The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-27

mountain. The ore consists Of the usual
kind in this section, quartz. lenses in mica
SihOit. decOmpOSed above water level The
gold bearing streak is nine feet wide. As
SAYS, lowest, $l4. average $33. highest,
SlO7. over twenty-five cuts have been made
in a distance of 200 feet The deepest is
twelve feet.
Messrs Pope & Dye have a tunnel us
feet long, which cuts fifteen veins and
SHAFT that is down siXty-hve feet. The
width Of the vein I'm tina shaft is seven
and half feet. 1t is ore quartz with much
pyrite. The lowest assay Is $3.50.
one noteworthy thing Is that every lit
tie branch and creek affords placer gold.
Much has been taken out by panning. But
| by intelligent sluicing the farmers here
would often make more money than they
do by raising crops. II is very strange
they let these deposits, which in any other
country would be considered bonanzas,
lie idle. The only explanation l can give
mining instinct, which is as necessary to
successful mining, as knowledge OF med
icine is to a doctor.
The Thies method was mentioned above.
II may be of interest to give a very brief
account of 1t, as IL Is so important to
our southern gold mining. Gold unites
with chlorine to make gold chloride which
is soluble in water. Calcium hypochlo-
rite the sO-called chloride of lime, when
mixed with sulphuric acid gives off chic
| rine. The concentrates which contain the
sulphides that were in the ore are roasted,
to drive off the sulphur; then put in lead
lined barrels with sulphuric acid and
| bleaching powder, which containes chic
ride of lime. The liberated chloride COM
bines with the gold. The barrels are re-
volved, bringing each part of the ore in
contact with the chlorine. The gold chic
| ride is finally leached out with water and
the gold precipitated by common iron
sulphate.
This is the process which has revolution
| lied gold mining in the south. 1t has been
used for a dozen years at the best produc-
/ ing gold mine I'm the south, the Halle Of
Lancaster county, South Carolina, the ore
/ of which runs 81 to the ton,
Before Mr.. Thies introduced this system
| the Halle mine was not a success. The
/ question is often asked by those having
no scientific knowledge of the subject:
| why If gold is In paying quantities in
| the south, has there been so many fail
ures, so much money lost and so few
! steady producing minesY' The answer Is
/ simple. The ore above water level con-
/ tains free gold which can be amalgamat-
/ ed, caught by the mercury; below the
water level the pyrite is undecomposed
/ and the pyritic ores, sulphides, cannot be
/ amalgamated.
The common way heretofore has been
/ to crush the ore in stamp mills and catch
| the free gold, part of II only, as there
is loss in float gold, with mercury But
| this could not be done with sulphides
| Hence, failure as soon as they got down
/ below water level.
! The books generally teach that the gold
J is mechanically combined with the iron
pyrites. The writer for various reasons
/ believes the gold is chemically combined
with the sulphur. and that there Is a gold
sulphide. Be this as II may the sulphide
ores have heretofore been the stumbling
4 block of southern mining and the py-
! rite in this section is par excellence the
| gold bearer.
/ have been much impressed by my ex-
| animation of these gold deposits in a
| small section of Cherokee county and
| there are plenty of deposits which have
| never been opened, into which a pick has
| never been struck that are Just as good
| as those that are known. Certainly moth
/ ing could be of more value to the state of
| Georgia than the development and legit-
| innate mining, not selling or specializing.
of her immense gold deposits.
r. L. F.