The Nome nugget., 1904-04-16

! do not believe in riding a free horse to death, but your column is filling d long-felt want to the miners of Alaska, so will beg to have the following ques- tions answered.:
 lst. Will you please give some sim | pie method by which d miner who dis covers gold-bearing ledge can tell if the same is a reducing proposition, without the aid of an assayer. 2d. Can you give any simple tests for gold that d miner can use?
 ROCK CREEK, Solomon.
 Ans.-lst. Powder a little of the ore or rock that contains the mineral and | heat 1t in an iron spoon over d flame or in the stove q have found the oil stove, called the blue flame, to give good re- sultS). and note the action or behavior of the sample. If, shortly after it Is heated. starlike sparks are quickly thrown off. which increase and become more marked if you stir the sample with piece of wire, then the mass be- gins to glow around the edges like d charcoal fire when you blow upon It, while closely above it hovers small | same as the flame of an alcohol lamp or blaze, then the whole mass becomes red hot with fumes, and an OdOr as of a | burning match is noticed, then sul- phurets of iron or copper, or both. are present. If all this is noticed, the ore will be a reducing proposition pure and simple or will have to be treated or reduced by heat before 1t can be separated. If during the heating in the iron spoon you notice an odor sim ! liar to that of garlic or onions It tells l you at once that arsenic iS present. At the same time you will notice that the odOr comes from whltiSh fumes, winch are always given off if arsenic is pres ent. One should be sure to take notice 1 that the white fumes have tbe OdUr Of garlic or onions, for antimony and zine | give off white fumes in the same way. i but there is no odor to them. It will l also be noticed that if the sample acts as have described. after it has been thoroughly heated and allowed to cool. it will have lost it's metallic lustre and become of a dull. dead color. indicating oxidation.
 I'd. A simple test for sulphurets in gold or silver ore, known as the chem ical test, can be easily and quickly made, as follows: Powder d piece of the rock and put pinch of 1t in bot tie (the bottle being clean); then pour little hydrochloric acid upon 1t. Heat the two very slowly, so as not to break the bottle, and if the odOr of rotten 1 eggs (sulphuretted hydrogen) is given off or recognizable, then sulphurets are contained in the ore.
 Another test for gold is to powder l tI I. ,l.,. -.tt tIyAh n sl present, grind very fine and pan. EX anime with lens. If gold is present you will notice yellow particles, not soluble in nitric acid. If in powdering the ore you find it very hard to pound ! up, burn the sample and throw it into cold water while hot, and you will have no trouble in grinding it as fine as you wish.
 A simple test to tell if the ore con- tains carbonates is to place drop of any strong acid upon the suspected rock If etferveScence, or boiling up, ensues, without any OdOr, it contains carbonates.
 The test for tellurides 1 gave in an swer to your former question, and you will find it in THE NUGGET of Nov. 2S. There are many other tests. espe- cially those given with the aid of a blOwpipe, but the miner will save time and money by employing tirst-class assayer to do the work. With the as saver it is profession and life study.
 Ques.-Please answer the following in THE NUGGET: Was the torpedo boat built by Moran Bros, of Seattle. a success? Was the torpedo boat built in Portland, Or, ever accepted by the government, and by whom was it built? GEO. HOWARD.
 Ans.-The torpedo boat; Rowan, built by Moran Bros., was accepted by the government, but some doubt exists in my mind as to the boat having been a success. It had to undergo many changes and had many trials before it was accepted by the government, which was some three years after the boat had been completed.
 The torpedo boat Goldsborough, built by Wolf X Zwicker, of Portland Or, was never accepted by the govern ment. It is laid up in the navy yard at BremertOn, Wash. Every trial this torpedo boat had was failure. Three men were killed during one of the trials by the bursting of steam pipes. It is claimed that the hull is not strong enough to withstand the vibration caused by the powerful machinery when under full speed.
 J. POTTER WHITTREN.