New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-09-29
THE ACTON COPPER MINES.

wonderful COZ PEI mines, which have alike confound'd
The theories of semitic and astopished the senses
of practical and utproessOnsl people, but no. more
than he Acton mines which, differing in their chlrac-
ter from both, qnte as nDiq1e and extraordinary.
Here are maeses OF native copper nor n
mtpse DEL osis Of bl.ck oxd-, bn instead of these
forms Of the mneralso useful and valuable IN the arts
is uaglifc Mt boOy OF rich AID pure sulp urets
These eDdd oIes OF copper occur in every variety
yellow grey purple and varisgated with bfiliaDt ri-
desc.nt has. Green and blue carbO oates, formed
by decomposition OF tie suphures Al the surface, also
occur in gre at abuDdaL c. al 10 some instances they
approach the crys allDe character OF malschite
TIE jDes "a ,itr a.d hall nile from the station
At 4 is village on the Grand Trunk Railway and are
so uiIes es Il OF Montreal Before be opening Of the
Gta TrUDk Railway, eight yeare ago, tIey were
buried in The d. ptbs of rsckess wi dernrss, aad val
ueless and ou for mary mules about, the couhtry Is
covered with deIfe forest of htmlock, soruce, &C.,
very lately the abode Of ose, carbon and bear and
as yet only broken by few Struggling pioneer settle
neDts.
Tie rock formation Of this section is described by
Qeolo gists rs "lower enrsn, and consists Of red,
blue and OaIB cOoTed esy shaies or states iot9spersed
with brt gular Iasebts ard lodges of Sandstone and
lin, sope The strike of the country" s north east
and south west like the mineral belt OF the Aeghs-
pies, and prob. bly, continuation OF It, The whole
district however is O, eraid by heavy drift Of sand
srd gravel which conceals it's true geological charac'
ter from the casual observer.
The Limestone edges comparatively very few aud
ni I'd in extent and appear TO be local mssses lbed-
dfd III lie a. 8es hot Teguay nerstratlhed and con
tiDuor with them, at east in this vicinity.
A. The base of OF Of these ue tone edges is found
the Acton Copper NJ nes II is ledge rises at its high
,st summit ore than one hundrto feet above the 6Or
round pP county which Is nea ~ level 10 its general
COZ 70 a.iCn for wide extent OF trrit ~. The mass
OF this 70, is about quarter OF mile Ia bresdh and
nay be traced for q mile or mere In length, running
nof.h. east ar souhwett with the ftrshcaon OF the
slses On un, Of its magnetism nature 1t Is called
dolomitic limestone, or Doonite.
The copper ores occur on the ede OF the
lime stons ledge ut the FUNSTON OF this rock with the
clsy rbale, lust on the line of junction are many
huge powders Of q species Of gteen-stone, as the
mil ers call t. or compact oveeolored sandstone,
wh ch, 10 come pla es, is beddsd IL the limestone,
forming a cor glomerate with 1t.
AlCIg this line of junction Of the limestone aud the
shaes rbe orts Of copper crop out IN the rocks ana
me- y 10 traced for nile or more Excavations have
b, en- made several points, which indcae connected
body of this ground, but there is no positive
evidence of vein or lode yet exhibited
There three principal pits, several hundred feet
arart In which are carried on the - workings at
PRESENT The largest is nearly 100 feet across every
way, al about ~ feet deep; the others are more than
hal as large.
Ttese OF en-cut workings present novel and extra
Ordinary SIGHT fer copper mime not only on account
of the rnagDihc ut display OF rich aud beautiful mineral
but II cir contrast with copper mines generally, worked
NJ ysst eXpeI by means Of steam engines deep shafts
and UNDER round drifts ade, and galleries The ore
is in these pits In inn :nse maAses SOLID ana pure
pre sing one with the idea of inoaculabe treasures
burec in the bosom of the earth, but generally, the
ore al the Ioek uD led as coDelomerae, reeem-
bling bIeccia 1T is blasted out and frequens ssusle
FL OF throws cut i've or six Of rich The large
blocks are broken up wi heavy ban rers and under
going roDgh assortment in the pits the ore and rub
bish are laken away in carts aud wheeloarrows.
