The Saint Paul globe., 1898-10-30
NINE SALTIyG AN ART
SCIENTIFIC WAYS ARE Now NEG
SARY TO DECEIVE THE
INVESTOR
TRICKS OF THE EXPERTS


Solutions of Gold Thus Placed
Have Led the Sales of Worthless
Properties - Old Methods of
Sailing Long Since Discarded.
From the Chicago Inter Ocean.
Following in the wake of the miners
who make a general stampede for a
new Ell Dorado gold field upon tha
slightest pretext come the professional
gamblers and daredevil adventures
who live upon the proceeds of the new
mines worked by the successful claim
ants. Sailing mines 1s species of
SWindltng that prospered more in tho
zenith of California's great gold-dig.
ging days, but it has not by any means
died out. 1t has assumed new phases.
which sometimes make it difficult OF
detection. and the man who deliberate
ly follows this business is somethina
more than shrewd adventurer. He
Is scientific man as we'll as one OF
cool nerve and adventurous nature.
In the early days of mining an un.
ScrupulouS swindler would merely
scatter around some gold dust and mug
gets In claim he wanted to salt. Hs
would take the trouble to mix the gold
well Into the surface layer Of loose
gravel and earth. Then upon q super,
hc1al examination it would appear as
II the claim was rich in possibilities.
Some Of the dirt would be taken out
and examined. Naturally 1t would Weld
enough to make the mine pay fabulous
prices. Usually the deal would be
transacted right then and there, the
mine salter putting in the innocent plea
that he was anxious to return to civil.
1zation, and that for small considera.
tton he would part with what he knew
would reap him q great fortune If ha
stayed to work the claim. In stories
and fiction, at least, the good-hearted
miners would confess that they didn't
want to cheat the lucky owner, but IL
he was so anxious to get home again
to his family they would put UP the
necessary dust to take the rich claim
OH his hands Then after the deal the
swindler would disappear, and q week
later general howl for his blood would
go up In the mining camp.
OLD METHODS OUT OF DATE
All Of this primitive way of sailing
and selling gold mines may have pre-.
vailed once upon a time, but it has
been long years since it would answer
the purpose. The man who ATTEMPTED
to impose such a glaring swindle upon
a mining community would more than
likely swing by the neck before sun.
down. Sailing mines has passed
through various stages until today it Is
as much Of science as digging for the
gold The professional swindler must
meet AND deceive trained metallurgists,
and he plays for stakes so high thai
one transaction will net him a fortune
The present day mine salter comes
to New York, London, Paris or other
large cities to finish his swindle. He
plays for high stakes, and he does his
work scientifically The work of salt.
Ing his claim is not performed in a
oay; 1t is probably the result Of weeks
and months Of continuous labor. He
knows what to expect-the careful ex.
animation Of the rocks and soil bv q
trained eXpert-and If he cannot de-
ceive him his labors are all in vain.
AIter the work is all completed he
taxes samples of the dirt with him tn
snow to the capitalists with whom he
tries to negotiate a sale. This dirt
or course, Is rich in fine particles Of
gold, and not even the best netallurgist
In the world could tell whether IT had
oeen deposited there by nature or by
some shrewd swindler
SHOTGUNs AND sYRINGEs
Ii was a common practice once upon
time, according to all stories, to
load a shotgun with tiny pieces Of gold.
and then to shoot them into the vein OF
ore. This gives the appearance of
minute. particles Of gold in the rocks
but only the credulous miner on the
scene during an intense excitement
WoulC be sWindled by such a process
The trained scientific expert would
fdusn at such clumsy Sa1ting and pity
rather than hate, the man who at
tempted the swfndle. 1t is the rule
now Tor metallurgists to make a great
number of bOrings at various nIaces
along the line Of the vein Of ore. From
each boring samples are taken and
Selpped to some trustworthy assay
ONCE. The amount of gold to the TON
OF rock that these samples produce
generally indicates the worth Of the
mine.
For some time after the experts
ADOPTED this system the mine salters
were at loss how to get even with
them. They could not foretell at what
places the experts would make their
boI1ngs. The samples Of ore were
usually packed in bags under the eve
OF the expert, and each bag was mark
ed to show on diagram from what
place the ore came. The bags were
frally sealed UP and shipped awav
But one day shrewd mine salter took
an ordinary hypodermic syringe, and.
thrusting the needle through the bag
g1ng, injected a strong solution Of
chloride Of gold over the samples of
rock and dirt. The operation was so
simple and easy that 1t was not de-
tected. When the samples were assay-
ed the ore showed that the mine wouId
yield several hundred dollars to the
short ton. The expert metallurgist was
deceived, the mine was purchased for
a big sum, and the inventor of one of
the most recent methods of sailing
mines got safely away to parts un-
known before the fraud was discover
ed -
CHLORIDE OF GOLD PAINTING
Since then the chloride Of gold method
OF sailing mines has varied somewhat
but experts are always on the lookout
Tor the trick in some Of it's many forms.
AT an expense of $50 one could paint
the faces Of ore with chloride of gold
and make poor mine produce an ex-
cellent showing at the assaying office
Many man and company has been
sWlndled by this process. The ASSAY,
er's laboratory on the spot, whose serv-
ices are freely offered to the examin-
Ing expert, has deceived others time
and again. 1t was some time before
a bright metallurgist discovered that
gold had been introduced in the bor-