🕐10.02.10 - 15:40 Uhr
San Albinos timely resurrection
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Larry Myles Reports
February, 2010
Golden Reign Resources Rekindles a Forgotten Dream
..shining a light inside the historic San Albino Gold Mine
A mission of discovery involving weeks of research; sifting through the
contents of dusty and forgotten boxes hauled out of the backrooms of two of
Americas most prestigious libraries (The American Heritage Center,
University of Wyoming and The Huntington Library, San Marino, CA).
Maps,
confidential letters, drawings, mine plans, assay results and special
reports that bring to life the exploits of three important historical
figures; each in their own way, giants: August Sandino, Charles Butters and
Canadas own Thayer Lindsley.
All the ingredients are in place for a
captivating story; revolution, murder, mayhem, discovery and destruction,
political intrigue and double-cross, and the absolute clincher - a forgotten
gold mine!
SandinoIt must have been a crushing moment for mine owner Charles Butters,
on the morning of July 2nd, 1927 when the Nicaraguan revolutionist (and his
former mine employee) Augusto Sandino along with a small contingent of his
armed followers splashed across the Jicaro River toward the San Albino Mine.
There they confronted the American mine owner and in the end, Sandino put a
gun to Butters head and gave him a choice - banishment or death.
Prior to Charles Butters getting on his horse and leaving his mine forever,
the San Albino Mine had been in full production for an extremely short time
- probably days rather than weeks, before being interrupted by revolutionist
activity.
I base this on information contained in two historic reports that
clearly indicate the vitally important uninterrupted power supply to run the
mill was not available until the summer of 1927.
A steady flow of power was necessary to successfully operate the patented
"Butters Slime Filter Plant".
Charles Butters, renowned metallurgist and
inventor pioneered the cyanide process for mineral separation.
His
revolutionary filter-press was the important first step upward from ordinary
decantation..and its early use was limited to processing only high-grade
gold and silver.
Whether the mill was in operation for days or weeks is not
important.
What matters are the (undisputed) production numbers; prior to
the gun-wielding Augusto Sandino appearing on the scene, the recorded daily
average production of the San Albino Mine was an impressive 10 tons at 31
g/t gold per ton.
I must also point out there were decent silver values, but
in 1927 no one cared as it was the $20.64 per ounce gold price that was the
big draw.
General Augusto Sandino, if nothing else was passionately in love with
Nicaragua and began with a simple idea: Nicaragua for Nicaraguans.
Sandino
simplified his agenda to include the philosophy where the ends justify the
means.
But our pint-sized revolutionary was also practical and he knew his
revolution would need money; and nothing generates cash faster than a
producing gold mine.
When Sandino clerked for Charles Butters he was privy
to many of the mine owners discussions and plans.
It would be a given that
Sandino was aware of the approximately one dozen veins of high-grade gold
that were in and around the San Albino Mine.
So it should not have come as a
surprise to Butters that with spies in place, Sandino would be quick off the
mark to take advantage of the mine almost as soon it reached full
production.
For all of July 1927, and into August, Sandino and seventy-five of his
miners-cum-revolutionists worked around the clock, processing the high-grade
gold from the San Albino Mine; until finding out a detachment of US Marines
were preparing to move on the mine.
Prior to making his escape, Sandino
instructed one of his most trusted Mexican allies - Manuel Echevarria, to
strategically cave portions of the mine.but to leave the mill and power
generation facilities intact.
For what it is worth, both Sandino and Echevarria had earned quite the
reputation for wreaking havoc and totally destroying any American owned gold
mine; evidenced by the destruction of the Bonanza and La Luz y Los Angeles
mines.
Sandino regarded the mines as symbolic of the betrayal of the
Nicaraguan people.
The eradication of the mines reflected his deep
antagonism toward the American presence in Nicaragua.
Why Sandino left the
San Albino Mine relatively unscathed has been largely ignored by historians.
