Reciprocity Mining Company (signed by Lucius E. Chittenden, who was the Register of U. S. Treasury during Lincoln administration) - East Canada / New York 1865

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Beautiful stock certificate from the Reciprocity Mining Company issued on April 1, 1865. This historic document has an ornate border around it with an image of the New York State Seal. This item has the signatures of the Company's President, Lucius E. Chittenden and Secretary. Issued to William G, Morhead. Lucius E. Chittenden, was the Register of the U. S. Treasury during the Lincoln administration.
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Lucius E. Chittenden Lucius Eugene Chittenden (May 24, 1824 - July 22, 1900) was a Vermont author, banker, lawyer, politician and peace advocate who served as Register of the Treasury during the Lincoln administration. Chittenden was born in Williston, Vermont, the son of Giles and Betsey (Hollenbeck) Chittenden. He was the 2nd-great-grandson of Vermont's first governor, Thomas Chittenden. He received his early education in the district schools of Williston and academies in Williston, Hinesburg and Cambridge. He studied law with a variety of attorneys, and was admitted to the bar in Franklin County in 1844. He opened a law office in Burlington the next year. He became interested in politics and public affairs early in his career, gained prominence in the anti-slavery movement and the Free Soil Party, and published from 1848 to 1851, with E. A. Stansbury, the "Free Soil Courier." After helping Democrat John S. Robinson get elected governor in 1852, he became active in the newly formed Republican Party. He was elected state senator from Chittenden County, and served from 1856 to 1860, while also serving as president of the Commercial Bank in Burlington. Governor Erastus Fairbanks, in February 1861, appointed Chittenden one of five Vermont delegates to the Washington Peace Conference, a group formed to try avert the coming Civil War. The other delegates were former Governor Hiland Hall, Levi Underwood, H. Henry Baxter, and B. D. Harris. Chittenden was selected recorder of the conference, and published its records in 1864. In March 1861, President Lincoln's new Secretary of the Treasury, Salmon P. Chase, a former member of the defunct Free Soil Party, offered Chittenden the position of Register of the U.S. Treasury, which he accepted, serving in that office for the remainder of Lincoln's first administration, resigning in 1864 due to poor health. When he resigned from the Lincoln Administration, he returned to Vermont to regain his health, but by 1866 was living in Tarrytown, New York, where he practiced as an attorney until at least 1894. He returned to Burlington at some point, where he died.
STATEMENT OF THE TRUSTEES 1864 RECIPROCITY MINING COMPANY, OF CANADA EAST. In culling public attention to the development of the mining resources of a new section of country and in inviting the association of capital necessary for that purpose, it will be naturally expected that those having the subject in charge should use every exertion and spare no pains to collect and set in order the facts which parties should weigh and consider before connecting themselves with such an enterprise. The Board of Trustees of the Reciprocity Mining Company fully appreciate their duty in this behalf, and they propose to state in concise terms the facts which have induced them to interest themselves in this undertaking, and to recommend it with a suitable degree of confidence to the attention of the capitalists of the country. The members of the present board, within the last two years, have been repeatedly invited to connect themselves with various companies formed within that period for mining purposes. These applications they have generally declined. They were unwilling to become associated with projects in which they were indisposed to risk their own capita], or which they could not confidently recommend to others; and when they were requested to unite themselves with a Corporation having in view the development of the gold interests of Canada East, they were at first very unwilling to consider the subject at all. Although many of the mining companies heretofore organized have achieved permanent success; too many pf them have been failures. Some of these failures have resulted from the inaccessibility of the mining property, and the large expenses necessarily incurred in the machinery and labor indispensable to the development of such property, but many more from the intrinsic worthlessness of the property itself. Such failures have become so common that when the present subject was first presented to us we were strongly disinclined to connect ourselves with it; but the examination of the geological and other official reports of the Province of Canada seemed to establish the fact that there was a considerable section of country in that province fully equaling in gold and other valuable mineral deposits the sections of California and the Territories which have contributed so largely to the material wealth of the United States and the world. In view of this fact we were induced to examine the subject, and to endeavor to ascertain, with all practicable certainty, whether the statements made in these reports were true. It was claimed by the gentlemen who first called the subject to our notice, that the lands in question were as rich in metalliferous deposits as those of California or Colorado. It was also claimed that they had been selected with the utmost care, that they had been located along ancient and modern river beds, and