New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-10-02

lew leaves, or to drink the clear. fresh mountain
water. Nv spirits rosr, aud the silent woods
echoed with ehe tune OF many merry German
song. After about ten miles the glen ooenef q
niue more, and the roofs OF Diplto, gded by the
lat beams Of the setting sun, appeared.
| This 10 now important u,nng nlaee But
twenty yens ago it C 'ntaihed only a single house,
and vas called the Cddaneecadsro jFra AZ nl,ce
| because travellers often breakfas.ed there. Since
that time mnes have settled ia the place, and in
| 1874 the number Of Inhabitants ~ss increased
much by refugees from Honduras, f,ing from
Guardiols's snldieiy. 1t has now from $50 to 200
houfss. and its rich silver mines promise much
for it, futurr prosperity. Among the miners are
now three Americans, Mr.. Dikson, (ny travelling
companion to Central America,) Mr.. Bradbury,
Mr.. Hancock, and Mr.. Scbetfer, an American
naturaiizso-ctizen Of German birth. | met there
too Young German miners. Mr.. Schmidt, from
Friebere, and Mr. Whiting, both in the employ Of q
mining company. My quarters | took IN the
house oil French lady, Nine. L., otherwise called
in the &C unity, La Madame, for whom her husband
| in Nassays had given me letters OF introduction.
Although she had resided twenty-five years IN
Central America. she preserved tire gay char
acter and amiability that distinguish the French.
woman, united with strong mind and 6rnness Of
character. Her hospitality was entirely Central
American. | remained nearly four weeks in this
retired place, busily engaged in painting and
drawing, in visiting mines, and selecting speci
mems. Mining however, is here not carried on in
a very systsmatical way and the two young Ger
man miners were nearly in despair 10 meet so
many difficulties in working in satisfactory
manner after the European fashion.
The miners always follow the vein 10 a very IL
regular way, up and down, right and lett. Occa.
sionally there IS in the mine poso, or breathing
place. Tbtse are generally apout 10 feet deep,
having a perpendicular log with cuts on each
side on which the wo'kmen climb up and do~n
like monkeys. zach carrying about lOO or ~ 10
Of ora in leather bag, hanging from strap
ACROSS his forehead. There is not in all the mines
such thin as regular shaft TO raise the o'e TO
the surface. The mines are accordingly very
shallow; a depth Of thirty feet is considered
entImCus and moot Of the mines are for this
reason abandoned. The workmen, in Father
Adams costume sit down on the hard ground,
and a talow candle stuck ia the rock above gives
light to Their work. Arrangements for pumping
out Il e subtoiranean water have been unknown
till recently Mr.. Schefltr was tue first 20 estab-
fish pumps in order 70 work egain rich mine
that had been abandon d. None OF the miners is
capable OF telling no for he is below she ground,
and IN wcrd, u e whole work is carried on pretty
much after the fshiOn of the moes. AS some of
the mines are FIVE or six mules from Dip'lto, the
ore is carritC there on muleback to the IRgeRto,
or grinding mill This is a curious sitar. it has
a horizontal " he'd about - or 20 feet from the
ground. Across the vertical axle OF this whee are
two beams zach some - feet lopg forming cross,
ar d on the end OF each rs a stone weighing from
l,OG0 to $50 pounds, which, when the wheel is
moving describes d circle, and so gIinds the ORE
little stream washes the ground ore as through a
seye it is then cOllt cteG in a reservoir, and the
silver is extracted psrtiy IN the we'll known way,
| by fire. The poorer ores are worked sf.er the
o O Spanish fashion Gu the patio. This Is large
space covered with thick planks laid close t0geth-
T. On this the ore ls deposited in heaps oI | 300
to > tO0 pounds, mxtd with salt and quicksilver,
! and tiodCen With water It 10 then exposed Tor
one Or two wet ks to the suD after which the same
process is repeated three or four times. At last
| the smalg an is washed our, the quicksilver evap-
OF al ed under copper cover, md collected IN the
finn of water upon the shell, and the silver which
II mains is purified in lhe Teiner from SIN al
quantity Of copper IL contains. THIS mode is
aboI don, ms the Expense ofquck-verl 100 great.
Recently Inauguration mas bee n tired WIN success
afr er the has been roasted IN an oven. IL 10 then
annals suated with Quicksilver in moving barres, A.
ter whchwa shng and purity ing take place as in the
patio. The mines Of DpIt0 ale rich, no doubt, and
he locality most favorable for profitable mining.
| The river furnishes, through the wholeler a
considerable water power. and iuel IS supplied 10
abuI dance from the pine woods Tor the prce oil cut
ting IL. Wofkmen can bp had at the low rate o
twenty cents a day. Still it will be some tins
before the mines are in 6"urshiog state TIT
ereatest drawback 70 a iapid development Is the
bsd state Of the roads, and the immense difficulty
Of III portig good engines, which must be brought
ON mute back or b, hand. Another impeachment
is the difficulty Of incing good, steady workm' n
the IDOsns being the only ones that are employ ed
These fellows will never work as long as they
have a cent 10 buy ogHarliente. Often, instead
Cf coming to woik on Mopt ay, they appear at the
mine on Thursday. The only way to keep them at
work lie to advance them NV dollars, ai,cr which
the proprietor OF the mine hos the right TO bring
then b, foce to- ok, even ift be from the DEATH
bed ia child. This ) panish law and as the In
dams get D debt very easily, they remain IN a
ita'e worse than slavery curing their wn0e lives.
This Jaw dates from a short time after the con-
quest If America, and is one OF the many evils
the Spaniards brought upon the country.
TIE ore in the mines of DIpiltO and Magueizo
(an0ther mining place, one days journey dlstant)
is m silly sufphuret Of silver. Silver and ant'mo-
nv ale found, con etiInes silver with little cop
per; seldom pure SILVER. The latter is more Ire
qut Mt in the mountain region, nearer 70 the LAKE
shOrs. There is a considerable mnlDg place at
SomUte Grande about one day south hom DlpI-
to- another at UigaIps, ono cay northwest IRON
the hlle isthmus # Tipltapa between Lake Nj
caTssua and Lake Mau4gua In the northeast
ern reg on ale rich golo mines, no dsuht less rich
than in California but y,l0lng very satisfactory
results There Gnd 10 Honduras gold appears ID
clay. slate, distributed in little Jumps On the
Rio Quay aye. at Dusly, at Ma'Ggalpa are rich
gold mines. But on the rivers whose waters con-
lain old washing the climate is not very heatny
Red silver ole, back. sytr and The richest SILVER.
Glance ] ever saw are in South Honduras, and
shall r, feI To them III another article From gen.
tlemsn at Leon, who lrft The mines month aitei
myself, have received ,ome Information as tc
| their propIess. The Chiiian Consul at Leon, who
began 70 work silver mine at NaguolZo a short
time before let, bad made $1,000 in six
weeks. Mr.. Painter, who worked gold nine al
Mateealps, had died. Ills mine was bought BY
Dr. Ssur, in Granada. ARTIST.