Although one can only speculate, it is entirely within the realm of reason
that Augusto Sandino in his capacity as records clerk at the San Albino
Mine, and intimately familiar with Charles Butters long range plans;
including the construction of a narrow-gauge railroad ringing the entire
property to facilitate the development of over a dozen rich gold .as well as
moving past the planning stage and into initiating an aggressive exploration
program that would see a small army of geologists and field workers track
the mineralized structures all the way to the town of Murra - over 12
kilometers to the northeast.
During the early days, the San Albino Gold Mine was ground-zero for the
Nicaraguan Revolution.
Augusto Sandino understood the importance of the business of gold.
During
the summer of 1927, Sandino funded his revolution by minting a number of
crude gold coins directly from the ore processed from the San Albino Gold
Mine.
I continue to draw attention to the Butters vision.that there were a dozen
rich veins equal to the main vein at San Albino.
It is important that you
understand the logic behind mans actions.
Can you imagine being Charles
Butters and going into a remote area of Nicaragua; spending $750,000 USD of
your own money to build a modern processing mill in the middle of
nowhere..all apparently without doing a lick of exploration? This appears
to be exactly what happened in 1920 when Charles Butters acquired the San
Albino/Arras property.
First off, he had to construct a 53 kilometer road
from the town of Ocotal to the proposed mill site on the banks of the Jicaro
River.
Following the successful road construction, Butters began to bring in
equipment for the mill, which was ready to go into full production by the
summer of 1927.
That certainly is a lot of time, effort and money.
So
obviously Butters was convinced the property was rich in gold.
Why obviously: It should be pointed out that Charles Butters was no novice
to mining; he was already the largest and most successful mine operator in
the region; owning producing properties in Columbia, Nicaragua, Mexico, as
well as in South Africa and Australia.
His Copala operation in Mexico
included 11,000 acres of lumber and grazing land, 2,000 acres with rich
mineral deposits, four tube mills, a state of the art 1,000 horsepower steam
boiler, a foundry and a well equipped machine shop.
If a successful mine
finder like Charles Butters was willing to stake a personal fortune to
create a modern infrastructure in a remote part of the Nicaraguan jungle, it
stands to reason he had a pretty good idea there would be a handsome
payback.
Special thanks : Huntington Library, San Marino, CA
http://www.sandinorebellion.com/images/Homepage/butters-189602.jpg
Extracts: "Summary: Why I Bought San Albino" by Charles Butters
* I sought locations where a small amount of capital would yield the
largest return.
San Albino more than meets criteria.
* Good values, plenty of ore.
* Timber, water power, good climate, cheap labor.
* I have developed - over a distance of 600 to 700 feet - only 1 of
the 12 known high grade veins at San Albino/ Arras.
* Aguja de Arras was the mine that originally put the district on the
map.
It was producing high-grade ore running over 2 ounces per ton.
Speaking about mine finders, it is important we mention the other man who
shared the Butters vision of veins of gold in the hills of remote Nicaragua
- one of Canadas most illustrious mine finders of all time.
A man who is
the most famous member of the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame: Thayer Lindsley.
Thayer Lindsley
1882 - 1976
Thayer Lindsley, the father of such mining giants as Falconbridge Ltd.,
Ventures Ltd.
and Frobisher, has been described as the greatest mine finder
of all time.
Not only did he found Falconbridge, a multinational
organization ranked now among the largest mining companies in the world, but
throughout his long and extraordinarily dedicated career, Lindsley either
found or was involved in the development of such other famous Canadian
mining names as Sherritt Gordon, Giant Yellowknife, Canadian Malartic,
United Keno Hill, Lake Dufault and Opemiska Copper, Connemara in Southern
Rhodesia and Whim Creek in Australia.
His geological and creative genius touched the fortunes of perhaps more than
185 companies in all.
In a book on exploration he published in 1966, he aptly described the kind
of attributes that made he himself a giant among mining men:
"To be a successful mine finder," he said, "one must have determination,
knowledge, tenacity, a rugged constitution to withstand the rigors of
outdoor life, and enjoy overcoming obstacles of every description.
Also, a
little dash of imagination and enthusiasm is helpful."
He had an uncanny perception of geology that helped him build a
world-girdling empire of mining properties.
An associate said of him:
"He was a geological genius.
