New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-09-27

the following -namcd mines: Inc AHA. ana -'"''"
Pacific each covered 10y United States patent
the Somewher, for which patent has been APP
piled for. and the Faith Alta Lode David Copper
field and Rocky Bar Mines, he'd uxder lease Tor
three years The first two of these mines only are
now producing. sufficient amount of the capital
stock of the company was set aside to pay
all the debIs OF the Old company IN cash
aud 10 give the new one a WORKING caellal
of 300, OuO. The work ot making auaih"hs
and improvements i now being pushed forward
very rapidly. experienced men from Coloiad nave
been employed to superinteud the mill and smcltcr,
contracts for supplies of wood and for the purchase
OF ore being made, and Il ~ expected that opera
tons Will soon be begun. rs consider tins one OF
the most important of the mining enterprises oil
Montana since if II is successful IL will cause IT,
SUMPTION of work in at least twenty-five mines
within radius of ten mics Of the mil, and give an
impetus to prospecting on all the mus III the Nicih-
lty. shall describe very briefly the processes Dy
which II il proposed 10 treat ores.
may premise that snelting-0res, when need
only To be desuphurized in TeyeT beTatOry furnace,
and mlilIng-OIe~. that need only 10 he desuphur-
ized and ehlordized. are not To be put through Tie
krOm nall all Others are to be treated ny the
process am about 20 describe. The Orc which, rs II
comes from the mine. II mixed with rock or cangue,
is first put into similar TO those used IN
all quartz mills and for breaking stones i"r paving
streets. and after being broken into small pieces,
falls into inclined drying shaft, m winch the
moisture which II contains Is removed. FROM
thisit discharged upon set OF stccl-rlmred
Kronl" rolls. between which II Is crushed into
pieces from one-hftieth To One-tcnth of an inch
SQUARE. From the rolls the ore falls into q revOlv-
ing screen, by which II Is separated INTO TWO sizes
that which already crushed line enough is taken
to the top of the mill by means OF al automatic eie-
vator like that used tor loading and unloading gram.
aud that which is too coarse Is taken by similar
means To the next floor above where 1t Is delivered
upon another set of rolls set closer together and
after passing through them Is also taken 10 the top
of the mill by an elevator.
The ore Is then separated into four different sizes
by passing through a series oi revolving screens,
and each size IS delivered IN a separate BIN. The
next step in the process Is the concentration OF the
Ore-that Is, the separation 81 Tie ore 1rom TIE
'canCuc or waste rock. This l. accomplished by
means of = simple machine, similar ia the principle
of lis construction To - mlddngs pui1ier. usca ~
the improved methods of manufacturing flour. As
the rock. which Is now "a the consistency OF fine
gravel, fails from tine rim which contains II into
the concentration t Is led upon line wlic network
through winch strong blast OF air Is forced IN
pulls following each other IN Qnick succession. This
blows the whole mass snort distance INTO the air
bus the gangue being much lighter than thc ore,
goes longer distance and fails IN heap by ITSELF
while the falls into receptacle provided for
The advantage of this concentration that the bulk
of the rock subsequently, 10 be treated in the
smcltcr, tine battery, OF tae amalgamaung or leach
iag-pau lS reduced. often as much as fifty
i've Der cent and the cost OF handhught there
after is corrc,pondngiy less.
Aitsrpa-,ing through the first concentration the
rHulue las been in great measure removed, but tire
aihecnt GLASSES OF ore ar All together. Some of it,
containing 20 IT, cent ana upward ol lead, is best
treated by smelling; that containing less than 30
per cent o. icat or averaging not more than OF 10
peg cent may Dee amal gauaied, and that carrying
les, tau per cent Of lead. lenched "a IS desirable
therefore 10 pdr3to The ore into three grades ar-
c0iIug Co tae proportion OF lead which 10 contains,
and ih.s Us done Dy means Of other couccutratDrs
like that / nave already described. The greater
tuc proportion of lead which an con-
laIn, the heavier IL Is, and the ma
chine, are regulated TO dclv the
suC.tuc ores s.ptraicy from those thai are 20 hc
lDacu,u or anai-anatctl. AMI the last two classes
are aiteIwarl separated from each other i'm tsc
same manner. Ihc working of the Concentrations
oi course cau-es great clouds of dust, but above
cac4 d, placed a mood connected with ana exhaust
De- .faIH fIl. Il
ou..-sHom 90 Dee aualgamated OF lctched. The
whole process have thus tar described Is auto
maic; tine ore passes from one machine to
another without the intervention of wOrkmcu
ir0m tlc time tne large pieces OF rock are fed into
IRE breaker unII It has been concentrated and
separated. AT different stages IN the process the
eieo arc weighed. and record 81 them IS carefully
kept.
