The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1916-01-27

ed over the oil fiotation process of cX-
tracing the uttermost penuyNeight
of these metals, as we'll as gold and
silver, from their native ores.
1t seems a very singular thing that,
without interfering with the laws of
specific gravity, these heavy metals
can be induced to float upon the sur
face of the ore pump merely by the in
PRODUCTION of little oil into the mix
tllre.
If one had fine needle in hay
stack his task would be difficult, al
though perhaps not impossible; but to
extract from a ton of ore the fraction
of an ounce of gold distributed
throughout it's bulk is impossible with
out the aid of the chemist.
The caynide process of treating gold
and silver supplanted the older meth
DDS and gave a positive value to low
grade ores, but now it must, for some
purposes at least, yield to the oil flota-
ton process, which has been in use
for several years and saved millions
and millions of dollars, says the Wash
ington Star.
The Colorado Scientific society, the
western press and mining Interests are
searching in every possible way for a
woman, that they may reward her. If
living; or erect a fitting memorial to
her honor if she has passed away; but
no trace of her has been found.
Thirty five years ago there lived in
Denver, Col, an assayer by the name
of Everson, engaged then in the prac-
tice of his profession, who incidentlly
took to his home concentrates in small
sacks made of heavy muslin. His sis
school teacher by profession, so the
story runs, had joined her brother at
Denver, and was making her home
with him. Very little is known of her
except that she was keen minded and
took a great interest in her brothers
work. 1t is also said that she had
reached an age and acquired such a
reputation for punctillious cleanliness
that she was sometimes called a prim
old maid
In the Wash Tub.
Be that as it may, she undertook to
keep her brothers things spotlessly
clean; and when she saw that the sack
in which he carried the samples had
become soiled by contact with oil on
which dirt had settled, she promptly
put them to soak in a tub of water. A
little film of oil came gradually to the
surface and she was completely stag
gered when she saw it in traces which,
thanks to her brothers teaching, she
knew to be gold.
She could hardly believe her eyes,
which seemed to her impossible that
gold, which she knew to be nearly
twice as heavy as lead, could float.
Nevertheless, there was the precious
yellow metal-which she correctly sur
missed had come in infinitely small
sacks-resting quietly on top of the
water.
1t is not recorded whether she
thought, that like the axe of Elijah on
the waters of Jordan, a miracle had
taken place. but what she really had
seen was the particles of oil in the film
gold themselves about the still smaller
particles of gold which possess the Pc
culiar quality of attracting the oil tc
and about them. The specific gravity
of the resulting tiny mass being less
than that of the water, 1t fioated tt
the surface to the great amazement
of the over particular school mistress
Apparently, the possible value of this
accidental discovery, although moi
realized, was suspected; for Miss
Everson took out letters patent cover.
ing a process for extracting gold and
other metals-very fortunately "othel
metals" for the process applies equal
ly to low grade ores of silver, copper
zinc and lead. These patents have
long since expired; otherwise they
would have a value which would make
Midas pale with envy.
The patentee seems to have made
some effort to test her process on
commercial scale; for apparently she
attempted with one Criley, at Baker
City. Ore, to extract gold from ore:
after they had been pulverized to
powder, but while successful in re-
covering the precious metal, the pro
cess, as applied by them required 81
much oil that they abandoned the en-
terprise on account of the expense.
Her primitive method provided M
way of lessening the quantity of Oil O.
of recovering a sufficiently large per
centage of it to put the operation oil
an economical basis.
Where Air Helps.
Had she only gone a step or tW'
farther she might have fioated the gol'
to the surface with the use of only
ouart of oil to ton Of ore. All sh
had to do was to make a froth OF tn
, mixture by stirring apparatus or b.
) injecting air under pressure heav
enough to make bubbles. These steps
IL taken should have made her one
: the wealthiest women in the world.
The later history of Miss Everson
nf