The news-herald., 1903-05-16
PIONEER
CYANIDING
VicissitudeS Encounter
ed by Early Min
ing Man.
ENERGY AND PERSEVERANCE

The cyanide process was first
used in Arizona in 1891 by Mr..
Lewis e. Aubury, now state min
eralogist of California, who was
then operating the Mayfower mine,
of the Tombstone district, under
lease, and this appears to have
been the first successful use of the
process on the Pacific coast, if not
in this country. The following
particulars regarding this process
have been gained from Mr.. Au-
bury, says the Pacific Coast ,1iner:
The Mayfower will be remem-
bered as one OF the important mines
of the Tombstone district during
the few years of the latter's phe-
nomenal career. The big new shaft
of the Tombstone Consolidated
Mines Company is being sunk on
an adjoining claim. The May
flower was abandoned to water
with it's neighbors in 1886, and
soon after it was leased by Mr..
Aubury, whooperated it until 1898.
From 1886 to 1891 the ores reduced
were those rich enough to stand
the freight and reduction cost of
shipping them to Ell Paso, Texas,
which cost averaged about $2S per
ton. The ores extracted which
would not pay q reasonable profit
over this cost were sent to the
dump, and in the end the dump
accumulated nearly 5000 tons.
With q view to saving the val
ues in these ores. Mr.. Aubury some
time before 1891 began experiments
ing with various processes. The
ore was chloride of silver, carry
ing a fair percentage of gold and a
very small percentage of silver sui
phides. Conditions were such that
a mill with the panamalgamation
process was not warranted, and the
processes experimental with, while
effecting fair saving Of the silver
values, would not satisfactorily re-
cover the gold.
While thus worrying with the
problem, Mr.. Aubury's attention
was called to the success then be-
ing made with the cyanide process
in South Africa, and he inquired
into it. What he learned about il
he gained through correspondence
with the McArthur- Forest people
With this information he made
laboratory experiments which sat
isfed him of it's feasibility. Fol
lowing this he constructed a small
plant with capacity of about 5O(
pounds daily, using barrels fol
tanks. With this experimental
plant he secured an extraction O
about 60 per cent of the silver ant
u per cent of the gold. The liter
ature of the process was not the1
abundant and readily available, a
it is now; his instructions wer
meager, the experience of other
was not within reach, and much 0
the detail had to be terrified out b,
experiment.
With the data available the re
suits from the small improvise(
plant were considered q warran
for larger plant. Krom crushin!
rolls were installed, and 1O-to1
cyanide plant constructed. Al
more knowledge of the process wa
secured through the experimental
operation of the new plant, the ex
traction was raised to "a per cen
of the silver and S5 to S7.5 per cen
of the gold. The values recovered
averaged between So and $4 gol(
and - to Is ounces of silver pc
ton. The cost of operation wa
very high, cyanide costing from 6!
to 80 cents per pound at that time
Many difficulties and discour
agements were encountered il
working out the chemical theorie
and the proper methods of oper
alton One trouble was leak