He had an astonishing ability to look at a
geological map in three dimensions and quickly circle the location of
probable ore with a big red crayon.
"Two of the secrets of his great success were his voracious reading habits,
and a true photographic memory enabling him to discuss in great detail, even
down to assays, little known ore deposits in parts of the world he had never
visited."
Thayer Lindsley was born in Yokohama, Japan, where his father, a New England
American, was a Canadian Pacific Railways executive.
Returning to the U.S.,
Lindsley took a civil engineering degree at Harvard, moving to Canada in
1924 with a $30,000 stake from an iron mine in Oregon.
It was in 1928 that Lindsley, along with a group of associates, including
his brother Halstead, founded Ventures Ltd., as a holding company for
various properties.
And in that same year, on August 28, Falconbridge Nickel
Mines Limited was incorporated as a Ventures subsidiary.
Sherritt Gordon Mines Limited also came into being in 1928, in a partnership
Lindsley formed with R.J.
Jowsey and several of his Ventures associates.
Lindsley served continuously from 1928 to 1956 as president and a director
of both Ventures and Falconbridge, almost equalling the length-of-service
record of James Murdoch, as president, at Noranda.
In 1962, Ventures Limited
was merged with Falconbridge and Ventures passed from the mining scene.
Lindsley remained a director of Falconbridge, however, until 1967, when he
accepted the honor of election as Director Emeritus.
Even at the age of 90, four years before his death, Thayer Lindsley was
still working on gold mines in France and Ontario, silver mines in Utah and
Mexico, and many other projects.
He was, truly, one of the greatest mine developers of all time.
Thayer Lindsley took a remarkably detailed and specific interest in the San
Albino property, compiling a comprehensive library of information; for that,
special thanks to the University of Wyoming Heritage Centre.
Thanks to the wealth of evidence found with the Lindsley/San Albino
documents we are able to discover that Charles Butters never gave up in his
attempt to regain possession of the San Albino Gold Mine.
Long after the
death of Butters (1933), Thayer Lindsley maintained the integrity of his
extensive San Albino library: safekeeping minutely detailed maps,
correspondence from Butters, assay results, etc.
All the evidence shows San
Albino to be a rich gold mine; leaving the only question - how extensive?
The question has been patiently waiting to be answered for the last 80+
years.
Now thanks to the dedication and hard work in the field by the Golden
Reign Resources exploration team, we will soon have that answer.
A Property Rife with History.
..even before Charles Butters appeared on the scene
Gold was discovered at San Albino in 1790 by the Spaniards.
The large area
quickly became known as rich in manto - the name given in Central America
to a rich vein of gold lying almost wholly at surface level either exposed
to air or covered in loose soil and rock.
Open pit was the obvious order of
the day, but later was followed up with underground mining; although the
accumulation of water prevented these early operators from attaining any
depth and ultimately put a halt to production without barely scratching the
surface of the rich veins.
>From 1885 to 1920, four different operators controlled and worked mainly the
surface areas of the property and produced an aggregate 32,000 tons at
between US $7.00 to $12.00 per ton with an estimated value of US $332,000.
With the price of gold at US $20.64 per ounce this translates to roughly
16,062 ounces of gold.
Finally, in 1920 Charles Butters acquired the property; and invested US
$750,000 of his own money and began the long process of constructing a
modern processing plant in the middle of the Nicaraguan jungle.
How
different the history of Nicaragua may have turned out if Charles Butters
had been able to realize the potential of his ore-rich San Albino/Arras
property.
Instead, just as all of his hard work was on the cusp of paying
dividends, he was forced off the property; never to return (though not for
lack of trying).
Who was to know that during that fateful and turbulent
summer of 1927, when the fabulous San Albino Mine was deliberately caved -
it would remain closed to production for nearly an entire century.
Post-Butters, the San Albino/Arras Mine Fades into Obscurity
..with nary a whimper
Fickle finger(s) of fate, a string of tragic-comedy of errors, or just bad
timing? Or as some of the old timers like to hint..Sandinos Revenge.
It
is time to fill in the blanks.
History tells us that in 1934, Charles H.
Janin was able to option the
property.
