Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1872-02-07

whole. contains only about three per cent.
of CONFER This mass is made up OF the rock
in which the vein lies, iron pyrites, or
. mundic,' as the miners term 1t, ana the
copper ore proper. The coarser mass OF
worthless rock is thrown aside at the mouth
of the mine. while the rest is taken to the
dressing house, where it is separated, and
the ore assorted so that when fitted tor mar
kct il contains about ten per cent. OF copper.
There are employed under ground about
one hundred and fifty men. Work is kept
up all the time, by different gangs of hands.
Night and day are Unknown, a thousand feet
under ground. The feeble glimmer OF the
miners lamps barely serves to make the
darkness visible, to eyes unaccustomed to
such intense blackness, made dusky and
more impenetratable, if possible, by the
smoke from the frequent blasts.
I The temperature never changes at such
depths, and it is impossible to get an old
miner to work in the open air 10 the heat
/ Of summer or the cold winter. He prefers
. the even temperature under ground. OF
course the miners have not the nut-brown
complexion given by the rays of the sum-
mer sun and the blasts of winter. But their
countcnances are rudy and clear and
/ healthy, and no Vermont woOdsman can
swing an ak with the vigor and true ann
I that the Cornish miner swings his sledge-
I In the mine three men are called pair
meaning a pair Of strikers, with one man 70
( hold the drill 1t is interesting to see such
a pair work The small, miners lamp.
upon the top Of stake, or fastened against
the wall with a lump of clay, sheds It's
feeble light upon the top of the drill which
the alternate strokes of the heavy sledge
drives rapidly into the softer vein OF ore.
The holder turns the drill between the strokes
to one looking upon these workmen, for the
first time, the danger IN which the holder :
hands are seems so great that he lnyoIuntarI-
lv cringes at each stroke. But miners never
miss a stroke. and the stroke Is just as sure
when the drill Is going through the hanging
wall or roof Of the vein vertically, as when
going directly down through the foot wall
Ut when going h)rizOutally.
This continued use Of the muscles OF the
Irm and shoulders, makes the miners broad
shouded and deep chested, and gives them
wonderful strength across the loins, while
their lower limbs suffer from want Of ex-
ercfse, and are not developed in the same
Herculean proportion.
The miners work some Of them by day.
but most of them on shares, orr on tribute
as they term it.
Lucky tributers have made as much
as 500 week in the Vermont mines. The
Average earnings through the year Of eX
perienccd miners does not vary much from
- day.
The rock and orc Is all removed from it,
place By the force Of gun powder, and th'
Vermont company are now using abou
seventy kegs of twenty-five pounds per month
With this amount of powder. they remove
on an average, about 500 tons Of rock Pc
month. or about Is 90 tons per annum, a.
they arc now working the mines
The company now snelts its own orc, ane
sends none To market, the smelling furnace
at East Boston. Baltimore. and Bcrgcnsport
y. j., being now closed
From the dressing house where the orc
is separated from the rock mixed with 1t
tho orc is taken to the roasting beds en-
tramway.
The process Of roasting Is very simple
4 layer Of wood, less than foot in thickness
is placed over the ground, the size of the &c
CURED bed. over this is placed first thu
coarser orc, to the depth Of four or five feet
I Af.cr the piles Of ore arc built IN the righ
share the whole is covered with fine orc, II
the same manner, and for nearly the same
purpose that the primitive coal pitts c0ycrc
with earth. There are usually about 500
tons OF ore in pit. The wood i then Sc
on fire aJ each end, and gradually th'
whole mass Of sulphur contained IN the orc
ignites partially though slowly, and lon;
alter the wood is all consumed the process
goes on Il usually takes about three
months to roast q lot Of ore, and the com
many have from 20O0 to 5000 tons in tina
, process all the time.
This operation drives off about - pcr cent
oE the sulphur in the form of sulphurous Ea~
The roasting can he better and ta~ TER done
iu winter than in summer.
Tic Eases that arise from tll- process
/ destroy vegetation in tho vicinity and can
not be healthy for mon. There src tumc
+ oG arsenic that arise during the roasting A
, well as the sulphurous acid gas
\ 4 proposition Is now under consideration
! by the company to have their ores roastc
more rapidly by / party who propose {
erect furnaces for the purpose, with the IN
f tention Of saving the sulPhurous acid an
r making use Of il in tho manufacture oil sui
n uhuic acid, and also OF various fertilizers
h The fuel used in these furnaces is eok'
which is thrown in, IN alternate layers Wit
p the orc. The fuel Il consumed and the Who'll
. mass Of rock and metal is reduced to liqui
= by intense heat produced by the blast.
90 VIXEN a sufficient amount of this melte
y material has accumulated in the bottom
> the furnaces hole is drilled in the front
T. the furnace and the liquid is allowed to RI
r, out into a cavity made in the sand. A tn
7e sand hole fills up the metallic portion of Il
ir molten mass settles to the bottom. viii
he the melted rock floats upon the surface, ny
}O overlooking runs off and is. thrown ava
- The meal SO obtained Is about 80 per cen
i Of copper, and has to be broken up and
N through several processes of roasting al
r melting to expel sulphur and other Impul
to ties, till finally it is dipped into iron moul
5 that hold about 225 pounds each, and tn
ID we have pig copper, ready tor market.
or is about 50 per cent: metal and requlF
as another process to refine 1t and make ing
as copper.
an The furnaces Of the Vermont Company a
ar now turning out 100, 000llbs. perimonth OF I
Cd CONFER. This is now bringing twenty-s
,d cents per 10. and finds a ready sale Ih
nd the product of the mine is about $50 goo I
,er month OF over $500, 900 per annum- The
rs are employed in all, about the mine a
he works, three hundred men and boys. Th'
ne with their families make village of neal
Oh one thOus and persons; not the most desn
ie- bic population IN some respects, but 20
N. hardy laborers.
i. They have lately built a Methodist an'
in Catholic church there, and new post of
on has been established by the name Of f
nc from the president Of the company.
a,v The present condition of affairs conncc
~ with the Vermont Copper Mining Compa
ers looks very fattering intced. But it Is tn
al years since dividend has been paid. 9
81 there never have been but six dividends p
icb amounting IN all to SI0U,OUO.
ver The nominal capital of the company
he $500 600, divided into 100 900 shares, at
no each. Some of the present stockholders 0
in stock that cost them but a few cents
en- share. To them, if they had never paid d
in assessments, the dividend OF 1909 OIL %
old per share, or 90 per cent. on par value, y
the on the whole quite remuneratiVc' but oth
oil the stockholders have paid the par vaIu
Of their stock ana assessments besides ana
in them a delay of from three to five yc