APPENDIX "A." THE CAUSES OF THE DECAY OF MINING ENTERPRISES IN MANY PORTIONS OF THE STATE. So universally have the mining districts of the State, outside of Virginia and Gold Hill, sprung into short-lived notoriety, exciting great hopes by promises of unbounded wealth, only to lapse again into obscurity, that a universal distrust of mining enterprises in those sections obtained but a short time ago. In the earlier months of our history scarcely a day passed without some new district being discovered, which, according to the reports of the fortunate locators, possessed not only an abundance of rich ores, but every requisite for their reduction; and even to-day our prospectors still come in from their adventurous wanderings through the wilderness with accounts equally promising. How comes it, then, that of all these localities which were to supply fortunes to all who were interested in them, so few have even a passing notice to-day?—and of those few, how is it that they contribute so little to the wealth of the State? Is it because the richness of the mines was exaggerated? Is it because of mismanagement in their development?-or because the character of the ores was misunderstood, and the wrong means of reduction employed? To a State so entirely dependent, as we are, upon our mineral wealth, the inquiry into the rise and decay of these outside districts is a most important question, as upon a clear understanding of it, in all its bearings, depends in a great measure our future existence and prosperity. From it we may learn the errors into which we have fallen, and, profiting by experience, frequently introduce success where failure has attended all previous efforts. The observations which I am about to make in this and the succeeding chapter may seem so simple, and their truth so patent to everybody, that many persons may be inclined to smile at them; nevertheless there is such an accumulation of evidence that even to-day many of the points are misunderstood, or thought of so little value, that I cannot refrain from calling attention to them, in the hope that some good may be the result, and that the true knowledge of our position may help in some degree to remove the false impressions which exist outside of our boundaries as to the extent of our resources. The better to understand our position, it may be well to glance at the character of the population of the State, as all the efforts which have been made for the development of our resources have been colored by their salient characteristics. Possessing a large foreign element, that of American birth predominates not only largely in numbers but in the conduct of our chief enterprises, and has given to them the peculiar features of the American character. Energetic, hopeful, and self-reliant, impatient to achieve success, but at the same time undaunted by unexpected obstacles, the inventive genius of the people has been called into more than usual activity, and probably no nation in the world could have accomplished in the same time what has been achieved in Nevada, under similar circumstances. The original population of the State came from California, and had there been engaged more or less in placer mining. As a body they were ignorant of the details of vein mining, unacquainted with the appearance and characteristics of mineral lodes, and but few indeed had any knowledge of the distinguishing features of any minerals except gold, or the means of extracting them from the gangues with which they were associated. With an adaptiveness essentially American, much has been accomplished in the way of acquiring the requisite knowledge on these points; but we may undoubtedly trace to this source most of the difficulties which have befallen us. In this there is much cause for congratulation, because time will remedy the evil. It was one, certainly, which we could not avoid, however much we may regret its results; but the more widely true, practical knowledge becomes disseminated, the less will its influence be felt, and the more steadily will our material prosperity advance. This want of knowledge, however, was not confined to the prospectors and locators of our mines. Unfortunately, during our early history, the population was sadly deficient in men with good, practical mining knowledge to take charge of the development and working of mining property; and errors in judgment on their part have been only too numerous. This evil, like the other, is in a fair way of being remedied, many of our mines being under the management of thoroughly competent men; still it is patent that many companies, and especially those organized in the Eastern States, have been put into the hands of men, energetic and thoroughly competent as far as regards business qualifications, but unfitted for the positions they occupy, in too many instances, from a want of knowledge of mining details, and ignorance of the county in which they are residing. The causes which have led to our difficulties may then be classed under three heads: 1st. Errors in judgment by prospectors. 2d. Errors in judgment by superintendents and trustees. 3d. Swindling transactions perpetrated on foreign capital. Let us examine them seriatim. The errors in judgment on the part of prospectors resulted in unintelligent prospecting. It was natural that men without experience should make many false estimates of the treasures they had found; and thus, it happened that great numbers of valueless locations were made, without any intentional deception on the part of the locators. Having once seen silver procured from a quartz vein, not a few arrived at the illogical conclusion that all quartz veins must contain silver; and forgetting that it is but seldom that a lode is of equal value throughout its whole extent, or even thickness, a small fragment of ore, yielding a large assay of gold or silver, was regarded by many persons as establishing the value of a claim. The results of the first discoveries of silver made in our State were so flattering, and presaged for us such unbounded wealth, that capital was early found to prospect any location that could show even the remotest probability of success; and so it gradually happened that large amounts of money were expended on locations which the eye of an experienced miner would have pronounced worthless at first sight. Again, the want of accurate information by many of our early prospectors induced them to expend work and money on useless minerals, supposing them, from their resemblance to other valuable articles, to be good property. Within a few miles of Virginia, numerous tunnels have been run in a deposit of silicate of alumina, under the impression that it was quartz; clay jasper, mixed with iron |