Reading over some of the letters from that time period, it soon
became clear that Janin must have suffered the patience of Job; working with
many diverse groups, often at odds with one another over who actually owned
the property.
He was able to persevere and later that year, Janin was able
to at partially open San Albino, Level 400 thanks to the hard work by George
Evans, a seasoned geologist with a wealth of experience in Central America.
When I first reviewed the laboriously hand-drawn maps and assay numbers
provided by Evans, my first thought: good numbers, but nothing that
spectacular..whats all the fuss about? And then I realized...I was not
looking at assays of three or four grams per ton.
I was looking at results
that were two, three and four ounces per ton!
I would imagine the obvious question might be."Okay, if this is such a
stellar property and obviously rich mine, why wasnt the San Albino
re-opened in the early 1930s" - especially if Augusto Sandino understood
its true worth? After all, he had a revolution to fund!
In the case of Augusto Sandino, he had a lot on his plate - constantly
staying one step ahead of the US Marines as he continued to drive them crazy
with a series of successful hit and run tactics.
By the end of 1932 it must
have seemed to the Nicaraguan government, the US Marines and the Guardia
Nacional that the indefatigable Sandino was everywhere at once, fighting for
his beloved Nicaragua.
Although Sandino had been unable to obtain any
sustained outside assistance for his movement, he thought he had caught a
break in the form of the Great Depression; with America in an economic
shamble, overseas military ventures became both costly and unpopular.
With
one eye on the exit sign, America dealt the responsibility of Sandino to the
newly reorganized Guardia.
Early in 1933, the last of the US Marines left Nicaragua.
There was a
feeling of change was in the air; momentum had begun to shift as Nicaraguans
felt their time had come.
But as is so often the case, fate had a card or
two to play.
Before 1934 was even sixty days old, two of our main players
would exit the stage; and the wonderful San Albino Mine, so full of promise
would again lose focus as it faded into obscurity.
On November 28th, 1933 the 79 year-old Charles Butters; a man who never gave
up trying to regain control of the San Albino Mine passed away.
His dream of
a noted Nicaraguan mega-gold mine died with him.
A few months later, on February 21st, 1934 Augusto Sandino was assassinated
by members of the Guardia Nacional - under the direct orders of Anastasio
"Tacho" Somoza.
Three years later, just after his 35th birthday the same
brash young guardsman became President of Nicaragua - a position he held
until his assassination in 1956.
Sorry, I digress - "so politics aside, why wasnt the mine opened in the
1930s?" A couple of reasons: Charles Janin wanted very much to reopen the
mine and planned to do just enough work to entice a large American mining
company with an existing track record in Central America to get involved,
namely the New York and Honduras Rosario Mining Company.
A good thought, but
America was in the throat of the Great Depression.
Money was tight - even
for a world class mining company.
To be fair, NY&HR was extremely
interested, but their decision was between a good property in El Salvador,
a country friendly to the US and the potentially great San Albino mine in
Nicaragua.
NY&HR was certainly aware of the compelling evidence regarding
multiple rich veins coursing through San Albino/Arras; they were also aware
the Nicaraguan countryside was still in transition and safety remained a
question mark.
In the end, the company opted for the stability of El
Salvador.
Over a decade later, during the turbulence of the 1940s, the same question
- "why wasnt the San Albino Gold Mine reopened for business." Once again,
two very valid reasons.
The first one being focus.
In 1944 President Somoza
was in firm control of the country.
Earlier in the decade he was one of the
first Central American leaders to openly declare war on Germany.
I doubt if
fighting Hitler was on his mind; more like the opening salvo in making his
intentions clear to the wealthy German-Nicaraguan landowners.
Although it
took him eight years, in the end Somoza wound up owning nearly four dozen
well run and highly profitable coffee plantations.
After the coffee farms,
the fearless leader of all Nicaragua went after the German owned cattle
ranches.
Gold?
According to Jacob Landau, writing for the Delaware Star on December 17th,
1944 - "there are nearly 1500 small gold mines in Nicaragua..but only four
of them are in partial production." Reason: a total lack of infrastructure,
machinery and equipment and a dearth of skilled miners.
