The Tombstone epitaph., 1882-01-23
The Necessity.

The Necessity.
 From the Chicago Mining Review, Dev.s.
 An increase of transportation facilities, and access to other sources of supply, has been looked forward to with much interest by those who have become interested in mining operations, where the cost of pro- duction and treatment IS largely ln- creased by the absence of the proper appliances. A glance at the subject will show that, whenever, by any means, the cost of delivering ores at the mill Or in the market, can be reduced, new fields will be opened up and the hitherto useless mineral become available and profitable. Transportation, mills, and home markets, as valuable as they are, never can meet the full require ment, or make profitable large pro- portion of the mineral deposits in many parts of the country. New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Dakota, and in fact parts of every mineral bearing territory, bear large quan- titles of low.grade ore which, under what may be justly termed our crude metallurgical processes, are to all in- tents and purposes valueless and un- profitable.
 Taking into account the wide scope of territory bearing the low grade ores, and the immense waste in treatment of high grade ores, it may safely be said that the most inn perative demand of the present time in mining, is ;n the direction of somc process of treating, not only of ores bearing small proportion of precious metals, but the richest ores without the enorm ,us leak which has been the great waste, almost sinking and running the success of one of the most important industries of the country. Not only is the loss in the actual waste of precious metals, out another loss, which is not taken into consideration, but in the aggregate assuming large proportions, is that ot the base metals which are found in connection with gold and silver. Metallurgy in its present state pro- vides no means for saving the base metals, but they are sacrificed in the attempt to secure certain per cent of the valuable metal. In the best processes of the present time there IS loss of at least five per cent of precious, in addition to all of the base minerals. If the market value of these be added to the ores lost in treatment it may be easily estimated how great is the actual waste from the present systems of ore reduction. In aurifcrous pyrites there is six per cent of iron. Blende contains 66 per cent zinc, and some of the bismuth and antimonial sil. yer ores carry from 60 to 70 per cent of the base metal, the value of the metals in these ores would be considerable if metallurgy provided any means for producing them with sufficient economy; but it Is nothing. These ores are considered among the most refractory, and the methed of treatment consists in Sc. curing the precious, at total waste of the base metals. Thousands of tons Ot iron and zinc arc annually thrown away, and large amounts of antimony are voaltilized and lost. In one silver mine Tn California, the ore consists of almost solid su]phide of
 ntimony, carrying from 60 to 90 ounces of silver per ton. This mine has been worked pre6tably for con- siderable period for the silver alone, with a total loss of the .antimony. These facts show the lmperfections and the crudeness of our metallurgi- cal science, and the great room for improvement. Remembering the rapid strides of advancement, and the marvellous improvement notice able in so many other departments of science, no one will dare to limit the development of this science to its presant condition. Inventors are already turning their attention to the urgent demand for improvement, and if necessity, in this case, should again prove the mother of invention, it would seem that the full time must be near at hand when the advent of a new dispensation is to be heralded, wherein economy, profit and free dom from waste and loss shall be the clements of strength and . perma- nent prosperity in the mining in. dustrY.