The extent ard irreguarty Of the beds Of ore seem
to Ike this me- de Of working the mines the only one
practicable a, present. TDe pits resemble ordinary
sc DE quaTrits, aid worked in the same manner.
The bsst ores IRE taken directly 10 the +" cObbng-
house to be prepared by hand for market; the thin
ntr ores are piled gway ID large ourro~s Tor future
treatment by cruehers and stSmps, no machinery or
washing apparatus for dressing the ores having been as
vet recttd. The ores are now prepared for market
simply by breaking them into email pieces hse road
metal, end sseorug them. They are distinguished
here into three classes. viz: "prs tirsts End
seconds. Tbs prils are The lsrger pieces Of absO
lutey pure ore, having no rock attached
to them The ii'ss are the choicest
of the email pieces which have besn selected by color
and weight and the seconds the inferior pieces
largely mixed with rock. The breaking or 4" cobbng'
and assOriii of the is done principally by women
and girls who at this work from p TO 40 cents
day. The women are French Canadians or nab
itsns" Ii is ugly work for feuales. The ore being
lad upon an anvil and held by the hand s broken with
a hammer like or .cking nuts aud finger is often
mashed But scsntly paid aud repuguant as the work
ia il il preferred by the women TO domestic seryics
Common ma abOrers get so cents TO 81 PER day. and
work ten hours. Over 200 persons-men, won IN, and
boye-6re now employed at these mines. The scene
in and about the mines is animated, and attracts many
visitors,
For 30 young mine the quantity of ore which has
be, raise and sent 10 market at cost compare
lively tIiI T. i remarkable. Before stair results Of
the operations at these mines will briefly sketch their
history.
chant al umterer Of this place, -Four hundred acres
were purchased y him for the timber small por-
ton Of the land YVES cared and, while cuvstng L.,
some fine specimens OF copper ore were picked up
among the potatoes. Dir. Gushing tried for several
Yeas TO eel his land for copper mine on the strength
OF these specimens and governed by the opoios of
hgt g.olt q a. authority that there wss only super
6cial deposit or pocket of ore, he would not risk
openiIgii himself But no one was willing to bay
a "pg in a Ptke, against the advice OF scientific
haw ked about for seyeal years at tritle without find
il uryhsser. No till one year ago they Sold
when few gentlemen of Montreal vsntured TO try
them, and then The dsheartentd owner was glad 20
accept mall each payme0t, while the balance OF the
purchase money was conditioned to be paid only on the
success of the minesl
The a6venturers Immediately leased them TO Mr.. l..
Sleeper, a gentleman who had some experience in
Mining for the term of three years, upon royalty or
toll Of 33 per cent Of the production. In the latter
part 4 last Sep ember be commenced work with few
hai ds cont nusd I'LL the SHOWS stopped operations
In December. He opened on al outcrOp OF ore, aud
fOuI an immtnss bed imms datey below the surface
30 that at small expense he raised during last Fan
quantity Of ore estimated 10 be worth $4,000 Early
last Spring a 6 work WA resumed and the operations
have been rapidly increased up 10 this time. Prepare
ioDs are now making for putting up steam engines,
crusb,, ard other machinery for dressing the Ores
ind foTnaces for running them into regulus are also
contemplated. These improvements projected by
new popretore for the mines have uet changed hands,
{ tie price of half million of dollars
The ao'ual results Of mining far may DO told In
ew words. In round NUMBERS the total yaue OF oros
got out up 10 this time be ret at 500 900.
More than $50 600 worth of have been sold % the
Revere Company Of Boston, and a larger quantity IL