Year: 1866



 its equivalent. Transportation rid Mohayc OF Hardyyillc will cost about the same, and from Wilmington, all the way by land, say from lG to 20 cents per pound

 THE PROPOSED MINING COLLEGE.

 The establishment of school or college for the purpose of teaching the sciences bear ing upon mining, agricultural and the me chanc arts, is step which, if well directed at the outset, and placed upon liberal ba- sis, cannot fail to produce the most beneficial results Much will be lost, or rather Tall short of attainment, if unwise counsels pre- vail Upon the subject, the San Francisco Haig aud Si,ntifc Press says:

 The proposition to open school of technl- cal instruction for miners, is naturally viewed with some degree of jealousy by those who ha,c added little practical education to a mere empirical knowledge of the theory oi mining and by those who.aiter long years of toil and experience have acquired degree of knowledge which enables them to manage with considerable success, in some particular locality. or in q peculiar class of mineral, with which they have been long familiar. The first. fear an exposure of their ignorance while the latter are jealous of the proposed introduction of a class of men into their midst who have been raised to the same point as themselves, by a sort of royal road, whieh they have not been permitted to travel Such objections, of course, arc not worthy of con sderation

 There is still another class who honestly fear lest the practical character of the miner would be injured by placing too much depen- denee upon theory alone. Such fears are groundless, ss 1t is not expected to substitute the instruction proposed for the experience to be gained only by patient and perseyering labor. Even superficial mining education is not without its benefits for, let any good, practical miner only acquire a Fair amount of general knowledge in the science of mining, in addition to his peculiar skill, and he will be from that time on freed from the vexatious interference of shallow pretenders and char latans, who, possessing neither practical ! knowledge nor scientific requirements, go about the country, with a swagger and pre- tentious confidence of knowledge, seeking to impose their baInbuggery upon uneducated mine owners.

 One great need of something more than mere practical experience for success in min ing, grows out of the varied circumstance under which mineral deposits occur in differ ent districts, and the constantly changing geological features by which they are sur rounded; to a proper knowledge of which technical instruction in schools is an absolute necessity. One of the chief objects of the institution proposed, is to fit the miner by a general examination and study, both theoret- ically and by observation in the field and mine, of all these various phenomena. and the different processes used in various locali- ties, to suit his machinery, and his processes. and his general mode of work, to any partic- : lar locality in which he may be engaged, and to any condition under which he may find the mineral placed, which he may be called , upon to treat Without the education pro- posed, he may be constantly subjected to the imposition of charlatanism, or he may be led into pecunary ruin by the one-sided knowl- edge or local prejudices which he has imper- 2 ceptibly acquired by his isolated, practical ' education.

 : Every person intimately acquainted with , early mining in Wa,hoe, knows that millions , of dollars were sacrificed there by the ignor- ance of those in charge. Men were sent to , take charge of mines there, who were never under ground in all their lives, unless on visit to wine cellar while mill.men and amalgamators were put in charge of works who were ignorant of the very first princi- pies of both mechanics and metalurgy. And who does not know that such men generally pretend to three-fold the knowledge of those who are experienced and educated over , whelming and disgusting with weight of words and assertions, those more modest and unassuming men who thoroughly understand ) their business