American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1872-10-26
The Gold Fields of Guayana.

The gold fields of Guayana are of @rea
extent, reaching through four degrees @
longitude and three of latitude. The ricI,
est fields. perhaps. are on the Turnar
river. Il tributary OF the Tnrnan. whicl
falls into the ruynnia short distance DC
fore the Cuyuni falls into the EsseGuebo
| From the OrinOco river the mines lie six
ty mics due south from the ancient vii
| lage of Piacoa, situated at the upper enc
OF the Delta of the OrinocO. The distric
is reached by a good wagon road from tn,
steamboat landing of Las Tablas, and tn,
journey consumes about two and a hal
days. The route leads through partly
cultivated country, and is beaded by
number of old villages whose history
dates back to the days of the monks who
| civilized the ancestors OF the Christian In
| dams who now form the labOring class Of
the community. Evidently it was known
| to the Capuchin fathers, who colOnized
| and ChristianiZed this section of South
America; but by them it was hcld'a great
| secret, and upon their overthrow and
| massacre in 1917 the trace was lost. until
accidentally discovered within a few years
| ago. If we may believe the statements OF
nearly all who have visited the mines, no
ores in the world are more easily worked.
No base metals oOntaminate the quartz.
No intricate processes Of extracting the
gold are called into requisiiOn. The SIM
plest plan of stamping and matchmaking
in the battery is found to work well, aid
ed sometimes by ''tables'' on the outside.
The gold is free. often Visible. but more
frequently invisible, in pure white quartz
or white quartz viened and notified with
blue and reddish yellow. According TO
the authority OF mining engineer, ''some-
times large masses of the quartz seem to
be permeated with the gold, so that al
though invisible the quartz NAV yield 800
per ton. At other times the quartz may
have the gold collected in large and noble
aggregations, forming magnificent hand
specimens blast often throws down
one hundred or more Ounces.r
The Congress of Venezuela has enacted
laws and regulations removing all obstruc-
tons to the full development of the re-
gion. Among the privileges granted to
those engaged in mining is that of free
importation of all articles appertaining to
mining OperatiOns-an item of no small
consideration in view of the total lack of
such commodities i'm the country. which,
as yet, is scantly populated.
The American and Creole companies
which have awaited themselves of these
advantages have generally been success
full. A company organized at Philadelphia
has met with great success. Starting with
ten stamps, March %, 1869, it added
ten more, then five more, and is
out over 81 200, 900. A Creole company,
organized later, commenced with five
stamps, increased the number to fifteen.
and the mill, it is said, although running
under some disadvantages, pays in ten
days the expenses of month. Two
other American companies have succeed
ed in spite of defective and insufficient
machinery. a German company put up
an American mill last year, getting it into
operation at the beginning of the dry
season. 1t was mill of twenty stamps.
Owing to the drought the company was
able to run only five stamps. These have
done well and produced largely, and the
mill can run with the present supply of
water fOr.about eight or nine months in
the year. An English and German COM
but too far separated from its quartz. 1t
now awaits the completion of a railroad
to facilitate and cheaper the delivery of
the ore.
Though the drawbacks incident to the
first development of 4 mining country
are not wholly lacking here, the testimo-
ny to the extraordinary wealth of the
to be doubted. Thousands
of native laborers, besides those employed
at the quartz mines and mills, are en-
gagged in the ''panning'' and g hand era
dle'' practice of the early days of the Cal
ifornia gold fever. The quartz must be
well stocked with gold to yield profitable
returns by such primitive means as those
employed by these natives. "To lessen
the labor of breaking the rock" says DR..
Foster, g the miners have called in the aid
of fire, for burning renders the quartz far
more friable. The miners never work
upon any quartz which does not contain
visible gold. All quartz which shows
small particles of gold is pounded up by
hand in iron mortars; or if the miner is
poor he simply buys an iron pestle, and
burning out hole in the stump of a tree,
uses thatas mortar. and rigs up stamp
ing apparatus by the side Of his hut. The
gold is easily got from the powdered au-
riferous quartz by matchmaking it in a
jatea. The batea is a wooden pan, which
S partly filled with the powdered ore.
water and little quicksilver being added, |
md the whole kneaded up carefully. The |
gold unites with the quicksilver, which is |
hus reunited into one mass by washing. |
through a cloth, the quicksilver |
caves the solid mass of amalgam behind, |
md on heating this on a shovel the quick |
silver is driven of and a cake OF gold left |
behind. ''-Venezuelan Cor. ". Y. World.