Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1900-03-21
COPPER AND ITS uses
Historical Sketch and Descriptive
Essay On the Red Metal and
Its Nature,
PAPER READAT Los ANGELES
The Price of Copper Advanced Greatly Last
Year-It Is Found the World Over,
But the United States Has the
Richest Mines.

Copper forms so important a part of
the mineral wealth of New Mexico that
the following comprehensive paper on
it's nature treatment and uses will be
of great interest in the territory. 1t was
read by M. E. Wade. of Los Angeles, be-
fore the Southern California Academy
of Sciences:
The writer, Mr.. Wade. who is a prom
inent mining engineer of California. is
a son of f. C. Wade, Sr., of Las Cruces.
In approaching my subject, l am re-
minded of a farmer-no doubt in Ken
~tucky-who was blowing under a snake.
He was asked why he was doing that.
He said: This is a rotation of crops;
snakes make corn, corn makes whisky.
and whisky makes snakes
Did you ever think of what becomes
of all the old brass pins? Well, they ro-
tate just like snakes, corn n whisky.
Pins are usually made Of brass, an al
loy of copper and zinc. These metals
are reduced from their ores, alleged in
to brass, and the brass made into pins.
The pins, when lost, disintegrate, re-
turning to earth again.
COPPER PRICES.
AT the present time no metal is at
tracing in so great a degree the atten-
ton of capitalists, with the exception
of gold, as copper. Within the past year
it has risen in price from about 11h
a.-%. 1850 1.,,I tn 1917 onrfc TIC A ~
ket quotation is now about 1872 cents.
I'VE have all read of the stone age,
the bronze age, and the iron age. In
ancient times it is probable that man
was acquainted with copper before he
knew anything of iron. Tubal Cain is
recorded to have wrought in brass and
iron, and the Chinese have traditions of
the use of copper at a much earlier time
than is recorded in history. The Gre
clans used to import 1t from the island
of Cyprus, whence its name in Latin
cuprum.
FORMS OF COPPER ORE.
Copper is found in a great variety of
rocks, from the archean up to the re-
cent formations of the earth's crust. It's
original combination Is probably that
Of the sulphide, with sulphur. The sui
phide of copper by means of natural
agencies-water. oxygen and other ele-
/ ments, Is frequently altered into sec
ondary compounds-sulphates oxides
carbonates, etc. The most common
forms of occurrence of copper are the
sulphide. oxide and carbonate. Various
forms are usually found in the same
vein or formation; and generally the
| deeper a mine is developed-the fur
! Their from atmospheric and oxidizing in
| ~luences generally-the more common is
/ the occurrence of the sulphide.
Copper is frequently found native or
| free state-most notably in the south OF
the basin of the Superior lake, Michi-
gan.
ITS PROPERTIES.
"Of all the metals, with the exception
of titanium, copper is the only one hav-
ing q red color. 1t is very malleable
and ductile, capable of being rolled into
SIletlS dIlu lawn INV u -" w
cut with a knife, but is harder than
lead and softer thar iron. It's density
Is greater than that of iron. but less
| than that of lead. 1t melts at 1896 de-
| grees Fahrenheit, a lower heat than Is
required for iron or gold, but greater
than for silver.
Copper is readily acted upon by
many acids, mineral and vegetable. It's
salts are quite poisonous, and hence it
Is unsafe to use copper or brass utensils
for culinary purposes. Fatty matters
facilitate it's oxidation. 1t readily cor
rodes in a damp atmosphere, forming
verdigris.
USES OF COPPER.
"a very common salt of copper, used
much in the arts, is that of the sulphate,
a very beautiful blue crystalline sub
stance, known commonly as blue stone.
AN important use Of copper Is in
making jewelry, it being a chief con-
stituent of brass. 1t enters into the
composition Of many alloys. Alloyed
with zinc, it forms brass; with tin and
other metals, the various bronzes, bell
metal, gun-metal, etc. Its most impor-
tant use at the present time is for cleo
trical purposes.
Another of it's important uses is as
sheathing for marine vessels, to pre-
VEN the destructive effects Of the terre-
do. Alloyed with aluminium, it's tensile
strength is much enhanced for struct-
ural purposes. Another very important
use is in the milling of gold ores, owing
to it's property of amalgamating with
quicksilver. For this purpose copper
aprons, with the upper surface bright
ened with a coating Of quicksilver, Is
placed in front of the stamp mill. and
the finely pulverized ore passed over
them. The quicksilver catches the lib
Grated gold and holds 1t there, while the
more or less worthless gangue matter
passes off.
Copper constitutes about 10 per cent
of all gold and silver coin, rs per cent of
the nickel, and the chief part of the
despised penny. 1t constitutes the chief
coin of the Chinese.
TREATMENT OF COPPER.
Copper Is usually reduced from it's
ores by smelling. The ore, mixed with
lime, iron, manganese and coke, Is heat
ed usually by mean of a blast, and
when fluid, settles either as a matte, or
metal, and is drawn of from the bot
tom of the furnace. Sometimes acids
are used to extract the copper, and
there are instances where natural
streams of water carrying copper in So
luton are reduced by putting in old
scrap iron.