that every lot, previous to its selection, had been ascertained by actual experiment to contain deposits of gold. Colonel Rankin, under whose direction these lands have been located, is now and has been for many years a member of the Provincial Parliament of Canada. It was claimed that he had much practical experience in the location of mineral lands, that he was familiar with all the facts developed by the Geological Survey, conducted in Canada, under the auspices of the government, by Sir William Logan and his able corps of asssistants, and that a suitable trial and examination would establish the fact of the extreme richness of those lands in gold and other valuable deposits. As a preliminary step to any connection on our part with this subject, we insisted that the truth of these facts should be ascertained to our satisfaction through agencies established by ourselves alone. This condition was readily acceded to, the owners of the land stating to us that they desired the most thorough examination possible to be made. We thought such an examination would be best conducted by a thoroughly practical geologist. One of our number accordingly addressed notes to Professor J. D. Dana, of Yale College, who at the present time undoubtedly stands at the head of American geologists, and Dr. John Torrey, of National reputation and now connected with the New York Assay Office, desiring them to select one of the most competent and independent men to make an examination of, and report upon this property. Without consultation between themselves, they indicated Professor Henry Wurtz, as a practical geologist, whose opinions in this respect would be entirely reliable. The correspondence with these gentlemen and the instructions to Professor Wurtz are appended hereto. Mr. Wurtz, with a party of gentlemen, visited and examined the laud of the company, and his report is also presented herewith. The report of Professor Wurtz fully confirms all the statements which have heretofore been made, officially or otherwise, in reference to the value of these lands. The evidence derived from these sources, which are principally official, seems to the trustees to satisfactorily establish all the facts necessary to warrant them in recommending the stock and property of this company to the attention of the capitalists of the country. It is not practicable in such a statement as this to enter very fully into details. This will be done in a future publication, in which every fact will be given bearing upon the value of this property, its accessibility and its resources. We will, however, here state a few of these facts. The property in question lies in a number of townships upon the Ghaudiere, its sources and other streams. It has been so located as to embrace the gold-bearing lands of a very large section of country, probaby including at least Ten Times the number of acres the company own. It is well known that lands upon which placer diggings are found in California or elsewhere, are located along old or new river beds. The locations of this company have been made so as to embrace the valleys of the old and new streams, which contain the valuable deposits of, and the quartz veins from which Gold was originally derived. This general deposit varies according to official surveys from two feet to one hundred and fifty feet in thickness. The quantity of the deposit upon the lands now owned by the company we believe to be practically iuexhaustable by machinery now used in the production of gold The streams which intersect this property have that amount of water and degree of fall which is best adapted to what is termed hydraulic mining--the most economical and productive of mining operations. It is stated in the reports of Sir Wm. Logan and other writers, and fully confirmed by the practical experience of miners, that loose earth, such as is universally found upon these lands, which contains only oue-twenty-fifth of a grain of gold--equal to one-fifth of a cent--in value to the bushel may be profitably washed by this hydraulic method. Keeping this fact in view, we desire to make some other statements in this connection. From the same reports of Sir Wm. Logan, in actual experiments made or authenticated by him, the gravel from the tributaries of the Chaudiere produced from, uot less than three and one half to seven and one-third grains to the bushel. This then is more than fifty times richer than earth that will pay for washing. Numerous experiments have since been made and are now going on for the purpose of accurately testing the average amount of gold to the cubic foot or bushel in these deposits. None of them fall short--many of them largely exceed the results stated by Sir Wm. Logan. By way of testing the practical value of these deposits for mining purposes, when worked by miners of average experience and skill, about fifty acres of these lands lying on the River Gilbert, were laid off in lots 25 x 100 feet. Sixteen of the lots, scattered indifferently over the whole, were leased for the past mining season for fifty dollars each. Many more, and probably the whole, could have been leased, but as the purpose was only one of experiment, other leases were declined. Although the miners are generally reticent and indisposed to give accurate information as to their success, certainly no dissatisfaction is now to be found among them, except such as manifests itself in complaints that the owners will not make terms by which these lots can be purchased by the lessees. From these lots and others in the vicinity, taken out during the present season, the company has now in its possession, and will soon