The Republican journal., 1875-09-30
Silver Regions of the World.

In iNJu \ cN ada was not rGckOned among
the sllyer-p producing regions. Mexico and
south America in that year produced 500,
GOO, OO0-nearly live times the amount Oh
tanned IN the same year from Europe. Asia
and Africa The production OF Piedmont
IN til II wear was greater than that of any
other section of the eastern continent and
was about : 200. 600 Austria was repre-
scnted by about ) ,OO0, 900, while Russia,
Norway. SaNony, Spain, the llartz Noun
tainS, and Deyonshire and Cornwall in
England, produced the remainder India
has Oiten been represented as destitute of
silver, but We have statements from Sir
hoderick Murchison and other travellers
that the kuu valley is so rich in ore and
metallic silver that it might be made to
Weld enormous revenues for ages to come
What was once known as the silver coun-
try Of the Nazurs in kulu comprises the
mountainous country lying between the
Beas. oainii and Parbutti Rivers The
mines, although in the palmy days of In
da worked to a considerable extent. are
bow almost forgotten, surely by the in
habitauts OF Che region itself The Mani
karin mines in the same valley are known
to he intellectually rich. but are now I'M
worked The Indian authorities, and even
the people themselves, lay every obstacle
in the way of developing them for fear OF
.n5o> eriehng the country.
In the first three centuries after the dis
coycry OF America it has been computed
that 100000 tons of pure silver We're eX-
ported from Peru and Mexico alone This
would he sufficient to form Il solid globe
of silver one hundred feet in diameter
Considering the rude manner of working
ores ut that day, this is no trile The
difference between mining in Peru and
mining in Mexico is only in the climate
OF the silver regions. The P0tnsi mine.
which has yielded enormous quantities OF
SILVER, is ut IN elevation Us great rs that
81 the summit of Mt. Blanc, in a region
NJ perpetual snow The mines Of Mexico
are on the middle lands, where neither
frost nor great heat is felt. The vast min
cral wealth of Peru has been developed
~ The patient industry OF the native In
dian7 Their wages per week average
about 81 - in our money.
A very romantic story is told Of the
~alcado mime, which has been lost for a
hundred years. Salcad0 was Il Young
~puiard who fell in love with and mar
ricd an Indian girl, Whereupon She re
ycaicd to him the location OF Il silver mine
oi fabulous richness and as vet unWorked
otcalo, with the aid Of his wife, found
1he mine, and making friends with the
Indians, he commenced work upon it, In
Il few Years he was enormously rich The
Spanish governor learning Of his prosperi-
lv, and designing to secure the mine to
himself caused a charge of conspiracy to
be made against him. under which he was
-. al ti.ia.1 and ,.nO,lou,np1 o1tbA,,,.l
the charge was entirely fictitious. When
awaiting execution he promised the GOV
cruor, De Lemos, that if he would allow
the proofs to be sent to Madrid and be in
spected by the King, there should be paid
TO him hundred pounds Of silver every
day until the vessel should 90 TO Spain
Iud return As the voyage one wav in
those days consumed about sixteen weeks
II is readily seen that the ransom offered
was enormous. Salcad0 was executed.
he ayal'cious governor FASTENED TO the
mine, but the mine was gone 1t has
never been found The widow and her
devoted Indians had determined that the
murderer should never be rewarded for
his crime, and they had flooded the mine
and buried it in such manner that dis
covery was impossible.
he richest silver mine in the world
probably is the Potocchi, or in our YER
nacular, Potosi-the Cholar-PotOsi being
named from 1t. It is near La Plata, and
was discovered in lob. 1t has always
been worked in a rude manner, but vet is
said to have already produced $3.50 0OO,-
600 worth of the precious metal For
many years sixteen hundred Indians were
employed in it, and being slaves, SO cruel
ly were they worked that they decimated
rapidly and their places Immediately filled
by others At the present time two thou
sand paid men are employed, and the
mino yields well and shows no signs OF
exhaustion
The total silver production in the world
rom the year 1850 to 1879 has been esti-
mated to be 81 ops, 900 900, the United
States producing one-tenth Of the entire
amount. The yield of Mexico is at pres
ent at the rate of O,000 900 annually
Peru IS falling gradually behind, the yield
iof the Year 1874 being but little over
S3,O00,O00 The mines of Chill and Be-
IiVla are being rapidly developed, and will
soon furnish material item in the annu-
al production. In 1867, Nevada proudly
pointed to a yield of S12 800 900. In
1869, the production was hardly half as
much. The production for the present
year will probably exceed $25 900, 600.
The annual production of the Idaho mines
is about S., 900, 900, OF as much as the
famous mines Of Peru. Colorado in 1874
is estimated to have produced bullion to
the amount of 81 ,O00, 900.
Judge Knight of Portland, secretary of the
Maine Centennial Board, says that the time has
nI vharl Il ft,ar