The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1893-08-26
OLD GOLD IS SCARCE.
Rehners Compeiied tn Buy Coin to He
Used for Mechanical Puruo,ox.

/
Used for Mechanical Purposes.
Old gold is in great demand. til
bought by the rctiners for mechanical
purposes and is paid for in spot cash
OF the greenback variety Old gold
Is very rich says the Boston Herald.
not only in monetary value but in
strange and interesting suggestions.
Most OF IL is in the shape OF dilapi-
dated jewelry. A worn band OF gold
comes in. 1t was once "a wedding
ring and must have been held as
precious beyond all price by the bride
Who wore it during her honeymoon.
In after years it was worn and worn
till 1t was almost worn away, it must
have huctuated many times in
value. The ring does not say
whether its owner is happy or
not. The link Of gold may have
bound together loving husband and
wife, or IL may have connected
widow with heaven, or with the cold
ness OF steel it may have held her
like a galley slave chained to com
panion she hated. The ring tolls
none OF these things. 1t is old-fash-
iohNu dho WIFI, auu bldb SllOWb bnuU
1t has seen long service Perhaps it
was worn by strangers, being super
seeded by another wedding ring. or.
perhaps, it was a precious family
heirloom, handed down from genera
ton to generation. The purchaser
rubs it on smooth stone until it
leaves yellow mark. A drop OF
nitric or compound acid discolors
this mark so that the expert assayer
can tell the purity OF the gold. Theu
1t Is carefully weighed and paid for
at the rate, perhaps. of three or four
cants karat.
All sorts OF curious things are sold
for the precious metal they contain.
Old watches that are broken beyond
repair old seal rings and rings that
were once set with cleaning gems.
A broken locket once contained q
miniature and probably holds the
secret of romance. A brooch is made
of light-colored gold OF over 100
years ago, and still holds a lock OF
somebody's hair. 1t was bought,
hair and all, and will go into tho
melting pot with its story untold.
some of the gold comes already
melted into Jumps, some of it is the
goldflling of teeth and dentists
scraps. and some of il is in the form
of old plates, with artificial teeth
still sticking to them Hood Il Rey-
nolds, the assayers on fremont street.
say that old gold is very scarce and
they have had hard work to collect
the amount needed in their business.
The old jewelry and scraps are melted
down and refined, then rolled out
into gold. The gold fell is bought
by dentists and put into the teeth OF
their customers, and in most cases
goes back into the ground with tho
owner of the tooth when he dies.
Some day, when Boston is u bowling
Wilderness, an entorprising miner
will wash out tho earth of the
cemeteries and reap rich harvest.
But that is a matter of speculation
1t is Il matter of fact that one firm OF
rofiners here in Boston uses up 81, 500
worth Of old gold every week, and
lately has been compelled to buy
coin to exc out the supply needed for
mechanical purposes.
a great deal OF the jewelry is SOL
dered to brass, lead and other metals
The quality of the gold is tested just
as in the case of solid jewelry, and
the stuff is weighed in bulk and paid
for at the rate established by aver
aging the results Of different weigh
ings. Even plated jewelry is taken.
but when pure brass comes in tho
purchasers are forced to draw the
line. A good deal of tho old silver
is sold in the same way, but instead
of being in demand it is drug on
the market. IL Is not SO interesting,
either, as it usually comes in the
shape OF spoons, knives and watches.
When the dealers get moro silver
than they can Use they send it to the
government minis as quickly as they
can.
Not a little platinum is sold as old
metal, and usually comes in the form
of bits OF wire and scra Is from
broken incandescent lamps.