The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1894-06-27
WEALTH IN METALS.
A Word About Tin, Lead, Copper. Iron
and quicksilver.
NuShin1foN H0r.

" HdSHtnIfON MAJ.
The contemplated removal of the
tariff on quicksilver will ruin the in
dustry of mining for that substance in
this country. 1t is pity, too, for
apart from its commercial value GER
tain picturesque interest attaches to
the metal. It's Auidity at ordinary
temperature is one thing that makes
it remarkable. One can hardly realize
that when reduced by cold to solid
it is very malleable and can be beaten
out into sheets as thin as tissue paper.
Deposits of quicksilver have been
discovered recently in Utah, but
nobody has tried to work them as yet.
The entire product Of this country
comes from California. Cinnabar, the
ore from which it is obtained, is a
sulphidc of mercury. BY heat the
mercury is separated from the sulphur
in the form of a gas. which, being
condensed, runs out of the distilling
furnace in thin stream like a con-
tinuous pencil of molten silver.
Frequently the miner with stroke
of his pick penetrates cavity IN the
rock that is filled with pure quicksll-
yer, which runs out, sometimes as
much as pint of it. The orcis often
filled with globulcs of mercury, and,
when it is blasted, the high tempera-
turc created by the explosion volatili.
zes the metal, which in the form of
gas po;5ons the air. Workmcn in the
mines eat without washing their
hands, and in these and other ways
their system becomes saturated with
quicksilver.
SYMPTOMS OF TIE VICTIMS.
The first symptom of resulting trou-
Bile is usually exhibited by the nails,
which become diseased. Later the
teeth drop out, bonc-rot of the jaw
follows, and the unfortunate is fairly
eaten up by the poison. These trou-
bles are avoided to a great extent by
cleanliness. The men who work in
the quicksilver mines of Wales are the
cleanest people in the world ; their
skin, untanned by sun, are white as
snow. The Mexican miners in Cali
fornia are dirty and die fast, but after
two or three generations spent in the
mines they last longer, their constitu-
tions become more tolerant of mcr-
curry.
Vcrmillion is obtained from CHINA
how Tho rod noint on the hOdics of
Indians in California led to the dis
covery of the quicksilver mines.
White mon found out where it came
from and began diggingfor orc Of mer-
curry. The most familiar use of the
metal is for thermometers. tits very
valuable in medicine, but it is most
largely used in gold mines because of
it's affinity for gold, which it dissolves:
Quicksilver is the most easily lost OF
all metals, finding it's way back into
the earth sooner or later.
A queer sort of lemonade, made
with sulphuric acid instead of lemon
juice, is drank by quicksilver miners.
It has the effect Of neutralizing the
mercury. In the lead mines the same
mixture of sugar, water and acid is
used as beverage. 1t precipitatcs,
in the form of sulphate, the lead
absorbed by the body; in that shape,
being insolublc, it passes out of the
system. The consequences of lead
poisoning are dreadful. Not long ago
it was found out that the spread of
certain mysterious diseases in parts OF
England and elsewhere was due to
Turkish snuff adulterated with lead.
Sailors and tourists brought the snuff
home from Smyrna and distributed it.
The most picturesque use OF lead is
for making shot. Respecting this in
dustry remarkable dclusion is cur
rent-namely, that the little pellets
are made spherical by falling from a
height through the air. The fact is
that perfect shot could be made by
falling two feet just as well as by
dropping 200 feet, if only they could
cool quickly enough. The shot when
they are let fall from the top of the
tower, are as round as when they
reach the bottom. 1t is necessary
that they should drop long distance
in order that they may have time to
cool and harden before reaching the
water we'll provided for receiving them
gently.
The sheets of lead used for wrap.
ping China tea are made in an odd
fashion. They are not rolled or ham
mercd. The molten metal is poured
out upon fat stone, and another fiat
stone is laid upon it. a thin layer Of
lead is thus formed between the
stones it hardcns quickly and is re-
moved for repetition of the process.
The United States produced nearly
200, 900 tons of lead last year. West
of the Missouri River the lead ore
Yields more or less silver also. Some
times silver is the more valuable pro-
duct of lead mine. The crude mix
ture of the two metals is called "basc
bullion.
PRODUCTION OF COPPER.
This country produces more than
half of the copper of the world. The
metal comes from the Lake Superior
region, from Montana and from new
mines in Arizona. The Lake Superior
mines alone yield metallic copper in
large quantities. There the stuff is
found in a pure state, nuggets Of it
weighing hundreds of pounds. These
deposits were worked extensively by
the Indians for centuries before Co
lumbus, and the copper they obtained
was distributed widely by barter:
They left behind many large masses of
the metal, because they could not
break them into pieces and were una
bic to carry them away bodily.
The United States can turn out 3G0,
OOO, 600 pounds of copper yearly. The
mines at Butte, Mon, arc able alone
to put on the market 200, 1000, ,OOO
nounds nor annum. all of it obtained