The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1912-12-20
SAVING PLATINUM
q Little Drama Enacted In Uncle
Sans Assay Offices.
SCIENCE IN THE STAR ROLE.
Hishbrow Professors Filled Up the
Cast, and. With Acids and Precious
Metals as Stage Properties, They
Scored a Brilliant Success.

Scored a Brilliant Success.
Even the United States government
has become possessed Of the present
day fever TO eliminate any waste and
stop leaks in the methods of doing
things. The results, particularly in
the mintS and assay Offices, have been
remarkable.
For instance, the old method OF ex-
tracing gold from baser metals when
il came from the Mir consisted merely
Of treating the smelter bars Of gold
with nitric acid. which dissolved out
the baSer metals, leaving the gold with
small percentage of impurities that
could be removed 10y fusing with inter
Germany went the United states one
better in this. The professors over
there, men whose genius for scientific
detail is unsurpassed 10y those of amy
other nation, perfected process fol
refining 10y electricity Simply atatcu
ii is nothing more nor less than clcctri,
plating The Smclter bars are placed
in the plating bath. and the gold l. de
posted in an absolutely pure state.
leaving the base metals behind in Solu-
ton
II was this residue that interested
the high brow professors. The fact
that platinum is frequently found with
gold has been recognized ever since
the science of mctallurgy was in swad
ding clothes; also the fact thgt gold
and platinum have one quality I'm com
mon-i e., that no single acid known
will dissolve them IL takes Combi-
nation of nitric ana muraUc acids 10
get either of these two metals i'm solu-
tiOn, Silver, on the other hand il
readily soluble in nitric acid. No one
ever thought OF testing a nitric acid
solution Of silver for the presence OF
platinum because Of the theory, sound
as religion. that platinum could not be
dissolved by nitric acid Therefore. II |
was argued, If there wasn't enough
silver I'm the solution 10 make IL worth !
while to extract It, then, OF course
there could not be any platinum, 50
into the sewer IL went
The professors began TO experiment |
At the first step they uncovered the |
dusky gentleman I'm the wood pile |
They discovered a curious fact-name- |
ly, that, while platinum alone was not |
soluble i'm nitric acid. some Of its al |
loys with silver were soluble. For |
instance. composition of , per cent |
platinum In silver is readily soluble !
Right there was the clcw leading 20 the !
discovery that for years out of mem |
Ory untold quantities OF the precious |
metal. essential above all others In |
electrical manufactures. had been run !
ming into the sewer. All solutions we're
carefully tested Salts of iron were
added. prccipitatos supposedly Of silver
were analyzcd. and since then platl- |
mum at the rate of $1,000 month has
been offered for sale 10y Uncle sam
1t is interesting 10 trace the sources
OF this gold IN that the facts suggest
that sooner or later deposits Of pati-
mum i'm large quantities are going to
be found Little of the gold coming
from the western United states and
Alaska contains platinum. II is found
almost entirely in the gold mined In
Mexico and South America Gold from
these districts is coming I'm larger
quantities year after year. 1t is found,
for instance, In what Is popularity
known as Guinea gold. Guinea gold
has a peculiar lustcr all It's own II Is
I'm F,.F
this same peculiar color
There are vast reaches of wilderness
i'm South America that. filed with
swamps and mrid savages
armed with poisoned arrows, have so
far resisted the advance Of the white
that sooner or later. when these dis
tricts are exploited. platinum iu large
quantities will bc discovered Some
Bret Harte is probably a-borniug now
10 sing the romance of Platinum gu'rh |
The romance Of gold Is founded ou do,
ounce. which the governments of tho
earth have docrccd must lr its price
now and for eyermurc. They VIII
have 10 build q second story cNtcu
sion on the romance OF the metal that
Is worth twice as much as gold
Now that Uncle Sam is finding this
mine OF platinum IN the supposedly uu.
illoyed bars that the big refining com.
Danies are sending in from their smelt.
srs. tho interesting question IS arising,
who OWNS the platinum Uncle Sam or
he re6ueriest Uncle Sam bought their
gold. refined IL for them ~ cost and
paid them dollar for dollar out Of hi-
pocket Actually be was ont on the
Now that DO has stopped
.he laik in bis draiupire. be- is a little
ibead.
Naturally, if one can play 8t a game
wo can play 40 the same game Some
II the bigger smeItor companies. whose
output Is sufficient. have undertaken
he task OF recovering This platinum