By the way, in case
you were wondering.the San Albino was not one of the four mines in
production.
In 1948, Mr.
Rodgers Peale visited the property and prepared a historical
resource estimate for just the San Albino Mine.
The report is obviously not
NI 43-101 compliant.
In his report, Peale calculated a gold resource of over
80,000 tons grading approximately 0.5 ounces per ton, equivalent to
approximately 42,000 ounces of gold.
It should be pointed out that Peale was only able to enter only part way
into the San Albino, Level 400.
He was not able to sample levels, 150, 200,
300 and 500.
Although Rodgers was able to understand the connection between
San Albino and Arras (300 meters to the southwest) he was not able to
discover evidence of the additional dozen veins that Butters believed were
part of the greater structure, although he agreed with the theory.
So if I
have this right, Peale based his resource calculation solely on being able
to pick his way along less than a thousand feet of one level of the San
Albino Mine (Level 400), and still comes away with a resource that in
todays money is worth over $42 million US dollars.
But getting back to the lack apparent interest in gold mining in Nicaragua,
there is more to the story than meets the eye.
Studying the history of the
four decades of the "Somoza Dynasty" it becomes clear that Anastasia Somoza
was all about control.
I feel that he was as cunning as they come, but
limited in his level of smarts.
By appointing trusted family members to
key positions in both government and industry, as well as doting on his
military, Somoza was able to rule Nicaragua with an iron fist, albeit
wrapped in a velvet glove.
The story changed when his sons took over and
without getting into details, I think it is safe to say..the velvet glove
came off.
The point being, although the senior Somoza did not neglect gold mining
entirely, he deliberately down played the importance of gold mines in
Nicaragua.
First off, gold was only worth $35.00 an ounce.
But more
importantly it was all about control.
By marrying his family and friends to
positions of power that in one way or another related to the land (coffee
plantations and cattle ranching), Somoza was able to hold his appointees
financially hostage and beholden to his whim and wish.
Moving forward it is important to point out that although Anastasia Somoza
may have ignored the importance of gold mining in general and in particular
the San Albino Mine, others did not!
In 1957 the San Albino Gold Mine received a more than honorable mention in
the prestigious "Important Mineral Deposits of Central America" bulletin
released by the Geological Survey Bulletin #1034 (Department of
Interior)..."including the long thick vein of 32 grams per tonne (gold)
material was only one of many such veins."
"The ore body is a thick, lenticular quartz-pyrite vein several hundred feet
long.
It dips about 40 degrees, parallel to the dip of the enclosing
phyllites.
Chalcopyrite is locally abundant in the lower levels."
After Anastasia Somoza was assassinated in 1956, the political and economic
climate in Nicaragua deteriorated.
Without getting into decades of turmoil,
grief and increased political upheaval, let us move directly to present day
Nicaragua.
>From an investment and business point of view, my guess is that you felt the
strength of the undercurrent of anxiety while reading my brief outline of
the historic San Albino Gold Mine.
The difficulties faced in trying to do
business in Nicaragua - be it in the 1920s or right into the last decade,
investing has been a challenge.
I am happy to report that all of that has
changed.
Investing in Nicaragua?
Without question, and contrary to popular belief, Nicaragua is proving to be
a stable, safe, and peaceful country that is motivated in attracting foreign
investment.
Obviously Nicaragua is a developing country and is one of
Central Americas poorest nations.
And although to the outside world the
political street demonstrations may seem unruly, this is simply Nicaraguans
practicing democracy with passion, Central American style.
But when it
comes to the nitty-gritty of safety, fact: Nicaragua is the second safest
country in all of Latin America (behind Uruguay), and Nicaragua has a lower
reported crime rate than France, Germany and the United States, according to
a recent United Nations/Interpol study.
In recent years, Nicaragua has privatized nearly all of its old state-owned
monopolies, save for public utilities, and has reduced the amount of
government red tape.
A foreign investment law ensures that you can
repatriate 100% of your profits and, after three years, the initial
investment as well.
You will find no legal ground for discrimination
against you when you invest.
The law allows for 100% foreign ownership in
every economic sector.
Like Augusto Sandino, we should all be in the business of gold.
