The record-union., 1895-12-14

in the South African mines.
BARNATO'S GOLD MINES.
81 find that the charter company with
which Barnato is connected controls
one of the largest and most peculiar de-
posits of gold in the world. Here is a
ledge which runs for thirty miles.
1T is of conglomerate quartz and
high grade. Some $43 100000 were
taken out last year. 1t is estimated that
there are S1.100,000 600 of gold in this
one deposit in South Africa.
Undoubtedly the value of the Bar
nato shares has been exaggerated.
and there will probably be shrinkage.
But the fact remains that there is genu-
inc merit in this new gold field which is
opened up to the world.
/ Mining engineers who have been on
the ground and examined the field are
astonished at the wealth which this
| one ledge shows. In all the mining
operations in this country there was
| never anything found like this South
African bed of a lake. The rich Amer
lean mines were isolated one from the
other, although of course within one
general district.
With these new discoveries of gold
| fields there have come within the past
few years more economical methods of
mining that save large part of what
had previously been lost Take the case
of Leadville. They had been throwing
away for years the refuse of the mines,
which was not only useless but an ex-
pensive nuisance until one crank went
to work and examined it and found it
was silver.
80 with placer mines in Colorado,
Arizona and other States, which are
known to contain great quantities of
gold, but which there is not sufficient
water to work profitably. Some eco
nomical method of working. these mines
will be found and untold millions will
come from this source.
'It is not unlikely that there may be
another great mining boom in the
United States. The South African
craze may not spread to this country,
but there are undeveloped gold fields in
the United States to form the basis for
another great mining era, and 1 would
not be surprised to see it spring up.
But geld.' said Mr.. Edison, lis only
valuable because it forms at present
! the standard of value. It is intrinsic
ally Of little value in the arts. The real
precious metal is iron. And in iron,
| too, we are learning every day more
perfect and economical methods of min
ing and smelling and better systems
for making it useful"
Mr.. Edison would say nothing about
his own iron mine at Ogden Mountain,
! N. J., where he has been working stead
lily for some months, but it is known
that he is here producing the very best
quality of iron ore which the market
now affords. The place has been
named Edison in honor of the inventor,
whose system of extracting the finest
ore has revolutionized the industry
A TELEPHONE TO THE STARS.
Ogden Mountain is veritable mount
ain Of solid iron Of the highest grade.
1t is here that Mr.. Edison has con-
structed mammoth telephone system
upon which he is now working which is
expected to bring out in tangible shape
the veritable music of the spheres.
Using this great iron mountain as a
magnet Mr.. Edison has encircled it
with wires which are connected with
lmegaphones, telephones and other SEN
sitive instruments that give out strange
and ominous rumblings during the still
ness of the night.
Il got results of this kind" said Mr..
Edison, ION line running from New
| York to Boston. There were seismic
rumblings that were unconnected with
any earth currents, and which could
only be explained by the movements of
the planets and the electrical currents
that may connect star with star and
sur with sun"
the things which friends of Mr.. Edison
say he has got through this elaborate
linterplanetary telephone system, which
is SO delicate that it takes in currents
operating millions of miles away, is in
duenced by sunspots and foretells
comets and changes of the moon AS to
these things, however, he will make no
revelations. At present he is putting
back some of the poles Of the system
which blew down in a storm, and the
iron mountain is so solid that he has to
bore holes for the purpose.
The great inventor was found by the
Sunday World reporter intently watch
ing a small retort which was heated to
1000 degrees Fahrenheit, at his Orange
Laboratory.
"Of course there is no way of register
ing a heat SO great as this" said Mr.
Edison, "but the heat in that little fire
clay box is about 4 900 degrees. 1t is
! formed by gas, and it would melt al
most anything but a diamond.
I'VE are not making diamonds here,
but it is not unlikely that diamonds will
be made artificially in the near future
| We make rubies to-day which are
chemically the same as the natural
ruby and are superior as to color, and I
| know a man now who is working to
produce a diamond.
Il should not be surprised if he sue
ceeded in making big diamonds as large
as the Kohinoor. Small artificial dia-
monds are already said to be produced,
| but 1t would be a good thing If large
! diamonds could be made to use in
drills. If they could be thrown on the
market by the bushel it would knock
the bottom out of the diamond market,
and these stones would cease to be
| highly priced as ornaments"
CARMENCITA'S VISIT TO ORANGE
The inventor has large number of
experimenterS working under him at
present. and is known to be following
out lines of speculation in many chan
aims at present at adapting the kineto-
aims at present at adapting the kinto-
scope to use in a large hall by produc-
ing life-size figures on a screen with a
photograph accompaniment.
Carmencita recently visited the Or
ange laboratory and danced before an
elaborate and costly Photographic
apparatus, which reproduced her every
movement life-size on a screen. This
system, which is applicable to produc-
ing plays and operas in small amuse-
ment halls throughout the country by
| the work of only two or three men, has
not yet been perfected.
This is only one of the systems being
developed at the Orange laboratory
which, in its facilities, is the most COM
plete experimental laboratory in the
would. Simply because Thomas A
Edison is keeping quiet by no means
indicates that he is not working up to
his fullest intellectual capacity.
He may be developing his very great
est discovery at the time he appears to
be trifing with mechanical toys, which
are, as a matter of fact, his amuse-
ment. Just at present he is putting in
a good many hours at Edison, N J.,
but the seclusion and remoteness of the
place lead many people to believe that
he is working out some problem there
with which he will soon startle the
world.-New York World.