place on exhibition, about three hundred ounces of gold. The particles of this gold vary in size, from nuggets weighing nine ounces to particles of the size of a pin head. Although public attention has been but little directed to this section, there are now at work something over three hundred persons, who now average, according to the statement of the Gold Commissioner of that district, Major De BelleFeuille, hereto appended, about twelve hundred dollars per day at coin rates. But it must not be forgotten in this connection that the mining machinery now in use there, is of the rudest and most imperfect character. No quicksilver or other material is used to collect and save the fine gold, which is all swept away in the washing; and it is highly probable that the earth that has once been washed by the use of the present machinery could he profitably re-washed by using machinery and material properly adapted to the purpose. The investigations made since this subject first attracted the attention of the Trustees have been of the most satisfactory character. Some specimens of quartz have been found not water-worn and evidently derived from the immediate vicinity, which would produce an immense yield, probably, at the rate of more than twenty thousand dollars to the ton; but the amount of material already pulverized, and which only requires washing to separate the gold, is so great that there will probably exist no immediate necessity for the use of the Quartz Rock, from which the gold can only be extracted by a much more expensive process. Some trials made by one of fi\e party that accompanied Professor Wurtz in the Kempt stream, where no mining operations have ever been attempted, are worthy of attention. A single panning of the gravel taken indifferently from the bed of the stream yielded over four grains of gold, which would be at least an average of twenty-four grains to the cubic foot. We are advised that a nugget has been taken from the Gilbert River Diggings weighing over tiventy ounces. The details of these experiments cannot be stated much more fully without improperly extending the length of this statement. The Trustees, however, after having taken every precaution which prudent and cautious men could take in order to ascertain the exact facts in this connection, feel perfectly justified in the belief that the lands of this company are fully as rich in gold deposits as the average of California, Australia, or our own western Territories. They are aware that this statement is a strong one, and that it will appear to many incredible that a gold deposit so rich, valuable and accessible should not have long ago been improved. But the facts are clear. The evidences are in the hands of the company. A few hours time will enable any person desiring to examine the deposits for himself to do so That gold in large quantities and of great richness has been collected during the past season, any one can be satisfied by examining the quantity now in possession of the company. It is also to be recollected that the deposits are located at a considerable distance from all lines of ordinary communication, and the entire population of the country consists of the smaller class of French farmers, whose attention would be rarely called to the subject of metalliferous deposits. Enough is already known; and known thoroughly, of the lands of this Company, to authorize their being placed in market, to be leased for mining purposes, and also to authorize the Company itself, to erect the necessary machinery for separating the Gold. The trustees believe, that from the leasing of portions of this property alone when the attention of practical miners is properly directed to it, enough revenue may be derived during the coming seusou to return a large dividend upon the Capital Stock, and that when the mining advantages of this section of country are fully understood, all those who join with us in seeking to develope these resouises will reap a rich reward for the investment of their capital. Like all other gold-bearing sections of the country, these lands appear to be rich in other mineral and natural sources of wealth--rubies, garnets, opals, emeralds, tourmalines, and even diamonds, have already been secured. Pearls, many of them of large value, the smaller ones in very considerable quantities, are secured almost daily. Specimens of these different productions may be seen in the possession of this Company, at rooms which will be hereafter designated. In conclusion, the Trustees desire to remark, that they have taken every practicable means to ascertain the facts which affect the merits of this enterprise, and the value of the property upon which it is predicated. They believe they have correctly set forth these facts in brief, in the preceding statement. They are satisfactory to us, and have induced us not only to permit our names to be used in connection with, but to invest our capital in, the undertaking. The development of the resources of a rich" mining region which may, and probably hereafter will, become as important and valuable as those others which have contributed so much to the material wealth of the world, all which have been discovered and developed within the last twenty years, is a work well calculated to attract the attention of enterprising men. To such, we offer a portion of the stock property of the Reciprocity Mining Company, and we say to them, that we desire them to examine the facts for themselves, and to form their own opinions, always assuring them that any information in the possession of the Trustees, or the other officers of the Company, may be had for