The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-09-29

Ever since the heavy slump in silver
and lead the mining men Of the west
have largely turned their attention to
gold mining, and not only to quartz
propositions, but also to placer dig
gings, which has led 10 a great deal Of
!. experimenting in an endeavor to re-
cover the flour gold contained in the
sands on the banks OF the Snake river,
in Idaho; and these experiments have,
as a general thing, resulted in repeat
ed failures. as the gold is very fine and
light and hard TO save.
In many instances it takes $50 col
ors Of Snake river gold to make a cent;
and, if dry, the fine gold will float off
on the top of the water like SO much
powder Some of il can be saved in a
rocker and by sluicing in the ordinary
manner with sluice boxes and burlaps,
but this method is too primitive for the
close saving Of this -four gold, most Of
which finds its way into the tailings.
After meeting with many discourage
ments in the endeavor to save Snake
river gold. mining men have come to
the conclusion that a specially built
machine was needed to make high
extraction, and several machines and
devices have been built and constructed
with this end in view, two of which
The Herald has recently described in
detail.
The latest application for public ia
vor in this line, however, is kellars
Little Wonder Flour Gold Amalgamat-
or, of which Angus Kellar Of this city
is the inventor and patentee.
Mr.. kellar has been working on -four
gold saving machines for several years
past. Some of these promised much
theoretically, but when put into actual
practice they were partial failures.
Now, however, Mr. hellar believes that
he has solved the problem, and that
all the -four gold to be found in the
sands Of Snake river, or in any other
placer diggings, for that matter.
This machine. all complete, is now
on exhibition at No 323 State street,
and placer miners will do well TO ex-
anime it.
In its construction, the Little Wonder
differs materially from any other gold
placer machine yet invented, and to a
casual observer it would seem as if it
would prove 10 be a success, as its
mechanism is simple and on lines that
appeal 70 good common sense and rea-
son.
Without an illustrated write-up it
would be difficult to describe this ma
chine. simple as it is in its construction.
In the first place the gravel, sand and
water are conveyed into a hopper which
has a pitch of about six degrees. The
bottom of the hopper is composed of
grizzly, which is perforated with holes
of about one-sixteenth of an inch in
diameter. on the top Of the hopper is
placed an endless chain arrangement.
to which are attached buckets, the
lower sides of which are also perforat-
ed. In the manipulation Of the ma
chine, which IS done by hand power,
the perforated buckets are drawn along
and upon the griZzley against the flow
OF gravel and water. and in the revo-
luticn around the roller the coarse stuff
IS taken UP and afterwards thrown
over the rear Of the hopper onto The
dump, the concentrates, gold and wa
ter passing through the grizzly into Il
stand-pipe elnptying into a sheet iron
cylinder. In this cylinder is placed
about 100 pounds Of quicksilver, and the
bottom Of the stand-pipe comes within
an inch or two of the quick. The force 1
of the concentrates and water coming
from the grizzly breaks into the quick
silver, and in the agitation that en-
sues a large portion of the gold is
while the sand water and what little
gold escapes is carried through a pipe
near the top Of the cylinder into an
other one which is charged with fifty /
pounds CT quicksilver. This second cyl !
snder is also equipped with a stand /
pipe, which is connected with the pipe (
uniting the two. and in its operation /
the same system is employed, and what (
little values escape from the first treat |
nent are virtually saved in the sec |
ond cylinder. from the top of which /
there is an escape pipe from which The I
sand. gravel and water flows onto q |
which has an oseillating |
very similar 10 an ordinary
gold rocker.
In the bottom of the cylinder there is 1
8 most ingenious device for the dis
charge Of the anlalgam, and by means |
OF the same mechanism the cylinders /
can again be charged with the quick. |
+ The buckets manipulated on the end
less chain, as mentioned above, are Of |
service in two ways; the first. as stat
ell, being the removal OF the heavy !
stuff and the dumping of it over the |
end of the hopper; while, in their re-
turn. they scrape the surface Of the |
grizzly. thus keeping it from clogging.
The Little Wonder has capacity for /
the handling Of five cubic yards OF
gravel an hour. and its inventor claims
that it VIII save 50 per cent or more
Of the gold values contained in the
dirt He has not IS yet set 4 price on the