172

probably about the same as that of the previous ten years, namely, about
$15,000. In 1905 and 1906 the La Fontaine mine produced $37,450 in
gold; in other years the production of other properties considerably
increased the average amount, but in some years it fell below $15,000.
It. would appear, therefore, that the total production was between
$5,000,000 and $6,000,000. It is held, however, by some of the local
mining men who took part in the early mining operations that the total
production was between $12,000,000 and $13,000,000. They hold that
the 25 per cent extra estimated in the Annual Reports of the Minister
of Mines, B.C., for the unreported gold, was not large enough. But there
is no way of telling just what was the actual gold production. As examples
of the working expenses and profits of two of the early mines, the following
records, obtained from the old books, for copies of which the writer is
indebted to F. J. Tregillus, may be quoted. The mining costs at Van
Winkle mine for fourteen weeks, from August 8 to November 7, 1875,
amounted to $19,398.50 and the gold production $171,309.35. The South
Wales Company, consisting of ten interests, paid dividends in six months
for May to October, 1871, amounting to $76,385. The cost of opening
the claim from May, 1870, to April, 1871, was $9,811.81. The average
price obtained for the gold was $17.65 an ounce. At La Fontaine the
gold averaged very nearly $18 an ounce.

Chisholm Creek

Chisholm creek (Figure 27) flows south into Lightning creek at Stanley
and occupies a broad, deeply drift-filled valley, especially in its lower part
below the junction with Oregon creek. Considerable mining was done
in the early days on Oregan. creek, where the ground is fairly shallow, and
attempts were made to mine the deep channel of Chisholm creek. Drifts
were run from the Snowdon shaft, said to have been 203 feet deep, and to
have been sunk by David Edwards. A drain tunnel about 900 feet long
was run to the shaft and drifts from the 100-foot level are said to have been
carried upstream for 1,200 feet. The shaft was equipped with a water-
wheel and pumps. It is a matter of dispute how much of the deep
channel was mined, but it is generally held that the mining did not pay.
It seems probable that the lower part of the channel near Stanley was
mined from the Vulcan shaft, but there may be a considerable stretch
between the lower drifts and the Snowdon shaft that was neither mined
nor prospected. There is no reason however, to suppose that it would
prove to be richer than the parts worked. Considerable prospecting and
mining development work were done on the creek from 1914 to 1917, by
the Cariboo Chisholm Creek Mining Company under the management
of J. A. McPherson. First, two bore-holes were put down on the west side
of the valley considerably above the present creek. The upper of these
holes was reported to be deeper to bedrock than the lower and, therefore,
it was concluded that a side-hill rock channel existed. A tunnel 1,055 feet
long, about half being through boulder clay and the remainder through
bedrock, was then run to intercept the channel or depression in the bedrock,
but proved to be too low. Accordingly an inclined upraise of 40 feet was
made and a drift of 60 feet was run to the west to the channel, which was