So it appears that the stage has finally been set for the historic San
Albino Gold Mine to gain its long postponed recognition as possibly one of
the premier gold mines in Nicaragua.
And the timing could not be better.
On the national stage, Nicaragua is working hard to both benefit from, and
contribute to the world markets.
The democratically elected government is
emphatic that besides being the largest country in Central America, it can
become one of the regions most important countries.
On a more personal note: You and I may not have a revolution to fund, but we
do have our financial futures to consider.
Whether or not you agree that
30% of your liquid assets should be in physical gold and silver, I am
confident that with all that has happened in the markets, you will agree
that a sizeable portion of your assets should be in bullion.
Three questions: Is the price of gold at record levels because only a few of
the fiat currencies of the world have been failing? Or are an increasing
number of investors becoming aware that over the last two years the entire
faith-backed fiat currency experiment nearly collapsed - which would have
made all paper money worthless? Even now, do you really want to be holding
the Euro? That particular brand of fiat is on the verge of extinction thanks
to the wildly out-of-control deficits by the governments of Portugal,
Ireland, Italy, or Greece?
So again I return to my favorite topic of late; being participant in the
business of gold, by owning (and possessing) gold (and silver) bullion.
And
what better way to fund your purchase of bullion - owning shares in select
junior gold exploration companies.
With that in mind, let us review what has been happening with Golden Reign
Resources, Ltd.
(TSX.V: GRR ) and what they
have been able to accomplish on their San Albino-Murra Gold Property in
Nicaragua.
The Companys Phase 1 work program was deemed a success and
certainly expands the library of information when it comes to understanding
the San Albino/Arras property.
At the time of this writing, Phase Two has
already commenced.
Historically the focus of exploration has always been on high-grade,
ore-bearing quartz veins.
However, the Companys 2009 Phase 1 exploration
program outlined several new exploration targets, suggesting the property
has the potential to host an open-pittable, bulk tonnage gold deposit that
contains high-grade gold bearing structures.
The Company has designed an extensive 2010 Exploration Program, which
includes:
* Rehabilitation of several old mines followed by detailed underground
channel sampling and drilling to determine the potential for near-term
underground production.
* Further delineation and expansion of high-grade gold mineralization
zones, which have been traced for 1,200 meters along strike.
Trenching and
sampling of structures, open in both directions, will be followed by diamond
drilling to test continuation of mineralization at depth.
* Continued exploration of the surface oxide zone at Arras, as
outlined by the previous operator, with the aim of expanding the zone in at
least two directions.
Systematic trench sampling will be followed by diamond
drilling.
* Additional sampling of highly prospective, metamorphosed zones
(gneisses and schists containing visible gold) discovered during 2009.
Systematic diamond-saw channel sampling of outcrops and trenches is planned.
* Additional exploration to confirm the existence of an intrusive body
(porphyry target) within the Property boundaries, as suggested by the
numerous dykes outlined and sampled during 2009, as well as the collection
several granitic float samples.
* Exploration of the remainder of the Property, with a primary focus
on the San Albino and Central districts where numerous showings, old
workings and mines all situated along a northeast trend have previously
reported gold values which merit additional work.
During the 2009 Phase I exploration program, Golden Reign was able to
evaluate several old workings and finalize rehabilitation plans.
Priority
has been given to old workings where sampling, both historical and more
recent, returned the highest values of gold mineralization - San Albino, San
Lorenzo, Arras and Las Conchitas mines.
Historic San Albino Mine
The first discovery of gold mineralization within the area, and perhaps
within Nicaragua itself, was made by Spaniards in the immediate vicinity of
San Albino around 1790.
During the 1920s, very limited mining activities
were conducted before revolutionary activity halted mining and development.
After that period, there were attempts to rehabilitate the mine and continue
exploration in the area, all ending in failure.
No recent sampling has been completed at the San Albino mine site; however,
historical underground sampling across an 18.29 meter strike produced:
* 56.23 g/t of gold and 39.09 g/t of silver averaging 1.32 meters in
width,
* Including a 1.83 meter width of 284.0 g/t gold and 212.57 g/t
silver.
