mines and 2 placer operators aggregated 437 tons of ore, $10,020 in gold, 1,274 ounces of silver, and 73,605

a Statement of gross product for the year 1909, published by the auditor of the Territory, 1910.

pounds of copper, having a total value of $20,251. All of the ore was of smelting grade, with the exception of 40 tons treated at an amalgamation mill. The Little Butte mine, near Bouse, produced ore yielding $2,233 in gold and 46,170 pounds of copper. The iron contained in the shipments aggregated 179,687 pounds, which was paid for by the smelters, and the total content of the ore was valued at $8,675. In Little Butte mine, at a depth of 365 feet, a body of gold ore with a small percentage of copper has been opened up in sinking the main working shaft. The Signal mines, owned by the Clara Consolidated Co., were under development during 1909 and their copper smelter was being completed. The railroad belonging to the same interests will soon be in operation between Bouse and Swansea, the name of the new town at the mine. The Planet mine, to the north and near the Colorado River, was again opened the latter part of 1909 by a new company. It was being developed on the 600-foot level and also by churn drills from the surface. Other important properties operated were the Goodman and Copper Prince, near Quartzsite, and Heart's Desire, near Bouse. Some activity was reported in the dry placer diggings near Quartzsite.

CALIFORNIA.

By CHARLES G. YALE.
PRODUCTION.

For the calendar year 1909 the California production of gold, silver, copper, and lead was valued at $28,841,050, an increase of $4,035,909 as compared with $24,805,141 in 1908. This increase was mainly due to the augmented output of copper and gold, though silver and lead increased also. The increase in gold was 71,416.54 fine ounces, valued at $1,476,311; in silver, 450,975 fine ounces, valued at $218,035; in copper, 18,511,400 pounds, valued at $2,328,928; and in lead, 265,049 pounds, valued at $12,635. No output of zinc was reported in the State in 1909.

There were 1,127 producing properties, of which 571 were deep mines and 556 were placers. There were 73 more producing mines in 1909 than in 1908. The deep mines may be classified by the relative quantities of metal produced, as follows: Gold, 520; silver and silver-gold, 12; copper, 22; lead, silver-lead, and copper-lead, 17. Of the placer mines 134 are hydraulic, 63 dredge, 118 drift, and 241 surface or sluicing properties. The dredges are considered according to the number of machines at work in 1909, not by number of companies. The drift mines increased in number in 1909, but there were fewer hydraulic, dredge, and surface placers producing than in 1908. There were 76 more deep mines producing in 1909 than in 1908, but there were 3 placers less.

The 571 deep mines producing in the State in 1909 made an output of 3,041,688 tons of ore, 494,780 tons more than was produced in 1908. Of this output 2,195,741 tons were siliceous ore, 840,358 tons were copper ore, and 5,589 tons were lead ore.

The siliceous ore averaged $4.86 per ton in gold and silver, the copper ores $1.78, and the lead ores $7.26. The average in gold and silver from all the ores treated in the State was $4.01 per ton.

• Statement of gross product for the year 1909, published by the auditor of the Territory, 1910,

The 3,041,688 tons of ore of all classes treated in the State in 1909 yielded 533,580.01 fine ounces of gold, valued at $11,133,437; 2,057,286 fine ounces of silver, valued at $1,069,789; 57,288,281 pounds of copper, valued at $7,447,476; and 1,502,597 pounds of lead, valued at $64,612.

The total value of the metals obtained from the ore mined and treated in California in 1909 was $19,715,314, an average value per ton of $6.48. In 1908 the output was 2,546,908 tons, valued at $16,536,226, an average value per ton of $6.49.

In 1909 there were treated at gold and silver mills 2,026,507 tons of ore, and at concentrating mills 27,857 tons, containing altogether $9,833,817 in gold, an average of $4.79 per ton, and silver valued at $189,023, an average value of 9 cents per ton. This was a total value of $10,022,840 in gold and silver and an average value per ton of $4.88 in both metals. This average value per ton was $5.08 in 1908 and $5.71 in 1907.

Of the total value, $7,762,417 in gold, averaging $3.83 per ton, and $137,906 in silver, averaging 7 cents per ton, a total of $7,900,323 in gold and silver, averaging $3.90 per ton in both metals, was recovered as bullion in the mills.

From the 2,026,507 tons of milling ore and the 27,857 tons of ore shipped to concentrating mills, 41,589 tons of concentrates were obtained, valued at $2,071,400 in gold, an average of $49.81 per ton, and at $51,117 in silver, an average of $1.23 per ton. This is a total in gold and silver of $2,122,517, or an average value recovered from the concentrates of $51.04 per ton in gold and silver.

Of smelting ores (mainly copper ores) there were 922,969 tons, valued at $1,113,757 in gold, an average of $1.21 per ton, and at $845,464 in silver, an average of 92 cents per ton. The total yield of gold and silver in the smelting ores was $1,959,221, or an average value of $2.13 per ton in gold and silver.

There were also 64,355 tons of old tailings treated, producing $185,863 in gold, an average of $2.89 per ton, and $35,302 in silver, an average of 55 cents per ton. The total of gold and silver in the tailings was valued at $221,165, an average of $3.44 per ton.

In certain counties, notably Mariposa, Placer, Sierra, and Tuolumne, various "pocket" mines yielded exceptionally high values from small lots of ore, which affect the averages materially. In one case 1 ton of ore yielded $7,000, and in another less than 1 ton yielded $16,000.

The 556 productive placer mines in California in 1909 yielded 440,426.95 fine ounces of gold, valued at $9,104,433, and 40,967 fine ounces of silver, valued at $21,303, a total value in gold and silver of $9,125,736. This was an increase of $856,821 over the palcer output of 1908 in gold and silver. The increase of gold production from placers in 1909 was $873,246, but the value of the reported silver output was less from this source by $16,425. In gold the dredge properties of California showed an increase of $846,761 in 1909, and the drift mines an increase of $349,252, the latter mainly due to an exceptional yield of one mine in Nevada County. The hydraulic mines of the State showed a decrease in gold output of $138,189 in 1909 and the surface placer or sluicing mines a decrease of $184,578.