The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1878-04-20

the perspiration running from them in
streams, they would retire to some
cooler place while a relay of fresher
workmen took their places. Without
the cooling influence of the compressed
air from above, these drifts would be
simply uncomfortable. This heat pro-
duces intense thirst and loss of appe-
tite. Consequently gallons of water
are drank by each workman per day,
and very little food taken. This water
is kept cool by the passage of the COM
pressed air-pipe near or through it.
Several pounds of ice are made in day
by the freezing power given to the air
passing through the pipes. Making of
ice in such heat who would have
thought of it few years ago? Or who
would have thought of drilling rocks
by means of air, instead of the time
honored pick and hand-drill? Well,
the world does move. To return to
warm subjects. 1 used to wonder why
dog on warm day in summer would
open his mouth and pant to cool itself.
While in this mine found out why it
was, forI discovered that when opened
my mouth l was cooler than otherwise.
With profusion of perspiration start
ing from every pore, | saw the utility
of wearing wooden apparel. 1t seemed
as though the Superintendent never
would get through walking and show
ing. l longed for the upper world
again, and, declining any further invita-
tons for sightseeing, the engineer was
signaled by means of wires fastened to
bells in the engineers room, and we
are on the way to the bosom of mother
earth again, never so much appreciated
by me as then. Before descending the
shaft | thought four dollars per day was
pretty good wages, but after descending
| concluded that ten dollars would not
be too much.
Having seen where gold and silver
come from, and how it comes thence, |
naturally desire to see how it is extract
ed from the ore and placed in the form
of bullion. Accordingly | go to the
quartz mills of the Consolidated Virginia
Company. These mills are the largest
in the United States, and probably in
the world Their owners, the celebrat-
ed g Big Bonanza crowd,n are the rich
est men in the world, not excepting the
Rothschilds themselves. The income
of one is S13,000,000 per year, so Cal
ifornia paper says. After passing
through a good deal of red-tape cere-
mony, at last obtained a permit and a
guide. First we got into large room,
filled with number of sets of stamps,
in shape and appearance something like
pestles and mortars. Imagine the noise
made by these thrifty sets all pounding
to atoms their huge mouthfuls of gold
silver and sand. The ore is dumped
from hand-cars into troughs leading tC
the stones. Water is mingled with the
ore as it is being crushed. The pulver
lied, muddy-looking mass escapes into
a trough and is conveyed to larger
vat, whence it is taken to another build
ing to be separated into different parts
The muddy substance is put into large
cistern-like vessels called pans. Water
is mingled with the pulp and quicksil
yer thrown in by the amalgamator
The whole mixture is stirred by machin
efv for twelve hours or more, when tn,
liquid substance is run off into anothe
vessel, on lower plane, called a settler
Here the mass is slowly stirred, whil'
a stream of cold water passes through
to carry away the sand After thu
quicksilver has gathered to itself nearl,
all the gold and silver in the mass, i
is strained off into another vessel, int
which it comes as a tough mass o
amalgam. This amalgam is placed il
closely-fastened retorts and conveyed
to immense ovens, where it is heated
until the quicksilver is distilled out
leaving the gold and silver in combina
ton. This bullion in crude state i
taken to another building, where it i
melted int crucibles and poured int
molds. Thence it is conveyed to an
other apartment, where it is weighed
assayed and stamped, after which it i
put into the huge vault, where it i
locked up until it is sent to San Fran
cisco to be coined into the "root of al
evil" as many quote it Virginia Cit
(Nev.) Cor. Pittsburgh Telegraph.