Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1868-01-27
THE n1,AcK ROCK MYSTERY.

THE BLACK ROCK mfSfEHA'
No,c If the scientific metallurgists,
neurological savans, or others 'h'r-
ourhly initiated into the mysteries Oh
working ores containing the precious
metals, are, as yet, fully settled In their
minds relative to the Black Rock mines.
The San Francisco Mining Press speaks
of a flour sack full of specimens of the
orc recently received as a sample through
A gentleman who had been induced to
invest a considerable amount of money,
besides some labor and time, in Black
Rock, on the faith Of Iscubeck and other
~"secrct process" men; these specimens
he had collected himself from more than
twenty claims in that district. Here is
what the Press says about it:
"a brief examination Of the contents
Of the sack satisfied us at once that so
far as those samples went to illustrate
the value Of the Black Rock mines, they
were the ~veriest humbugs that were
ever palmcd off upon II credulous pub
lie. Only two samples out OF the entire
number presented were such as could
for a moment be considered rs coming
from a vein carrying either silver or
gold, and each Of these 1.-THE Snow storm
and Green Series) were of an extremely
doubtful character. AU The others were
Enthusiastically roiedaie debris, such MS
were never known to yield any Of the pre-
cious metals; and we venture the asser-
ton, that not even the color Of either
gold or silver was ever found in any
such rock, Notwithstanding the ott-re-
peated assertions to the contrary by
pretended experts and assayers.'
The Carson appeal speaks OF 1t as
"black wax" and in support of the
idea that il contains traces of silver,
quotes from a letter received from Pro-
lessor A. E. Verrill, Of the Sheffield
Scientific Institute, Yale College, who,
having examined a specimen, says:
wIt contains q little silver, but not
nearly so much as you say it is reported
to. i, is q sort Of clay, containing some
chloride OF silver, salt, bitumen, etc.,
the result Of the decomposition of rocks
and minerals containing ores Of silver,
ETC."
Henry Van Horn, well known in this
State as an old, experienced operator in
mines and III the reduction Of ores con-
tanning tho precious metals, in view of
the conflicting stories relative to
whether the Black Rock ore Is really
worthless in that respect or not, gives
the following cheap and simple process
for as~certaining:
"First pulverize your ore until fine
rs flour; then make it moist with potash
and water; mix in equal bulk with saw
dust and place in a retort, adding for
every pound of ore four ounces OF
quicksilver and half an ounce of salt;
| close the retort, and retort the quick
silver of in the anne way rs for ANAL
gam; allow your retort to cool; then
take it off and add fresh quicksilver,
with barely the color Of bluestone; stir
il well in an iron or wooden vessel.
The pulp is now to be worked in the
usual way, when the quicksilver is to
be strained through fine muslin. II the
| above process is strictly followed, will
wager my head on getting the precious
metals if they are in the orc. In this
mercury sweat or bath the mercury is
in this way fused or sublimated through
the whole mass of pulrerized ore, and,
| coming in direct contact with all the
metallic substance in the same, will give,
if properly conducted, a result equal to
q fire assay
Whether this queer mineral is really
silver ore, volcanic debris" black
wax" or coke, is not by any means
decided as yet indeed, according to
the lates. information we have relative
thereto, Black Rock is all tn ore. This
latest story is almost too good to be
true, although we certainly wish it
might be. The "traces Of silver" and
existing difficulties in the way Of OK.
tracing precious metals from it, would
thus be explained, and Black Rock turn
out the richest mines in the world, for
there are billions Of ton Of the ore
piled up there naturally, waiting to be
used. Let it be tin, by oil means. No
one could ask any thing better in the
way of mineral wealth. The tin mines
Of Cornwall or anywhere else in the
world might sell out at half price, for
Nevada could supply the universe with
an exhaustless profusion of that useful
and important metal. Tin, or ~nottin, is
now the question. Meanwhile, Black
Rock still remains a mystery.