, 1866-05-28
TIE SILVER MINES OF SAX.
ONY.
a Day Under Ground.

ONl.
a Day Under Ground.
Description Of the erlincs-appearnncc
ufthe eN5tners-'ff.cir Harniug~-Scrcn-
teen Tiers OF Galleries lmn,en~c
Watcf.Wbce1~-The Sights ANA
Sonnd%-Iic Scsiuol Of Mines, Etc.
Correspondence Of the Chicsco T1ihuncl.
FnElBrRc, April %, lstG.
There are several Freiour.s in Europe, but
only two Of them are really famous places.
The one in Switzcrland is renowned ior Its
great organ, while tho one In Saxony, about
twenty miles from Dresden, Is noted for its
mines OF silver. These have been worked for
nearly a thousand years, aud have been anon.
the most profitable iu Europe. They arc still
IN active operation, and from twenty to thir-
ty thousand miners find occupation In this
tract Of Tic Enzgcbisge or Metal Mountains.
Fstfburg itself Is o thoroughly unintcrcsting
place, the picture given Of it by stcflens, In
"TLe Story OF my Corner,n being ouly too
ness, excepting the charming landscape,
which Is universal In Saxtny, the gentle hills.
cultivated to the top, the great fields, now IN
their grecncst hue and uncut by single fence,
md the valleys with their clear brooks, tlirni-
fed In German fashion By tue name Of rivers.
towers, Is not nnpicturesquc, and the huge
church, In the milllc Of the city, the formcr
Cathedral OF SaIonT, gives the most central
point which every landscape, and most OF a1l,
every eliy or town, needs to hare, when seen
IRON distance. Around the town arc heaps
In which they appear in England, but
squared gu neatiS hse lortlhcation md each
one OF these y crowned oya little nest Of
houses, from WHICH Tall cntmncy prOtrudes.
Each one OF these indicates where there Is u
snail running uo"p. anu intersectinG the gal
lcries which honey-comb the bills. The train
Mhified Us past dozens OF these shatt-open-
ings, and soon brought lis to the fine station,
just outside OF the city wall. Like all in Ger
many, 1t is admirably built, and forms one Of
the most striking architectural features OF til:
place. Five minutes walk brought us into
1he main street oi Tue town, genuine Ger
man thoroughtnre, narrow, unpicturesque,
commonplace, lined with little Stops on both
sides, where all kinds OF brass and tin ware,
bakers' goods, groceries, aud dry goods were
exposed In admirable profusfon+ Two or three
comfortable looking inns indicated where q
temporary home might be fonnd, and the
place, seen under bright sun, did not look
at al' dismal. We were Walking quictly along.
three Americans Of US. thinking where and
how 70 begin, when VIC saw o young ma,l
dressed IN the strikinGly becoming costume Of
The School OF Mines, hurry across
the street and address one OF my comrades
by Ills ChTlstlan name. Such o saluiation
friendly tone was Immediately followed up
| BY proposal 10 accompany us into one Of
The mines. II was accepted. Of course. and
We started without delay Arriving at one
Of those little clumps Of houses on huge
pile OF rocks and earth drawn up from the
simi:son ,de lse Sen bsi but aSoat 'Efs y
cents each. The next step was 10 eufucc al-
most every trace OF Identity By putting on
inc miners costume, white linen cap, sur
mounted by thick one OF felt to prevent
braising the head, an oil cloth jacket and
stead Of In front, to sit on without the risk
of taking cold, and swinging lantern. Then
We began the descent, going first down q lad
der four hundred !eet In length, and then
others not more fhan hundred feet each.
TIE greatest depth Of the mine Is about two
three hundred 1ect of the surface,
aud the first stage Of tile descent was
merely to reach the place where the miners
begin. Ihe arrangement afterwards is like
Ibis: The hill Is traverscd By horizontal gal
lcrics running In all directions. These Eal.
From these there runs shaft hundred feet
! lower, and there a second series Of galleries
begin. That is tho second story. From thai
there runs another shalt to third series oI
galleries, And 50 they 20 on Till the lowest,
| or seventeenth, Is reached. Some Of the -al
lenes cross the vein Of orc, aud wherever
they do, there OF course is the place to com,
mence operations. and thai these are prose
cutcd actively may be made manifest by the
TACT that IN the single niue which we visited
there were thlrty y.1se hundred men at work
They were oil civil, and greeted us in eyery
l eren trffh tho -