Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1891-10-30
a cnAxcE roa room MEN.
The Low Grade Ore heretofore vAl-
ueless Can be worked With rront
Abandoned TailinEs from the
Milks Worked over with
Astonishing tcsnits-Rew
1t IL Done.

To bring four dollar rock or aban-
doned tailings Of that value up to the
value OF &l200 to $500 looks like a
great undertaking, but that is exactly
what is being done in Butte just now
but on = small scale.
II is done by e. J. Harris who has
= lixiviation plant in the rickety and
abandoned old Centennial mill at the
foot OF Washington street and close
to the Butte reduction works.
An Inter. Mountain reporter visited
that place Wednesday evening and
Mr. Harris was found on the ground.
At first glance the general surround
ings arc not very inviting. "Oh,
this is not winter scheme" observed
Mr. Harris, as he walked into tho old
mill which has very little OF its walls
left and looks rs though astrong gust
Of wind would carry the whole affair
away. 81 am just getting started in
good shape" he said, and confidently
added, "Just wait little while and
I'll set Butte on ERE with this thing.
There are thousands upon thousands
Of tons Of ore lying around on
the dumps that can work. All
this ors has been abandoned; any
thing under $50 hardly pays to
work, hat is, for leasars. With $685.
900 | could put plant here that
would make all these old dumps worth
something and the poor man could
get rich. am one OF them"
"How much ground have you to
work here?"
81 hava fifteen acres. All that
stuff you see there is collection OF
ten or fifteen years tailings from the
Alice, Moulton, Lexington, Dexter
and Centennial mills. BY leeching
this with solution get all the sui
phidss out Of the ore and they are
rich"
Mr.. Harris then went through his
leeching process. First, he has thu
ore, as he calls the tailings, hauled by
a wagon distance Of thirty yards to
the mill. Then IL Is dumped into a
tank that will hold twelve tons. His
solution OF chemicals is poured into
the tank by means OF hose and at
the bottom two more hose pipes con.
meet aud carry off the precipitating
solution to another tank below. To
get this far Is o slow process, as the
solution will only sink about half al
inch per hour. When in the precip-
itating tank the solution is clear as
crystal. The next step is to appl,
the silver dissolution. This process;
collects every particle Of metal at the
bottom OF the tank. This done, the
solution is drawn off through gravi
ty system into another large tank be
low, and then, by means of hanc
pump it is brought to the top ant
used indefinitely.
After the solution is drawn of only
sulphides remain in the tank, anc
these are shoveled or swept dowI
through a pipe and poured into canva
bags. These bags are then suspend
cd TO drain from them as much OF tn,
moisture AS possible. Then the sack
OF sulphides are put into the filteIinA
press TO further extract the moisture
| The Harris ilterng press is
unique institution and probably thu
only one of its kind in existence. A
the Blue Bird mill they used John
son titering press that cost S75U
Mr.. Harris uses broken down jack
screw aud the remains OF common
wash boiler aud secures excellent re
suits. In thus press the moisture i
further pressed out. The next ster
the sacks are carried 10 the surface
another scheme of Mr.. Harris. Thi
is large pan set upon brick foan
latou and the fire is placed below
| A.. a,.i..k,1n.