The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1897-08-09
SEATTLE. MONDAY. AUGUST ..


The nizoerS OF the Eione!ke are not In
the same class. "a money making prop
osition with the gold discoveries which
Prof lsnmons alleges that he has made
ia his laboratories on Staten island. MFR.
Emnioris Is IA man OF high scientific at
tainmants. good character and ia a sue
esssful Inventor, Ye. a, seriously asserts
and offers the produeE Of his laboratory
the proof of his assertion. that he can
transmate silver in the form of ordinary
Mexican dollars or ingots Into gold; and
contends that hs has been able In his ex-
perimeuts to discover that neither gold
nor silver are. as chemists have hereto
fore classed them, simple elements, but
tha. each ia = compound. Emmons says
that by gubtecting silver to a pressure Of
$50 tons 10 the square inch. at an ex-
sremely low temperature, and by the use
Of another process which he keeps secret,
IL becomes Transmitted into gold. Up to
certain point In the process his gold
has tendency 10 revert 10 silver He
calls the product resulting from his
process argentaururn. Or silver gold but
the assayers Of the mint accept all he
sends them as gold. and are frankly In
ereduous as 10 hts claims that Ii has
been obtained ia the manner which he
states.
The natural tendency. when such stories
IS this are exploited. IL TO class them as
fakes: 20 believe that the entire alleged
process Is simply the cover for iugglery
tHrR .iar i'm hat H.,
he puts into the machine the gold. and
substitutes it fer the silver This Is the
natural attitude TO be assumed when ali
such claims as that of Prof Emmons are
advanced. Yet any one may he pardoned
fer credality as 10 the honesty OF his IN
tentions and the results being az he
ciaims- There is no im9ossibility or scien-
tile improbabilisy about such a discovery
as he claims TO have made. Chemistry
has in recent years determined tina, sey-
.rai metals elassed heretofore as eIemen-
tafy were In fact compounds The meth
eds Of chemical analysis are constantly
broadening. Emmons' standing. rcputa-
ton, character and previous scientific at
tslnments are all to be taken into eonsid-
Grafton.
II would be "a remarkable instance of the
iToay Of fate n while thousands of men ara
preparing 10 risk their lives, and certain-
~ placing themselves In position 20 en-
counter extraordinary hardships In tina
quest for seid iu the severe climate az In
terror Alaska, modern chemist, in "A laho-
istory Within Eunshot az New York city
should hit upon a process by which the
intericr and diseredited metal silver could
he placed AZ once upon an absolute par
tty With gold.
IL Is quite apparent. however, that spec
uiatoss and business men take no nore
stock is the alleged discoveries than they
dii IN the once seriously exploited Keelay
motor. Silver continues 10 decline in ths
markets OF the world. and has been. In
the eurreat usonth. al the lowest point
ever recorded. the commercial ratio be-
tween the two metals has been gluctuatine
around IA the aetghborhoood af g 20 /.
Hnd practically speaking there 10 no mar.
ket fer silver even az those figures. Tn
81 Prot Emmons' alleged discovery gets
further established on a commercial hasie
than az present thsre Is spparsn, iiksn
hoSsi az rs doing. Klondlke gold Will con-
stnas To buy ether products a. tia sresens
valuation.