Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1857-11-13
M I SCELL A N Y {.
From Foreign Correspondence Of the Buffalo Aevoaote
The TIN Mines of Cornwall.


The TIN Mines of Cornwall
Through many an old town we passed or
our way to Truro, the inhabitants of which
live in the primitive style-dressing neatl,
but very oddly the buildings have thatch
ed roofs. diamond shape the panes O
glass are set in lead. The streets were
very narrow and the spelling on the signs
IN the old-fashioned style but everywhere
l found the people open hearted and handed
We arrived at last at Truro, after having
enjoyed delightful ride through 90 miles
of ever varying country. was too tired
to do much, 80 looking about the town a
little, retired to my room to be ready on
the following morning to see the smelling
of tin.
The tin is not smelted at the mine ; it is
only prepared for it and then sent to differ
ent places-Truror and Penzance, chiefly -
IL Is found TO DO cheaper to send the tin to
the Goals than to bring the Goals to the tin
! was first shown the ore as it is received
from the mine 1t looked like shining black
sand OF no great value. This is put in the
furnace, large fire made up underneath
the process of smelling begins. The heat
and draft are very much increased hv LARGE
chimney which is built up ward of 100
feet ia height. Tho heat passes all around
the ore. After the melting process is car.
ried on a sufficient length Of time To sono-
rate the tin from the Stag. the former is
drawn off into large iron tank as II
passes out you notice large quantities of ar
senic escaping in b ue flame. The Eon;d
tin is then ladled into large moulds holiinc
some four hundred pounds each These
blocks are about three feet long. one and
half broad, and or inches thick Tbo
value is tS to elO sterling per block. ac-
cording to quality. should have added
the stamp OF the work is put upon each
block before it is cold.
The tin is also put up in blocks of frtv TO
one hundred pounds and also in small rods,
about the size of mans little finger. The
rods are foot and half long and are
packed IN kegs. Many manufacturers of
TIN ware prefer the tin in this shane as bo-
ing more easily worked up. What I bayo
above stated is all done after the tin loovos
the minc. Another beautiful process is tbo,
OF Capitalization. Many blocks when ta'
Ken from the mould are found to be inner
iect and have to be remoulded. Each ono
is subjected to great heat and when AL
most ready to run into fluid state. if is
struck by large weight and falls into ten
thousand pieces ofall sizes and forms Ono
OF them have, looking as bright as silver
hope to keep it so until my return.
from the smelling house went to the
station and took the cars for one of tbe n,in
ing towns. As We passed along on eitbor
eioe, huge piles of earth; takenSdown from
the innermost parts of the earth-talI brick
chimneys, old mines once worked but row
oeserted-in many places fields of wheat
growing over ground which had been dis.
emooweled-were presented to "utlce.
Leaving the cars. i- row moments we were
in tho rniust of the mining district of Eng
land. Every where about us were signs of
life and activity, while hundreds of feet be.
low the surface, thousands of miners with
shovel, spade and pick-axe, were busy. dig
glpg away at the e,rth, bre king the rocks
IN pieces-preparing them to be raised to
the surface in large iron skebbles holdinp
about two bushels each. The leads run in
di4srehtdirections; the ore is dug out taken
g&She mouth Of the shaft md the skebbles
hifed with it. long iron chain running
oSsr rollers for a considerable distance
n peculiar rattling noise in pas. sing
oven sic attached to these, of which
T.. r~c aHe' usually two-one descending
other is rising. The ore once
ra'settc the surface is saken to the stamp
ing mill; but baiore going auto this the large
pieces are broken up by hand and then the
mass is ready to he crushed into powder;
heavy iron weights of several hundred
pounds, attached to long beams, are made
by water power to strike on the ore-orush-
ing it to pieces. The finer parts ere washed |
away into a receptacle for them, by water |
which is kept constantly running through |
the mass. Thus the pounding (or can call |
it nothing else,) goes on till the whole is in
powder.
Much of the work above ground is done
by women and girls, dressed neatly and |
cleaEly and perfect pictures of health. This |
Is the first process. But the ore is not yet
ready to be sent away. Ofcourse the powder
contains much earth yet, which must be
taken out from the tin. 1t is put in box
upon the top of which stream of water
strikes; this washes the sand into passage
way where the mass passes along in small
quantities. l should add there is slight
tall from the box and also at the end of the
passage midway over this, and woman
stands with q coarse limb broom in hand,
which she keeps constantly passing slowly
across. This and the weight of the tin,
makes it fall at the bottom of the box and
the passage way. This washing is done
several times, each time with a finer broom
and more slowly than the preceding You
will say, after all this washing, the ore is
now ready to be sent away Blu. look about
coming from yonder chimney! Are they
engaged below in a revel' Nothing of the
kind. This dry powder, washed so clean as
you saw it few moments ago, is teing
burnt to extract the arsenic from il. The
persons employed in this work suffer very
much, and in addition their lives are short
ened many years by inhaling, as they must
unavoidably, the fumes of the arsenic with
which the ore is filled. After the burning,
the ore is put in piles, parts taken from each
to the assayer, who from those parts deter
mines the value of the piles, and they are
thus sold according to the per centage of
tin which they contain. This makes up
the different processes, and will, | trust, give
you some idea of mining
The miners, as class, are very inteli-
gent people; exposed as they constantly are,
to danger to death from an explosion
taking place in different manner from
what was expected, which will send many
from time to eternity, by living death,
buried in the rocks-their trust is in a High
er power and we find the religious elements
strong among them.-On Sunday you will
see thousands of them neatly dressed on
their way to the Wesleyan Chapels this
preached among them while living, with
good success. Chapels are now sta nding in
different parts of Cornwall, in which he
prerched to them. His name is dear to
them and they cherish it with the deepest
reverence. In all the mines in the world
Cornish miners will be found noted 10 r
their steadiness, sedateness and temperance
(for they do not drink ardent spirits,) anc
their thorough knowledge of the differen
parts of mining, their services are indeed
valuable. The underground life which
they lead full of vicissitudes and DANCE
makes great changes in their character
developing the better traits of their ma
tures.-They remain below ground seven o
eight hours. Children are not allowed
work below.
Miners are not what an American woul