MINES OF BATTLE MOUNTAIN, EAST GROUP. 
449 
UNDERGROUND WATER. 
According to Mr. V. G. Hills,® from whose reports most of the following facts 
in regard to the underground water of the Portland mine are taken, the first water 
was reached at a depth of 630 feet in the Burns shaft, or 9,452 feet above sea. This 
was 117 feet lower than the first water of Stratton’s Independence mine. The dis¬ 
charge did not exceed 300 gallons a minute until a depth of 704 feet was reached, 
when it rapidly increased to 700 gallons a minute. In 1896, 1897, and during the 
first half of 1898 no record of discharge was kept. In the summer of 1899 the Port¬ 
land was pumping an average quantity of 1,180 gallons a minute from a depth of 
792 feet, or an elevation of 9,290 feet above sea. At this time the Elkton mine, 
three-fourths of a mile to the northwest, was dry at 9,243 feet elevation, or 47 feet 
lower than the pumping level of the Portland. In January, 1903, the Portland 
water, which had been allowed to rise above the 1,100 foot level, remained stationary 
at an elevation of 9,005 feet, or at a depth of 1,084 feet. It then stood 13 feet higher 
than the water in the Elkton mine. In August, 1903, the water in the Portland had 
receded to a point 86 feet below the 1,000-foot level and was falling at the rate of 
2 or 3 inches a week. At this time Stratton’s Independence, the Strong, Gold Coin, 
and St. Patrick mines were all pumping and keeping their water levels below that 
of the Portland. The difference amounted to 562 feet in Stratton’s Independence, 
133 feet in the Strong, 240 feet in the Gold Coin, and 90 feet in the St.' Patrick. 
That the Portland water should recede so slowly under these circumstances is a 
remarkable illustration of the comparative impenetrability of the granite to under¬ 
ground water, even when, as in the case of the Portland and Stratton’s Independence 
mines, adjoining mines are on the same zones of Assuring. 
The influence of the El Paso tunnel on the water level in the Portland mine we 
have been unable to learn. 
STRATTON’S INDEPENDENCE MINE. 
INTRODUCTION. 
Stratton’s Independence mine lies immediately south of the Portland mine, a 
short distance northeast of Victor. It is one of the oldest, and probably the most 
famous, of the Cripple Creek mines. It is owned by the Stratton’s Independence 
(Limited), a London company with an authorized capitalization of £1,100,000. The 
property comprises 14 claims and forms a compact group covering 110 acres. Over 
400 men were employed prior to the strike of 1903, and the average amount of 
crude ore hoisted daily in 1902 and the first half of 1903 was about 630 tons, of 
which about 40 per cent was shipped after sorting. Since the time of visit the 
company has ceased direct operations and the mine is now worked by lessees. 
The mine has an interesting history. In 1891 Winfield Scott Stratton, who, 
though a carpenter by trade, was also a keen and well-informed prospector, was 
searching for cryolite on the west side of Pikes Peak. Hearing of Womack’s dis¬ 
covery in Poverty Gulch, Stratton turned his attention to Cripple Creek, and in 
a Ninth Ann. Rept. Portland Gold Mining Company, 1903, pp. 86-89. 