ict rs row follow the smelling ores These are
t8hcn in cars go the reverb rJtOry furnaces where
tncS alc desDlpnuuzed simply by heating. They
are then mixed with iron ores that have also been
desulphurizrd IN the same manner, and which are
added to form lux which shall carry OF the
gan que tAat my remain mixed with the ore. mis-
Is tnen melted IA an ordinary "watcI-lacAet
emciting furnace, win coke or charcoal. Inc lead
and silver, being heavier, sinks to tie bottom, is cot
iecttd M "a small reservoir Oh the outside provided
for that purpose. from winch 30 ~ dipped and east
into D. rs Ol base bullion The ilux, consisting 81
non an. melted rock, is drawn of through OPEN
i I'm fhe side of the furnace above the melted bull
ION. lhc base bullion may be refined, that Is, the
lead separated from the silver, either az the works
where 10 produced or IA the East where II rs sold.
Ores that are 10 be analialnalcu tilat Is, tuprc
/ winch contain from . 10 10 per cent or load on
| ana average are first taken L. stamp mill. where
they reduced TO fine dus. In battery similar 10
/ that used Tor IeuuclnE eol" ore except thtl no
water flows through the battery. IL Is then placed
/ i'm a " Bruckner' cylinder, an immense iron cylln-
/ der FIX feet in diameter and twelve feet long,
! through which a iue passes winch, connected with
| furnace, heats the contents OF the cylinder.
This Is then caused TO rcNOlVe slowly, and
the heat separates the sulphur nom the ore. After
this common sat equal j. amount to about
per cent of the contents OF te cylinder is added,
the heat increased, and the silver which the ore
contains Is thus ch!Ordized Ihis SILVER Whlch the
ore contains Is now IN sucn condition that 10 has
a strong affinity for quicksilver. and the pulp, aCi-
| ta'cd III an ainalganatlng pan win mercury ana
Watcr gives up It's silver which Is collected IA the
/ form OF amalgam Oh the bottom. The silver Is
afteiward separated from the mercury by SIMPLY
Tie teaching ores that is those which contain
! less than per cent of lead. are crushed IN the
! stamp-mill desuphuIized and chlOTidZed in the
| "Bmcknc' cy llndeTs exactly as the amalgamatlng
| ores are. Then, after beng cooled they are placed
IN an agItatOr with hot saturated solution of COM
mon salt III water which takes up and holds III sus-
! pension the chloride of silver which the ore con-
/ Jams. The liquid is then drained from the pulp.
/ and the chloride OF silver Is preeiptated upon
strips of "copper" which IL IS made 10 pass. The
chloride of copper which the brine takes up Is af-
terward precPltated upon iron aud the solution of
salt is used again. Finally the chlorine is separated
from the metallic silver by means OF heat ms Is
/ known a. the Augustine teaching process"
! From this brief description 1t Will be seen that
The process of reducing the refractory ores OF Mon
tana Is Il very complicated one, requiring skill and
cxprnstve machinery. If the owner of mine
Welding galena erects sneltor on his prop
crty like the smetpTs III which the Lcadyillc ores
are treated, ho must add reverbeTatOry furnaces,
and eN en- then extract only part of the silver
which bis rock contains. II he builds stamp mill
and attempts TO save the metal by amalgamatlou,
he must chordze his ore by the use of :" Bruck-
ner" cylinders or other similar ma
ciinerv and even then will fail TO save
all his silver But when all the processes
are combined and worked lnielligently and eco
nomically the satisfactory results attained.
With the same machinery that Is used IN the East,
and with experienced men to manage II, the prcsl-
dent of the Alta Montana Company thinks II will
De able To reduce ores realizing good profit and
making satisfactory returns 10 the owners of the