Daily national Democrat., 1861-03-17
Travelling Correspondence.

TRUCKEE CRY, U. I. March 10, Io6l
EDITOR DEMOCRAT: - Having visited all tie
mills in the neighborhood of Virginia City,
Gold Hill and Silver City, and filled my head
fall of processes, embracing the Frey belg'
Bartola, Patio Arastra and Pan arrangements
| will endeavor to give you a slight idea OF
my perigrinations and observations.
In company with a friend, took a stroll
down to Silver City, and found mills Plen''-
fully strewed along Gold Canon for a space
of shree miles or more, reminding one OF
Mill street, in Grass Valley, during its palm
lest days. The largest Of all the mills Is one
belonging to the Washoe Gold and Silver
Mining Company, of which Mr.. Paul is the
Superintendent. This mill numbers sixty
four stamps, while farther down the canon is
another, owned by the same Company, and
numbering thirty stamps, all arranged on the
Howand patent. All these mills are engaged
in doing job work, at the rate of thirty dol
lars per ton But will select for description
the mill of the Spanish Company, at Vir-
ginia City, which is the best in its appoint
ments of any in the Territory, and works the
rock by process more elaborate than any
other.
was escorted over the mill by Col. O
Dumars, who explained the operation of the
different parts as we went along for al
though somewhat Of a quartz miner myself
| would have known nothing Of a process so
elaborate as the working of the rock in this
mill.
The rock is selected at the mine The richest
sulphurets only conveyed to the mill, where
it is dried upon a kiln, prepared for the pur-
pose. 1t is subjecte to the action of Stamps,
and reduced in a dry state to powder, passing
through fine seive, it falls into a long box,
having in its bottom a spiral scraper, which
conveys it to a set of elevators, after the style
of Touring mill The elevators deposit it
in the boiling wheel, where the very finest is
separated from the coarser particles; the
latter falling through spout, are returned
to the battering again. From the boiling
room, the ore is taken, weighed, and mixed
with ground salt, in proportion from eight
to twelve per cent, according to its quality,
the richest rock requiring the largest amount.
1t is then carried to the furnaces, and sub
ected to the calcining process for several
hours, after which it is seved, and those parts
which have been hardened into Jumps by the
action of the fire, are again reduced under
the stamps, and passed through the bolt again,
when the entire mass is put into revolving
barrels, in the quantity of fifteen hundred
pounds to each barrel. with nine TASKS OF
mercury, and a considerable quantity of scrap
iron, where it rev Olives at the rate Of fifteen
revolutions ner minute, for twenty~four
hours, when it is allowed to rur out into
throughs, leading to large tub, called the
agitator, where the mercury is preciptated
to the bottom, and the remaining material is
finally separated 10y long rocker. The
mercury is drawn off iato large bag and
drained, leaving the amalgum, which is
squeezed dry and placed in a half-cyindrical
pan, of about three feet in length 10y one in
breadth, divided in its length into three
equal-sized compartments This pan Is then
showed into cast iron retort, similar to
those used at your Gas Works. the head
buted on and the fire applied and in cou-
pie of hours thereafter the metal is in the
scales of Wells, Fargo d Co., who enjoy {
monopoly of the trade, making cash advance
and having the m etal run into bars and i'm
mediately assayed.
The process described above is denomnatet
the Freyberg, and appears to work bettcl
than any others tried here. The present
Amalogamator is making the rock yield uE
to the assay but until he took charge, there
was considerable waste, none of his prede-
cessors being able to approach the figure;
fixed by the Assayer. But stockholders OF
other Companies are awaiting impatiently
the result Of the trial Of a new process-the
Smith Dewey which be applied by the
| Oplir Company, in their new mill at Washoe
Valley. The system is said to be the perfec
fection of simplicity.
The Ophir Company have, in my poor
opinion, done well in locating their reduc-
ton works at Washoe, instead of Virginia
At Washoe, there is plenty of wood ant
water-two essentials of success in such al
operation. The teams take a load of rock
and have return load of tinbers for the
mine. A turnpike is in process of erection
between the two places and as soon as &
charter can be procured, railroad will con-
meet them, and make communication will
lead and mill cheap and speedy.
Were it not that this letter is already
growing too long, l would tell you of my
visit to some of the Mines for my trotter:
have been busily employed, in conveying me
from place TO place. But will reserve that
for another time, and perhaps be able to give
you something new.
Youas, ALloTu.
SAN ANDREAs-F Mok elumne Hill tC
San Andreas along the mining gulch, says
Mooney, writing to his paper, is about twelve
miles. In this line has been discovered q
deeper strata Of blue gravel than that which
the miners had been previously working
the old lead was found some twenty to thirty
feet beneath the surface but this new strike