The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1923-09-27

] olutf.
1T is easier" says Mr. Miller. ito
make the trip from either camp to
New York than it is from one camp to
the other"
THE country is either morass or
a jungle. We had to drain the ground
ON which we built our camp" Miller
said
Platinum. says Miller "was dis
covered by the Spanish when they
were working the Cholo gold placer
They called it platina.' which means
near silver OF like silver 1t went
over TO Russia. where they found the
metal in the Ural mountains. and
called il platine The word came back
to us as platinum
Value of Platinum.
In 1913 platinum was worth $50
an ounce. During the war the price
climbed. The United States govern
ment bought all the platinum it could
get hold of, fixing the price of sos an
ounce. 1t climbed after the war TO
Sl7O an ounce. and has now dropped
to Sis an ounce"
In the early days of platinum pro-
duction it was used chiefly in chem
lead works-tiny retorts in assaying
offices and the like. It's chief recon-
mendatiOn was its ability to withstand
heat With its increase in price 1T
son acquired a vogue as IA setting for
jewelry. The new use has far eX-
a.. 4 ia,
The worlds production of plati-
num-most of IT comes from Colon
bia-is $4,000 ounces annually. OF
this amount &C per cent goes into
jewelry, a little more than Is per
cent goes into electrical machinery
10 per cent into dental work and
little more than s per cent into
chemical work. About ~ per cent
is credited to the miscellaneous
column.
THE largest nugget of platinum that
has yet been discovered" says Miller.
lis now in the Egleston Museum Of
Mineralogy at Columbia university It
was found in the Urals. The Car Of
Russia gave it to Columbia. This was
long before platinum had attained its
present high price.
1T was a matter of much interest
to our company" he said, ito know
where the placer platinum originated
where the mother lode might be
located We traced back the river
wash until we came upon basalt
5erpentine We found the platinum
in the serpentine. We also found
copper Neither metal was in paying
quantities.
In the placer workings platinum
and gold are both found the gold i'm
much smaller quantities. We work
the ground with huge dredges similar
to those used at Virginia City. Mon
tana. These dredges represent "a ire
mendous outlay of capital. Some of
the dredge men are former Virginia
City men.
Hard on White Man.
1.-THE climate is hard on a white
he can get away every
six months. | wouldn't advise white
man to come to South America I'M
less he has secured employment be-
fore coming A certain number of
white men are needed. These are
arranged for in advance For in
stance, we must have three engineers
on dredge So we arrange to have
three. There is no place for the
-,,,rtl, man rTbaro raxra,. &c
Before the war Russia produced
300, 900 ounces of platinum annually
During the war the dredges were de-
itroyed. There is not enough ground
eft TO justify the expense OF build
ng new equipment. so Colombia has
he field almost to itself
Alaska produced 40 ounces last
ear" Mr. Miller said. Oregon pro-
Iuced 40 ounces, California, $50; Ne
ada only a few ounces. The whole
United States production was less than
900 ounces.
THE best platinum contains about
0 per cent iridium. This is the metal
hat is used to tip the best fountain
ems. There is no standard for platin
IN. so that INSCRIPTIONS dealers will
ubstitute gold or even cheaper metals
n place of iridium, which is worth
300 an ounce. There is no recourse
or the purchaser, because platinum is
90 new to have a standard of quality"
Mr. Miller says that platinum violin
nd guitar strings are now coming into
ogue. platinum wire can be drawn
hinner. will last longer, costs but little
lore than silver strings and does not
he says
In the locality where this Butte boy
working away at his profession.
here is only the banana, the rubber
liant and a few berries among the
amily of plants useful to man.
There are about 60 white men and
90 natives employed on this enter
rise. Young Miller, notwithstanding
no OH IN ofa,. IF tho country choxye no