Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-01-14
DEF RIS.
FoRTY-FIRsr DAY OF TIE sLIcKEEs CASE
IN COURT
Thomas Price, the Chemist and Mining
Expert, on the stand-What Slickens
Is-The Sewage of Sacramento.

Following is the testimony OF Thomas Price, be
ginning where our report closed yesterday:
Question (by W. c. Pelcher)-If you know, state
the amount of cspital invested California mines
and the appliances for working them, including
bitches
Answer-About $50 100000.
Mr. Belcher-It the Court please, in regard to a
matter that reserved, find have the memoran-
dunn We offer to prove by this witness, and eN
pect that he would testify if allowed, that the cost
of the property of the El Dorado Water and Deep
Gravel Mining Company has been million and a
quarter dollars. and the BlueTent property SsoOoo
Objected to as irrelevant and immaterial, and
counsel for defendant excepts
Q-state, if you know, whether this capital /;
home or foreign?
Same objection.
Mr. B,lcher-we offer to prove that more than
nineteen .twentietbs of it is California capital
Same objection, ruling and exception.
Q-Have you been at the Gold Run mines;
Al have, sir ; observed,what is called the upper
and lower stratum. The lower stratum is dark,
blush brown the upper, yellowish white. The
blush color is given by the protoxde OF iron. The
yellow1sh color is due the peroxide OF iron Have
been on the North Fork OF the American river above
Canyon creek. The Dam lsCus mine is situated on
the South Fork of the North Fork of the American
1t is above the Gold Run mine. Have observed the
illing OF the river below Lanyon creek, and the
character of the material still in the Gold Run
mine.
Q-What will become of that material if moved
from the mine =?
At will pass through Canyon creek and uti-
mately into the North Fork OF the American. and
just the grade becomes less and less it will there
settle and will become consolidated, and will be
mented in the bed OF the river as it has rece
mented in the bed of the ancient rivers.
Q.-Does it contain the material for "ementing
again!
A-Yes, sir There are instances OF that at the
Polar Star mi e. where there is the same kind OF
material and also in FL Dorado. The deposit in the
bed of the stream after it is recemented will be
acty the it is in the ancient river chan
nes. 1t Is not practicable TO work the Gold Kun
mine by any other process than the hydraulic pro-
cess as to save any considerable quantity OF the
gold that it coutains.
Q.-Suppose that that mine were to be drifted or
quarried would 1t produce more or less material to
be carried away by the water than il worked by the
present process of hvdraulcking!
A-H itwere quarried ont and crushed, why then
a much larger proportion Of the material that would
be dumped into the river would find its way lower
into the rivers, in proportion.
Odd you notice at the mine and IN the river,
from Canyon creek down to Rces bridge the char
acter OF the SAND you fOunu tNerS
Al did, sir Have noticed il also in the river
between Folsom and Sacramento. That which
comes from the niue is composed OF a crushed
quartz, crushed slate and crushed pOrphyTy; that
which is found between Folsom and Sacramento is
composed largely Of puverized granite, and large
excess of mica predOm!natlng. do not remember
| to have seen any mica at the mine. | account for
the mica ia the sand between Folsom and Sacra-
mentO by there being large granite belt between
here and COoma.
Q.-HaYe you had occasion to examine the head
waters OF the American river, and the character Of
the rock and the formation?
| A-Yes, SIR have examined the character Of
the formation existing both branches Of the South
| Fork Of the Americau-the Silver Fork branch and
/ the Slippery Ford branch. On the Slippery Ford
branch for at least twelve fifteen miles the water
| flows down from morane containing large quanti'
ties Of rocks and material such SIS is left by glaciers
| They are many hundred feet in depth. On the Sil-
yer Fork there vast quantities of volcanic ash
tufl, twelve or Fifteen hundred feet in hight tun-
| bling and tearing down aud going into the water.
/ courses That material, by the action of the snow
and frost disintegrates and falls right down. and
with the heavy freshets OF spring washes down into
the river. 1t is light material. In some instances
it is volcanic ash, i'll others 1t is an indursted vol
canic mud. II Is found there in large quantities
There is considerable amount of volcanic material
on the south side OF the South Fork of the Ameri-
| can.
Witness testified at length as to the effect pro-
duced by the denudation Of timber showing how it
increased the degradation.
Q.-Have you had occasion, in Your connection
with schools in practice to do with agricultural
chemistry?
Al have sir have hal the analysis of soils
and of minerals of all kinds from 1859 to the present
| time.
Q.-what elements compose for the most part the
auriferous gravel deposit?
| A.-The auriferous gravel deposit will average
about 60 per cent of silica probably about 10 or l.
per cent. alumua, . to per cent. iron, per cent
to per cent. potash, tc per cent. soda little
sulphurc acid, traces of phosphoric acid aud some
| very small quantity of organic matter.
| Q.-How will this material compare with the com
| position of soils?
Att will compare favCrably with the compost
ton of soils so far as the elements concerned
with the exception of having smaller quantity O
| organic matter.
WHAT IS SLICKENs?
| Q.-Scmething has been said htre of slickens
| What do you Understand the word to mean- Wha
| sit?
Al understand sickens to be that materia
which is reduced to an mpilpable ,wder, producet
| by the grinding and disintegration OF the rocks
| sample Of this material sent me by Judge Wal
lace for analysis. 1t marked: "Slickens sent M
BY Judge Wal marked 'Sliekers from EXhibi
No ,, A s. c., case of People VS.. Gold Kun Ditcl
and Mining Co." find that to be:
Silica Observation-Disclosures. 50 s