The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1825-06-22 00:00:00

AMERICAN MINING ASSOCIATIONS.

The following article is extracted from a Milian paper,
called El liberal, in which it. appears as an essay lee
the " Foreign Associations for, working the Mines of Amite
rim." Doubts hate bees expressed whether much beuefit
could result front the appliestion of thr Anglish system of
mining to the extraction of the mineral treasures of the.
New World. The exposition of the wretched modes pur-
suer' in Chili must at least put an end to all doubts of
this nature as •-co that country; and it seems from the state-,
ments of the Liberal that the superior advantages formerly'
possessed by the Miners of Peru and Mexico consisted only
in a little more miler and regularity. The millet of Chili
are scarcely removed one step from the rudest eget* pr
men in a state of nature. The Chilian Government must
be anitious.to obtain the essistance which our capitalist,
hold out to them. At present the mines, are rather 'a;
curse than a blessing to the peoplepf that country, though
they may so easily be converted into sources of vast and
general prosperity :
" It is our interest to bull forth inducements to labori-
oaf; skilful, and well-Conducted foreigners, to increase our'
population, and teach and assist us to obtain the wealth
which flow's over this fertile and virgin land, but whickle
now lost through inactivity and ignorance ; it is also the
interest of industrious and,cominercial nations to encourage
those productions of ours which serve us to exchange for
theirs, and as return cargoes for theirahips, beginning with
those which will most easily and quickly, and with more
certainty and to sip:eater extent, reward theirexpectstiens.
" Among the many undertakings which present them..
selves to an enterprising spirit, hone is more practicable or
likely to be more successful,than the purseries of those metals
which are the symbol of all riches, and the sign into which
are converted the results of the nest flattering, hazardous,
and complicated speculations. The minerals of all kinds
with which the territory of chili abounds, are far from
being yet known'. Those only have been worked which
have spontaneously manifested themselves on the surface
Of the earth, and even they are,worked only by following the
veins or scams, as they can be followed without any scien-
tific examination having preceded their discovery, or anv
preparations to explore them, or any distinct operations and
labours to supein tend the process; so that by a singular
extravagance of the human mind, the assistance of art has
been disdained precisely where it was most wanted, and
that which ought to be die combined eflbrt of genies,
economy, and order, has been left to a blind, grasping, and
avaricious instinct.
" Thus we continually see that these ineshaustiPle
springs of riches are either obstructed by a falling in of
the excavations, or by the water, which at a certain depth
stuldenly rises, and inundates them. In eider case the
short-sighted adventurers are incapable of resisting or over-
coming the difficulties that obstruct their progress. They
neither have the inettuction which prevents or remedies
these accidents, nor the necessary capital which they, per-
haps, wanted originally, or havesince squandered with that
frensy which is engendered by indefinite hope and sudden
opulence. . •
" In this situation are to be found the richest of the
known mines, either buried in rubbish. or inundated by
aubterraneous water. Either of these obstruCtions is as
difficult to be overcome by the present miners as they
would be easy to those who united to a moderate capital
the aid of art, economy, and, above all, good order. The
last is the chief promoter of all business, supplying the
defect of many essentials; but is utterly unknoWn amongst
the miners, who have substituted for regularity and good
conduct (which are here more necessary than in almost
any other pursuit), the most profligate system of vice and
immorality.
" The fastnesses of thi; thountainr constitute an asylum
for delinquents. and encourage insubordination, .ferocity,
and robbery. These strong-holds set at defiance the. civil
authorities, and aford protection to the moat atrocious of-
fenders. The dagger is the instrument of their will, and
the rule of their duty.
" These abuses, in Which a capricious and anomalous
legislature has countenanced, dishonour • profession which
it is in vain endeavoured to dignify by pbmpout tides and.
suppositious prerogatives. The ww,ertainty of the produce
of the mines,.and the frauds of which they are the theatre
and the school, have made them the rendezvous of despe-
rate men, who enter them the victims of deception. and,
by a natural course, become the agenti of treachery and
evert crime. Nothing but a system of government di-
rectly the reverse of that now existing, tan restore these
places to decency, prosperity, and the character they should
possess. This desirable object can only be attained by an
Association of able and vigorous persons, habituated to
method, and educated in the principles of truth.
" The result would certainly be greatly to promote their
own advantage and that of the country. We are furnished
with an example by the progress made in working the
Mines of Peru end Mexico, which, although subject to
equal difficulties, succeed so much better, only because the
first arc managed with some sort of policy, and the second
are generally worked by Companies. Yet in both those
countries provisions and wages are higher, and the minerals
less valuable. In Colombia the mines of emeralds, salt,
and other fossils, have been brought up by foreign Assoele
ations; and as we there already see the good results, was
have no reason for despairing of them also in Chili.
" In fact, every thing might be expected from a union of
w- sons immediately interested in turning to account their
knowledge, co-operation, and funds. Such an Association
.only is capable of taking measures which require time and
iluudight. They cannot be effected by any single indivi-
dual, who, urged by scanty means, and the anxiety of seeing
bis undertaking speedily successful, does not hesitate to run
the risk of destroying by his rashness the sources which,
if treated with more delicacy and expense, would have in-
sured him a splendid fortune. For this reason, not one
single gallery has been yet seen amongst us which would
'lhcilitate the extraction of mineral matter by means of
mule carts or cranes ; nor a single pump to extract the
water, which rendere perfectly useless the most precious
beds—nor a chemical operation which, by anslizing the
unknown combinations, teaches the method of separating the
metals they contain; nor any mode for correcting the varia.
dons which are caused in the eompassby the diverse influence
of the aubterraneous bodies; nor a ventilator to facilitate
respiration and the escape of fixed and noxious air; nor
any plan for favouring the admission of light, nor for the
construction of any countermine to work the richly abundant
veins which lie under the ruins occasioned by unskilfulness
or precipitation.
" It has been reparted that in Europe it is intended
to substitute steam Instead of horses in the machines to
wteinhipclitatcl
moatios
alleviateextracteti i yhee it is no
mortifying
and
dt yeteven con
severe
labour of
the men employed to extract gold and silver. If an equal
or like assistance f art was employed here—if the collection
of pre fsions, utensils, and forage was made in season—if
the conducting of these was made in steam boats from the
points where they abound to those where they are needed,
and would be exchanged for the other productions of the
country—if a plan like this, either wholly or in part, was
constantly and systematically practised, the mines which
now scarcely pay their expenses would soon become the
means of regular and perrenial employment for the corn-
muninitv, and the sure spring of opulence for the Con-
tractors."

