The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1914-03-19
Treatment OF ORES
WHILE IN THE NINE
AMUSING EXPERIMENTS AND
SUGGESTIONS FOR EXTRACT
ING THE VALUES IN ORES.

In addressing the Mining and Met
allurgical Society Of America as new
" elected president. James F. Kemp
outlined in humorous vein some pro-
posed methods for teaching and smell
ting the ores in place. The address,
curiously enough, called forth from
other members numerous instances OF
successful actual attempts along SIM
liar lines, says the Engineering and
Mining Journal.
Allen H. Rogers was reminded Of a
scheme tried in Arizona not long ago.
where in certain property, drilling
developed q small tonnage Of low
grade, disseminated copper ore. The
company set up small generator
driven by gasoline engine and. plac-
ing electrodes in two Of the drill holes.
passed current through them in the
attempt to extract the copper ny cleo
trolysis. The details were never pub
lished, but 1t Is understood that they
are not now operating, and probably
the attempt was not successful
The same man who suggested this
method had an ingenious scheme for
transporting copper metal, in connec-
tlcn with mine in Peru, which was
without railway connection His snS-
gestion was that, after the copper was
reduced at the mine, it be drawn into
wire, one end Of the wire to be carried
to the coast and attached to power
full winding engine by which the cop
per, continuously drawn into wire at
the mine, would be dragged over the
country and delivered at the coast.
Actual Experiments Have Been Made.
Sidney J. Jennings said that the re-
covery of metal from ores without
mining was a possibility which had
always possessed an interest for him.
He referred to a statement, made by r.
M. Catlin some years ago, concerning
experiments of his on dissolving silver
ore in place with hyposulphite solu-
ton, in which, owing to the nature OF
the case, a fair measure OF commercial
success was attained. On the Rand.
some experiments We're made to dis
solve the gold in the upper levels OF
! the deposit H. S. Stark, who was re-
sponsibe for the successful treatment
Of failing piles in place, conceived the
idea that it would be possible to treat
the upper level Of the low grade main
reef by the same process which had
proved successful on the tailings
dump. The upper portion of the main
reef was a porous blanket, having. a
clayey streak on the foot wall Ex-
lperiments on small scale proved
that the blanket was permeable to cy-
anide solution and it seemed possible
that, while undoubtedly a, large
amount of cyanide solution would be
LOST, a certain amount would be saved
land whatever was saved would be
clear gain, as the gold contents in the
main reef would not pay for mining
and milling. Experiments were con-
tinued for length of time sufficien
to prove that not only was the cyanide
solution lost. but the gold was not re-
covered. During the first years Of thu
development Of the deep levels on thu
: Rand many suggestions were made t
,obviate the necessity for sinking thu
Ideep shafts contemplated. One en-
lthusiastic French engineer came GU
to see Mr.. Jennings one day on thu
Crown Deep. and noticing the elabor
ute preparations being made for deeI
shafts and large mills, earnestly de-
claimed against the waste Of capita
when according to him. all that wa!
necessary was to sink diamond dril
hole at the top Of the property and an
other one at the bottom, to pour eva
hide solution in the top hole and puml
it out, enriched with all the gold, from
he bottom. precipitating this gold or
zinc. His enthusiastic why not. Mr.
Jennings" still echoed, Mr.. Jennings
said. in his ears.
How II Worked in Tennessee.
]. Parke Claiming noted that ex.
tracing metal from ores without min.
ing them was not altogether an ride
scent dream. The late John Stanton
told him about 1858, when he was al
Ducktown, Tenn, among the proper.
ties under his management was the
Eureka mine This is one OF the larg-
est pyritic deposits in the district. blu,
is low in copper, running probably
less than 1 per cent. The result was
that the black copper zone under the
gossan was so thin that it did not pay
to drift 1t out. Mr.. Stanton said that
he permitted the mine to fill up with
water each month, and then pumped
lit out running the water through
boxes containing scrap iron, and OBJ
tanned commercially successful results
He is said to have been stopped in his
work by the owners Of the Isabella, an
adjoining property, who claimed he
was, probably unconsciously, extract
ing the copper from their mine.
Allen H. Rogers then called atten-
ton to the fact that at the Anaconda
the mine waters richest in copper are
drawn from these sections where the
mines are on fire. The condition. al
hough inadvertent on the part Of the
management. is evidently the same as
hat sough by Mr.. Stanton.