Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1856-12-27
From the Scientific American.
LIQUID STONE.

Stone is rather a hard subject about which to
write, but we intend to deal with it in a liquid
capacity at present. We have received a COM
munication from a correspondent in Illinois, in
which he stated, he wishes to procure some
silicate of potash, liquid quartz or sand as it is
called. He has endeavored to man I
ufacture it, but although he tried a number Of ex
p%eriments he failed To produce the article. lie
states that it is a substance which, if it could be
produced cheap, would be the means OF making
gravel walls the best and most durable for houses.
TO expect the reduction of such hard grains as
those of quartz sand to a liquid, like sugar dis
solved in water, appears to be something which
may justly be termed "a hard expectation" How
ever. the thing can be done, and has been done, and
we have "a bVttle of the limpid stone liquid en-
sconced not many feet from where We are writing.
1t was manufactured by the process of Ben.
lIardinge. Esq, formerly of Cincinnati. o.. but
now of this city. who has secured patents both at
home and abroad, aud who has actually manufac'
tured hOgsheadS Of The liquid. He has never man
utactured It for sale, nor al we aware of any in
tention on his part to engage in this particular
business he has done it for the purpose of show
ing that quartz can be rendered into liquid mt no
very great cost and that gold and all the precious
metal which rock contains can he extracted from
its matrix and that this liquid can be employed
as a building material, for the purposes suggested
by our Illinois correspondent land he is not the
Only one who has written us upon the subject),
and also of manufacturing artificial stone blocks
of great beauty.
White sand is composed of grains of quartz
rocks reduced to small CT ystals by attritiOn. BY
the process of Mr.. Hardlnge, quartz rock is first
roasted, then plunged into cold water as is prac-
ticed with common ores-to render it friable
Then it is pulverized in a mill, from which it is
carried in a finely subdivided state into a peculiar
steam-ight c%auldron, containing caustic I've. Here
it is acted upon by steam heat, ard the chemical
solvent, and dissolved into a liquid state, like
e. crystals of salt in hot water. 1t may be asked,
what is the use of being at such trouble to re-
duce stone to a liquid shat use can be made of
t this stone liquid" 1t we take common salt and
dissolve it in water until we obtain a strong brine,
{ and then artly it with a brush to a stone wall, the
W ter will soon evaporate and leave the wall
coated with salt in fine crystals. But as the salt
is soluble in pure water, it will soon be washed
: away from the wall with rains. If instead of snlt
we dissolve quartz, in the form Of sand, On
powder, and apply this liquid to a wall, it's water
d of solution will also evaporate, and leave a coat oil
: crystal glass OF the wall but as it is insoluble il
pure water, it cannot be washed off with rain
y Its usefulness, then, as a coating for gravel walls
which aTe easily penetrated with rains, as sug
y gested by our Illinois CORES pendent, is therefor,
q" apparent. This is one of the intended applica
tions Of liquid stone on soluble glass.
But the reduction of quartz to a liquid state b.
the process referred to, involves a vast range o
other applications to the arts-chemical and me
" chanical. A pamphlet has just been published D.
| II luNtulDT, ilCu We ituIH UNIV tHt DfOttS
: is intended for special application to reduce gol,
quartz to a liquid state, and extract every particl
of the precious metal from it. Prof. John l.
= MOtfIt, late L. 5, Assayist, certifes that he has in
" vestigaied the philOsopy of the process, and hal
} satisfied himself of the practicability of reducing
quartz rock to a liquid, limpid and clear as pure
spring water, by means of humid heat and simple
u solvents, and other chemical agents, at n very small
expense he saw bogshends of the liquid quartz
at Mr. Hardinge's preinises-it was equal DARTS Of
water and stone. In a liquid state, if left tC
stand in q cistern, all metals will fall TO the bot
tom, by which means every particle of gold OF
= other metal may be obtained and melted il
{ bars"
In another part of the pamphlet, it is stated II
I reference to this application of the process--"l
less than one year from this date, more than tie
e millions of gold will be obtained from gold-bearin
quartz, where a million is now obtained"
This is certainly a brilliant expectation, and
! fully realized. may yet lead TO gold becoming {
" common as copper and tin now are. But this
&c not TIE only bright prospect pointed out to be y
) achieved by this discovery. Mr.. Hardinge,
another part of this pamphlet, says:-"As a
es illustration Of the architectural and ornament
w uses to which my inventions may be turned, |
d using the liquid rock after separating the gold,
intend, at some suitable locality to erect a mod
ediice of moderate size, Of materials the mo
3d. beautiful and durable which imagination can co
ceive-equalling in brilliancy any and all of ii
precious stones except the diamond, and yet at
of cost for material not exceeding that of brick"
- This house, it is contemplated, will be a realiz
ire ton of the famous palace in the Oriental story
he "Alladin's Wonderful Lamp" Pillars, capital
he cornices, architr.v YES, mant"ls, are to be formed
ng agate, jasper, and porphyry, The table tops al
'w to be sapphire and amethyst, embedded in banG