the asking. All of which is respectfully submitted. New York, Sept. 26, 1864. JAMES POLLOCK, WM. 0. MOORHEAD, CIIAS. B. WRIGHT, HENRY SHELDON, WM. B. HATCH, T. 15. BUNTING, L. E. CHITTENDEN. St. Locis Hotel, Quebec, ) Sept. 14, 1864. J Major C. J. De Bellefeuille, Gold Commissioner, St. Francis: My Dear Sir--Since seeing you I have been through the Gold district on the Gilbert, Famine, du Loup, and Chaudiere Kivers, and also on the Kempt stream. I have been deeply interested by what I have seen, and find the product of Gold much larger than I anticipated. It will undoubtedly be greatly increased within a year. It is impossble to learn much from the miners as to the result of their labors. They all seem determined to keep their operations as quiet as possible. Some say, "we can't complain ;" others, "we are making board, and something over;" and others again "don't care to tell;" but all are doing remarkably well, and at the same time work in a very crude and imperfect manner. I know of no one but yourself who can give positive and reliable information as to the yield, and shall feel much indebted if you will drop me a line per return post, giving the actual yield for the season of the mines on the Gilbert River. Very truly yours, (Signed,) T. B. BUNTING. St. Francis, 16th September, 1864. My Dear Sir--In reply to yours of the 14th, requesting to know what amount of Gold has been extracted on the River Gilbert for the last three months, I can give you positive information from the 15th June to the 2d August only. I compute the gold taken out during the above time at $1,200 per diem. Previous to the 15th June--that is, from the beginning of the season--I consider that from $400 to $500 per day was a fair average. At the time the $1,200 per diem was extracted, there were about three hundred men working in the stream The season has proved very remunerative; and I think, from the different reports arising out of the prospecting on the different other rivers, that next year will prove that there is a great abundance of the ore in the Chaudiere division. Very truly yours, (Signed,) C. J. DE BELLEFEUILLE, Gold Commissioner. To T. B. Bunting, Esq., Quebec. ASSAYS. With a view to ascertain, if possible, from the decomposed materials forming the outcrops of the lodes, whether the ores formerly borne by these lodes, from which these decomposed materials were derived, contained precious metals, samples of these materials were selected for assay. It was believed that if the ores of these lodes are auriferous or argentiferous, these products of their decomposition should retain some traces of the precious metals sufficient to be detected by refined chemical analysis. These samples were submitted to Dr. Tokrey, and the results obtained are reported by him as below: U. S. Assay Office, / New York, Sept. 21st, 1864. J Professor Wurtz Dear Sir--I have assayed the samples of Canadian ore that you left with me, with the following results: No. 1 contains $0 96 silver to the ton of ore, and a trace of gold. "2 contains $0 72 silver to the ton of ore--no gold. "3 " 0 24 " " "and trace of gold. "4 contains no gold nor silver. "6 A. Arsenical pyrites--$89 14 gold per ton, and 1 21 silver" "6 B. Mispickel--no gold nor silver. "6 C. Sand with pyrites--trace of silver. The black auriferous sand, No. 7, yielded gold at the rate of - - '- - $2,860 40 per ton 2,000 lbs. And silver, - - - \ 29 50 Total, - - - $2,889 90 Yours respectfully, (Signed) JOHN TORREY. Numbers 1, 2 and 3 were samples of decomposed materials from the outcrops of the lodes which cross the Kempt stream. No. 6 A, 6 B and 6 C are three different ores picked out from a mixture found in a crevice in the rocks at the Devil's Rapids, this mixture being obviously derived from the veins of lodes which cross the Chaudiere somewhere above the crevice. The rich result given by 6 A proves that one, at least, of these lodes, the course of which takes them across the Gilbert above and near the rich diggings located thereupon, is auriferous. This lode should be developed. No. 7 is a sample of the black sand which accompanies the gold, and which is obtained in considerable quantity by the diggers, mixed with particles of gold too small to be picked out profitably by them on the grounds, but easily recoverable by amalgamation. Large quantities of this sand can be obtained, particularly by hydraulic mining. HENRY WURTZ. Public notice will be given of the time and place when and where subscriptions to the capital stock of the RecipRocity Mining Company will be received. The Trustees have already taken the preliminary steps to place a suitable corps in the field, who, under the directions of the company's geologist, will rigorously prosecute the survey of our own property and all neighboring localities, for the purpose of developing all the mineral resources of the country. It is the intention of the trustees soon to place in the hands of their associates a publication which will embrace all the official, geological and metallurgical publications of the Canadian government having reference to these lands--a thorough and careful analysis of the yield of the quartz rock, gravel sand, and all the other deposits upon the property which possess intrinsic value--a full description of the property itself and the means of access to it--a description of the heat and most approved machinery now used in gold mining--with a general account of the resources of the country, so far as labor, provisions and other elements are concerned bearing upon the general subject. History from Encyberpedia and OldCompany.com (old stock certificate research service)