THE Gartta—We have received the following im-
portant intelligence from Trieste, under date of June 7 :
" A MESSAGE OF JOY TOE THE titssters wrote to
you on the list of May, that reports were aptrad here of many
income* gifted by the (hears, bnt 1 would not relate them to you
before the enntirmation arrived. Now, however, ( can tell you, as
certain, and free from all doubt, that on ‘Vednesday, the Mitt
(Illth) of May, towards midnight, and at day-light ou Thursday.
the 7th (19th), the glorious and holy day of the Assumption, the
brave Greeks burned the whole of the remainder of the Egyptian
fleet in the port of Navarino. At the same time the trolps under
the President, Cunduriottis. and Alarromiehaelts, ftll on the
Egyptian army, beat it comuletely, aid made themselves moment
of their camp. Few, very few, Egyptians escaped to Modem.
This glorious and unexamuled victory has freed Navarino from the
not trite
heir
cmaireldAy Idi,eadt h
he env.
semi Satrap of
dorie"l:o'aeni'eatarn.veisalindingeLtlhiCatri If iritebatiestruction of his formidable ex. •
pedition, which we have confirmed front all quartsra."—Courier.
The herring fishing (says a Glasgow paper of Saturday)
is rapidly improving in the West Highland lochs, parti-
cularly in Lochloug. This forenoon a wherry with a few
lattnireds arrived at the Broomielaw, and they were
ia-
tantly taken of at Its, a hundred.