Page 96 - The Geology and Ore Deposits of Sierra County, New Mexico - Bulletin 10

MINING DISTRICTS 95
ore shoot on the Kendall break near the Pelican fault, which he thought might develop into one of the important finds of the dis- trict. During the development work, he sorted out underground all visible sulfides and made a product which assayed between 50 and 100 ounces of silver a ton and 35 to 45 per cent lead. Two tons of ore of milling grade was left behind for each ton of ship- ping ore that was sorted out, and this low-grade material was said to assay 10 ounces of silver, 15 per cent lead, 10 per cent zinc, one per cent copper and a trace in gold.
PRODUCTION
Including shipments made during recent years, the total value of the ore from this district is close to $1,500,000, accord- ing to the best estimates locally available to the writer. This production may be approximately divided among the mines of the camp as follows :
MINE DESCRIPTIONS THE ARGONAUT MINE
The Argonaut mine (the one farthest to the east in this dis- trict) is in Palomas Canyon. It is opened only by tunnels with a total length of about 1,000 feet. The ore is reported to be sim- ilar to that found elsewhere in the district, but the production has been small.
PALOMAS CHIEF PROPERTY
The next property along Palomas Creek to the west of the Argonaut is the Palomas Chief on the north side. This mine is located on the fault of the same name, and at least some of the ore appears to be at the junction of an east-west fracture with the fault, which may be the Kendall break along which so much of the ore in the district has been localized. This property is opened into the face of the cliff by a 2,800-foot tunnel, which followed along the Palomas Chief fault and connected with a shaft 200 feet deep that was sunk from the surface. There is said to be nearly 10,000 feet of workings in this property, most of which were inaccessible, due to caves at the openings of the mine. Very little ore was found in the tunnel along the Palomas Chief fault proper, and nearly all of the ore mined was taken out of the shaft before the long and expensive tunnel was connected with it.