The weekly Placer herald., 1853-04-09

which is " ell worth the attention of min
ers.
SONORA, March is, 1853.
wish 70 have little plain talk with
the miners and on the subject Of tractica
mining. For to-day cave the suhI-ct of
State Legislation and invoke the attention
or remote, in the getting oGt Of gold And
| ask of those who have any Knowledge
Of working our mines if what | shal. have
to say does not stand to reason!
believe it is generally Y conceded at this
time that the gold now found in the pIa-
GERS was once in quartz We know thar
gold is sc .don found unles. IN siruations
where it might have had its Original lie
p,>its In quartz vein; aud we find it
after the quartz has decayed, or in amy
way been separated from il, in almost
every stage of snonthneS-, from the clear
sharp corners of II unique specimen, To
the smooth globular form Of the most of
our California gold. Assuming that the
gold came from, the quartz, it is evident
that it was all rough once, and internnxed
with small pieces Of the rock. IN course
of ages, however, it has become srnonrh-
the quarrz having decaIpd and SET the
gold free, it has hpen gradually changing
its position, and the attritlon ot the water
aud the earth has worn it 10 the form and
shape in which we now find it. If this
theory lie correct, what proportion of the
gold has been worn away, and now exists
in soil rs an i'npalpahle and inperrept'ble
powder! 1t must he very great-irobal'ly
more than half-for ct any one take u lot
Of quartz specimens rich IN gold, and by
any artificial means wear them down to liz
aS smooth and free from quartz as most
OF the gold hich is now saved, aud not
less than two-thirds Of the gold won be
iett in Il fine powder. BY the present
means OF washing for go d only these
coarse pieces are saved-the finest gold
all goes to waste. know that many ex-
perienced miners contend that they lose
hothing, and that it is difficult to get The
gold from their talinys. 1t may he So,
yet the gold worn off hy nttriti"n is Of
course too fine to perceive with the naked
eye, and their experiments with the pan
upon their tniIings prove lille or nothing.
| The gold is nevertheless in the ground
and they have failed to save it or to prove
that il has escaped them.
In proof Of what | saw could adduce
the experience Of hundreds of miners who
have for Il long tinue used the tom or cra
die, and afterwards have substituted the
suIre, and when they have supposed they
saved all the gold hy the first pr'ce$Ses,
they have found that with long : >luce,
having proper pitch aud an abnndhllce
OF clear water, they could get much AR
ger quantity of gold from the same guam
thy OF the same KIND Of dirt. he
Slulce is undoubtedly the best thing yet
employed for saving the fine gold. If
it is of sufficient length and of the right
pitch. with pure water it viii save all the
gold but the finest. The dirt may be
thrown in at the upper end of it, and the
water should BIZ iett to ho the washing of
Itself. ! his wears the dirt gradually
away, and leaves the gold free 10 settle to
the bottom of the slu,ce and he caught in
the rippirs. But there is gold so fine that
even this wi not save it, and notwirh-
standing the difficulty with which golI
anna ganates with quicksilver, have
known a trough with quicksilver III it 10
detain from an ounce and h II 10 two
ounces per day, when p aced AZ the end of
II long >lure we'll supplied with clear wa
ter. And Notwithstanding the -ucceSs of
this quicksilver appendage, all the neigh
boring miners neglected 10 provide them
selves with the same. The motifs with
them was, as it always will lie till il better
title is given, "get as much lis pnS:ib e 10
day, at the least possible expense; the
marrow may require us IL wash the same
dirt over again; but the morrow may
likewise see part of our claim taken
from us, or the new grOiii,d yet untrird
may give us a fortune: it will not hn tn he
S Ow and particulat," and sn they shuttle
on III most slovenIy and unproftable
manner.
In addition TO what have seen mySe {,
will state What | have heard ut an IN
gen,ouS miner ii few mi eS from here. He
has been working claim for a consider
able time, " whlch at best would not pay
more than four dollars day--a long
Sluice and clear water ut that. Thinking
he might do better, he has been to work
and made n most complicated -luirr, win
IA variety st falls aid rippl"s, and some
jiurls Of The sluice very " ile, so as 10 al
low the water rs it ran down 10 spread
cut very thin. large part OF the bottom
of this is covered with old pieces of wool
en blankets; are tarkrd down, and mca-
>ionalIy taken iip, and lhr fine gold wash
ed out; AMI ! am told that the same dirt
which paid not more than tour dollars ii
day to the hand, now pays at east an
ounce, aud that the amount of impal paby
fine go Il is Incredible. ] have never seen