Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1894-07-02

color of old iron. Workmen were
turning the cold cakes from the
moulds, loading them on to wheel
barrows, and wheeling them away. I
followed. They were carted to an
other long building and dumped upon
large platform standing in front of
it. There, men with hammers were
breaking the cakes up into small frag
ments, after which, other workmen
with wheel-barrows reloaded it,
wheeled it up an inclined plane and
into the building which was similar in
shape to the first. I went into the
building. Again I saw dozens of tun-
mel shaped holes, and into them the
broken metal was dumped in exactly
the same manner as I had seen the
ore dumped into the tunnels in the
other building. I followed the metal;
not down the tunnel, but by narrow
stairway leading down below. The
general plan of the vast room, and
the manner Of handling the molten
metal was not unlike what I had al
melting pots were different. In the
first building the melting pots seemed
to rise out of great boxes filled with
earth arranged like a blacksmith's
forge only with the fires underneath
In the latter room the earth work was
lacking and the fires were fed in
different manner. Neither was the
atmosphere so sitting. Around the
melting pots were numerous pipes of
water running in every direction.
Faucets were open in places and the
water running out and trickling
down. The water was to protect the
crucibles or great melting pots against
the fierce heat they were forced to
withstand. The manner of drawing
out the liquid metal, the trucks and
moulds were exactly as 1 had seen
them in the first building; but the lat
ter melting pots contained attach
ments that were entirely lacking in
the first. On one side, deep down in
spout attached, which, when opened,
poured forth small molten stream
into basin shaped dish which held
nearly if not quite fifteen quarts.
When the earthen dish was filed, the
hole was stopped up, and workman
with long handled iron dipper ladled
the liquid metal out into small moulds
arranged in rows upon long table
standing close at hand. The moulds
as near as could Judge held about
fifty pounds, and fashioned the cakes
into the shape of a long old fashioned
baking tin. The cakes when cooled
We're called 'sbullioa'i and contained
a combination Of gold lando silver +
mixed in with drossand other m etals. O
The cakes were bright in appearance,
and the color of melted lead when
first cooled; in fact, the cakes re-
sembled lead more than anything
else. The liquid waste metal drawn
Off in front, was brokenup again when
cold, remeited, and the process was
repeated until not a particle of value
remained in it, after which it was
dumped upon pile of waste. The
refining works for the smelters | Wis
tied were located at Omaha. They
ship the bullion to that point, where
it is again melted, and through some
sprocess the differe MT metals are sep :
Grated from each other after which
the gold and silver is returned in little
bars and ready for use. o-day
works are in process of construction
in connection with the smelters where
by all valuable ingredients can be alb
stracted from the smoke as it issues
from The furnaces; therefore the day
is not far distant when everything of
any value will not be allowed to run
to waste.
TO BE CONTINUED.