Gold mineralization is observed within both quartz veins and the surrounding
graphite schist.
The Company plans to reopen the 400 level of the San Albino Mine where,
historically, the highest gold values within the southern district were
reported.
Reopening the 400 level will allow for sampling of the vein.
This
will be followed by the clearing of two existing raises to the 300 level
and, thereafter, by the possible reopening of the 300 level.
Detailed
underground sampling will be completed as the tunnels are reopened.
Underground sampling will be conducted in combination with surface trenching
to further define and test the mineralization prior to surface and
underground diamond drilling.
Situated 100 meters southwest of the San Albino Mine, is the El Jobo mine,
which returned 16.06 g/t gold over 1.4 meters in quartz veins.
The Company
believes that the mineralization found at San Albino is an extension of that
at El Jobo; however, further evaluation is required.
Arras/San Lorenzo
Recent sampling and mapping by Golden Reign has confirmed the continuity of
the Arras vein system to include the San Lorenzo vein, for a total length of
900 meters.
Further, sampling results obtained at the old San Lorenzo mine site and
surface exposure of the mineralized structure within the Arras and San
Lorenzo historical workings justify reopening the mine and performing
systematic sampling.
Historical sampling at Arras was validated by the Companys 2009 sampling
program, with values of 10.0 to 20.0 g/t gold in quartz veins over 2.0 to
4.0 meters wide.
At San Lorenzo, quartz veins returned grades ranging from 1.4 to 27.0 g/t
gold from grab samples of quartz float.
During 2010, the Company intends to confirm the continuation of high grade
gold mineralization by trenching the Arras and San Lorenzo vein systems
along approximately 1,500 meters of strike.
Diamond drilling will follow
upon receipt of positive trenching results.
Las Conchitas Mines-San Pablo Mineralized Structural Zone
The southern structural zone covers 1.5 kilometers, stretching from Las
Conchitas (El Limon and Bayacun Mines) north-east to San Pablo.
The Las
Conchitas Mines located in the southern-most section of the San Albino
District were discovered and exploited for gold and silver during colonial
times via small artisanal mine workings, mining chimneys, and adits.
Within this zone, mineralization is predominately controlled by 600 trending
structures, producing veins up to eight meters true width.
Where these veins
are cut by 3100 structures, the rocks are shattered resulting in large
mineralized stockwork zones roughly 50x50 meters in size.
Veins that were
mapped and sampled on surface were highly mineralized, returning elevated
gold values.
Sampling of the surrounding schist returned an additional 5.0
meters averaging 1.7 g/t gold.
During recent sampling it was observed that gold and silver mineralization
occurs within metasedimentary rocks containing quartz and iron oxides,
controlled by mineralized faults and structures.
The Phase I exploration
program assay results correlate closely with those reported by the previous
operator.
Albino-Topo
Reopening of the old tunnels and systematic sampling is planned to begin
early in the 2010 Phase II work program.
One of the exploration targets will
be to further expose a 4.0 meter wide quartz vein at San Pablo which
returned value of 27.18 g/t gold, and to locate and sample a quartz vein
discovered fifteen meters from the El Limon mine entrance which returned
values of 121.0 g/t of gold and 98.2 g/t of silver over 1.4 meters.
I am sure we can all agree that the early results are inspiring and
compelling; and that is after only six weeks in the field.
I look forward to
what we can expect in the way of results after three months worth of ground
work - including the underground channel samples from the San Albino, Level
400, not to mention what lies under the surface at San Pablo and Las
Conchitas.
San Albino Railway
Out of all the dozens of maps, I thought this one would be appropriate for
my current report.
This surface map, drawn in April, 1924 indicates the
tram-rail line that Charles Butters wanted to construct.
Reason: in the
simplest of terms, LOTS of gold and he wanted to be able to quickly move the
tons ore to his processing mill on the banks of the Jicaro River.
In my
opinion, there was no way Charles Butters was intending to build an entire
rail system for only one high-grade vein.
Share the vision!
Larry Myles
604-408-7600
1-877-405-7600
"The essence of paper money is blind faith.
The essence of gold is reality."
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