Connecticut western news., 1888-07-25
FLAKES OF GOLD.
Means Jewellers Adopt to Pre-
 serve Precious Particles.
Valuable Auriferous SWeepingS
 from Factory Floors.

from Factory Floors.
 Gold and silver even in the most mi mute particles, explained a New York manufacturing jcweler to the Graphic, arc worth extracting from such easily worked material as tho 1eeuse or the floor of shop, and man ever thought of wasting this fotsam and jetsam of his lusiness. Then he explained tho interesting processes by which the sav- ing is effected.
 "Of course" he said, '.it is practi- cally impossible to savo all tho gold that gets scattcred; that is, some es- capes in ways that might perhaps be stopped, but it would cost more than the gold is worth to stop them. Every time you walk through a jewelry manu factory you are likely to carry some gold away with you on your clothing or your shoes. l took off my shoes the other night, and noticing that they were worn I turned them over and looked at them. Stuck in the bottom of ore of tho heels was little lump of gold, which picked out with knife. A certain amount of gold, no doubt, is carried off in the clothing and shoes of the work men, and no attempt is made to save that. But in regard to the floors and benches and tables it is different.
 "You notice that you are standing on a peculiar flooring, do you not9 It is comparatively new practice to cover tho floor with sheets of tar roofing. It is put down just like carpet, for the reason that it is easier and cheaper to burn it than to burn the floor. When left shop in Fulton street that had occupied for six years I burned the floor and got enough gold out of it to pay for a new floor, which I had to put down, and leave me $2OO in cash be- sides.
 ''The sweepings and refuse of the shop yield very considerable amount, and so do the washings. The dry dirt is swept up two or three times day and put into this stovc."
 Here he opened the top of ''chow- der stove' and showed pile ready to be burned. The chowder stove is a contrivance with a small chamber for the fire underneath aud large com partment above with no aperture un- der it.
 You see," he explained, ''we build fire underneath and burn it until the refuse catches fire. That will shoulder a long time, for there is no draught through the chamber, merely pipe above it to allow for the escape of the smoke. Finally it is reduced to ashes, and the gold and silver can be easily washed out of it.
 ''With our waste water the process is different. The aprons and caps the workmcn wear are washed over the same sink where they wash their faces and hands and any vessel or tool that needs cleansing. The water runs into barrel and then through pipes below tho water line into a second and third barrel before it is allowed to escape. The object of running the pipes below the level of the water is to prevent the minute flakes of gold from floating of, for though they will float on top of the water, they will sink to the bottom when they arc drawn below tho sur face. We throw little quicklime in from time to time, and that curdles all the grease and soap so that it sinks to thc bottom and the water that runs of from tho third barrel is as clear and bright as runs from the faucet. The curd is taken out when enough is ac, cumulated, and the precious metals are washed out by usual methods.
 ''The crucibles which wo use fol melting gold are broken up and thrown into an octagonal revolving chamber, Tn which is also put heavy iron cylind. rical bar. The chamber is tightly closed, belt is attached to tho main shaft and the whole thing set whirling In timo the crucibles are ground into ( powder as fire as dust, and this powder is sold to the refners, who treat it with mercury. used to do this work In the place, but gave it up, for I don't like to havo mercury around. Tho fumes are very unhealthy.
 1.-The gold that we get by these var ious processes is of really the same fine. ness of tho average of that we use in the work. The first alloy is destroyed or partially destroyed, I suppose, but enough alloy is gathered to nearly keeE the standard.