The Red Cloud chief., 1886-01-22
AN s OFFICE.
How Cold-Dass IL NsAs late aissbes
Dytek.


Hev Cola-D.ss IL NsAs late vsisssss
Brick.
A visit to the Csi.ed States Assay
Office here is very interesting. Being
ushered into the receiving Office l
found \ clerk opening several packages
Of gold dus, that had been brough;
from the pos'-okc-. and WAS told
tina; no packages had ever been known
TO b. los;. though no extra precautions
sre taken in sending them. After be-
ing weighed carefully the dus, is
handed over 20 the melter. who Is ac-
companied by 8 gentleman whose sole
business is TO see tia; the dust Is
placed in the crrcible. for until the
gold assumes the shape 81 s bar 10
man j. allowedio handle i while alone.
The furnaces in which the d., j.
melted produce two thousand five hun
dred degrees Of heat. and the crueiolcs
are made Of two pSrts, plumbago n
one part fire clay. and are Of arIou
sizes. TO accommoiat. the ~eyer-yaryiaE
deposits. The mods are of different
capacities. varying from twelve ounces
To six thousand ounces. and before eacG
pouring they are carefully scraped and
smoked. the thin coating Of SCOT pre-
venting the bar from sticking to the
mold. The metal j. always poured in
the presence of n who watches the
meter all the time. ''Thi. - done.
the meltrr explained. las well for our
own protection As in the interest Of the
deposi,ors. For instance. If a deposit
or, deceived a. Ia the value of his
dust. claims that some of j: has been
wasted OF stolen during the process Of
melting, two OF US are her. 10 act as
! checks upon each other. Every effort
is made 10 ascertain the exact value of
the deposit. and while there necessarily
is a little waste in the mechanical
operations, it is very slight. Every
day the cruciblcs are scraped
of the little tiuxing tina: may adhere 20
.bc sides, and these scrapings. together
with the iluNing. poured out with the
gold. and all the dust that settles upon
the iron floor of the room. are carefully
preserved. and ~ the end Of the year
the mass is melted over and the gold
extracted and givenover to the Govern
. IIttlIN Hit'A WI .
dollars last year. a little over three
hundred dollars were obtained from the
years sweeping Each bar l. taken
% the two assaycrs, who each take a
chip from the opposite diagonal cor
ners. From these bits of gold the
iincness IF the whole bar is calculated.
The gold .ha, is bought for the Gov
ernment is sent 10 New York. with the
calculations on the different bars.
which are tested and averaged. and
the results compared with the calcula-
tions here obtained. Tine most perfect
accuracy is necessary IN the weighing
and calculating in order 10 max. the
figures agree. The metric system OF
weights Is used.
A drop of water" said one Of the
~assayers, lat siXty-two degrees FAIR
ennheit weighs fifty Kilograms. These
scales will weigh onc-ienth part Of Il
milogram." which, as | figure IL. would
be one .ivs-hundredth part Of a drop OF
water. They can calculate the value
Of ore that yields only sevonty-five
cents TO the ton.
The Government buys all the gold
presented for sale, but Il depositor may
have his dust refined and made into .
bar upon the payment Of a small fee.
A short time ago a deposit valued al
SD. 900 was brought in by one man.
The dus; equaled in bulk about TIVE
panfuls. The assaying of ore has
lately beer discontinued. Pure gold j.
worth S20.67 per ounce. My guide
showed me a brick. which. for "a mum
Der Of reasons | was unable 10 put in
my pocket. weighing 257 ounces; II
was about Sx3 IL by l II inches in ~
several dimensions. and was worth
S3.OiC.-HeieHd. on ~ Cor. Louis
r,{{e C0arisr-yOurndi.