The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-02-03
SHOULD CHILDREN SING
BY MRS. T. NELSON ANDREWS

by MRS. Il. NJ
There has been a great deal of discus
sion as to whether or not children should
be taught or allowed to sing.
To sing. with some children. seems as
natural as TO breathe They love to sing
as they play. Does that hurt? some would
ask. Again, the answer would be- why
disturb it. Let them alone Do not
spoil them by teaehing-at least, until
the physical body is stronger. on tbs.
other hand, some do say. To sing is
the only real music lis the one musical
instrument always at hand. Surely. as
music is God-given. then why would 1t
be harmful for children TO sing?
In the January Etude you will find
where the question was asked Nine Nell
lie Melba, What work should the girl
under Is do?' Her reply was:
The youthful training of the singer
should be confined quite strictly to that
of obtaining a good general and musical
education. That is, the vocal traininr
may be safely postponed until the singer
lis Il or Is years of age. of course.
there have been cases of famous singers
who have sung during their childhood, hut
they are exceptions to all rules The
study of singing demands the direction
of an intelligent, well ordered mind. II
is by no means wholly a matter of imi-
tation. In fact without some cultiva-
tion of the taste-that is. the sense of
discriminating between what is good and
bad-one may initiate with disastrous re-
suits
She further says: 1.-THE voice in child
hood is a very delicate organ. despite the
wear and tear which children give il by
unnecessary bowling and screaming. More
than this, the child mind is so suscep-
tible to impressions, and these impress
sfons become SO firmly fixed that the
best vocal training for rne child should
be that of taking the little one to hear
great singers. All that the juvenile mind
hears is not lost. although much will be
forgotten. However, the better part will
be unconsciously stored away IN the SUBJ
conscious mind, to burst forth later in
beautiful song, through no different pro-
cess than that by which the little birds
store away the song of the older birds
Dealers in singing birds place them in
rooms with older and highly developed
many feet below the outcroppings some
times to the depth of 1000 feet often to a
depth of 500 feet The government reports
show that there are millions and millions
of tons of this kind of copper ore which
it has been impossible commercially to
utilize partly because the ores are of
too poor quality to smelt and partly be-
cause they could not be concentrated to
commercial advantage. 1t has long been
the hope of those who have great interest
in American copper development that
chemistry utilized by a master authority
or that some law of physics could be en-
ployed so that these vast deposits of
American copper could be developed To
do that would mean a great deal for the
United States as a copper producing ma
ton. Commercially to utilize these ores
would greatly increase the wealth of the
country.
As II Is in Spain
The Rio Tinto copper mines of Spain,
which are among the largest worked any
where in the world. have been success
fully treated by the Spaniards through
the use of the same chemicals which are
the basis of the solution that was eN-
amined by DIR. Ricketts, But the Span
iards made use of the natural and un-
aided processes Of nature, sometimes
leaving these ores exposed to these natu-
raj processes for many years
The new process, while utilizing TO
considerable extent the same chemical
agencies which the Rio Tinto miners en-
ploy, is able greatly to accelerate the
work and, furthermore to use the chemi-
cal solution over and over again. The
new process treats the copper success
fully within from nine to twenty hours.
The Chemical Solution
The chemical solution utilized in this
way has been known to copper miners
and manufacturers for many years, but
it has never been subjected to such
treatment as to regenerate it after having
been once used so that it can be imme-
diately employed again in this work.
The solution is poured over copper ore,
resulting in deposit of copper. This
is passed over or through iron in solu-
tion. Then the process divides into two
parts. The copper having been thus eX-
tracted is ready for smelling and re-
fning and then for the market On the
other hand, the solution which carries
the iron is regenerated by means OF
electricity and herein consists the vital
feature of the perfected process. The
iron, having been removed, is again uti-
lized for the passage through 1t of cop
per while the regenerated solution re-
turns to its tank or receptacle so that it
nay be ready for use in successive treat
ments.
An Experimental Plant
Dr. Ricketts, advised his clients to es-
tablish plant sufficient for the treat
reason that tests in plant of that kind
we're of greater value than those which
were made in a laboratory. Upon this
ADVICE a plant was established at wa
verify, n. j., and copper ores from Ari-
zona, Nevada and other parts of the west
have been treated by this process. ores
from Nevada were treated 20 successive
times by this solution without any ap-
parent dimunition of it's effectiveness
Ores from Arizona have thus been treated
and there seems to be no doubt that the
process will do what in the report made
by DR.. Ricketts, he asserted 1T would do.
With professional caution, however, ne
insists that it be said that this or else
some equivalent process is to mark an
epoch in the treatment of oxidized copper
ore exactly as the cyanide process identi-
fed a new epoch in the treatment OF
gold. Very likely there are to be incl
dental improvements of details, but 1t Is
the opinion of the men of science that
the fundamental principles by means OF
which copper ore heretofore incapable OF
commercially practicable treatment VIII
yield, relatively speaking, as rich returns
for the United States as the utilization of
the cyanide process has done in the field
of gold mining
nIHTn