MINERALS IN AUSTRALIA.

It is now some weeks since we adverted to the discoveries made by Mr. John Calvert in Australia, and the specimens or rather nuggets he had collected, which it is highly satisfactory to find have since been arranged at rooms, where we were well pleased to find some of an illustrative character of the country, and demonstrative of the value to be attached, whether as specimens, or the result of assays made. We are given to understand that upwards of 8,000 specimens have been collated by that gentleman, of which, however, not above one-sixth is exhibited in his cabinet, while others, however, may be consulted at the "Great Globe" itself, in Leicester square; where, indeed, can be seen the great nugget weighing 134 lbs., in value estimated at £6,000. Mr. Calvert's object, in the arrangement of these collections would appear to be that of illustrating his travels and researches in Australia, with his views as to the electric origin and formation of minerals; and, moreover, to exemplify the analogy between the Australian and English goldbearing rocks, in reference to the probable development of the gold formations of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. From the non-arrival of the specimens on their way, it is next to impossible to illustrate his several explorations in New Zealand, New Caledonia, &c. Among the many specimens submitted, we may add those attached to mineralogy, comprising a copious illustration of the metals and mineral productions and wealth of the Australian continent, the several metals embracing gold, silver, mercury, platinum, iron, copper, tin, zinc, lead, titanium, iridium, cobalt, antimony, &c. Coal, graphite, slate, limestone, quartz, granite, marble, clays, flint, gypsum, &c. Precious stones, diamond. ruby, sapphire, beryl, chrysoberyl, opal, onyx, agate, hyacinth, garnet, tourmaline, peridot, corundum, cornelian, jasper, malachite. Specimens of gold, &c., from quartz veins, and other mineral productions discovered by that gentleman, the site of which has not yet been made known. The minerals are chiefly arranged according to Mr. Calvert's theory of the action of electricity in the deposition and crystallization of minerals, which may, perhaps, in part embrace that of our scientific correspondent, Mr. Evan Hopkins, whose work has frequently been referred to in our columns. Analyses of gold rocks, according to the electric process discovered by Mr. Calvert. Collections of minerals to illustrate the mineral formations, and the gold productions of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, as gold quartz, gold granite, gold slate, gold gossan, ferruginous gold ore, nuggets, scale gold, &c.; some of these specimens are richer than most from Australia-one containing at the rate of 370 ozs. troy to the ton of ore; another rich specimen is gold quartz from Dolfrwynog, with gold dust from English rocks by Mr. Calvert's process. In addition to this interesting series we have manuscript maps of the geological and mineralogical features of the gold fields and other formations of Australia, with sketches of the quartz-veins appertaining to that country. All these are desirable adjuncts to exemplify the reports of the several mining projects, while the specimens submitted, and which are open to the inspection of the public for a limited period, at once show the mineral value of the country.

GOLD MINES OF NORTH CAROLINA.

From a Report upon the Gold Hill mine in Rowan County, North Carolina, by Dr. Asbury, of Charlotte, we gather some facts in addition to those stated in a preceding page of this number of the Mining Magazine, in relation to the gold mines of North Carolina :

:

The veins are numerous, well-defined, and what is very important to easy working, and as a sign of unending depth, they are entirely vertical in their positions, cutting directly across the slate rocks, which have a dip of about 75° towards the north-west. They are already down in some places as deep as 350 fect, without discerning any diminution in the yield of the gold; and what is

very encouraging, they find at this depth that copper ore of good quality is beginning to make its appearance, so that the greatest certainty is felt that the income of the mines is about to be augmented by valuable returns in this me

tal also.

From the statistics given by Dr. Asbury, it appears that the Gold Hill mines have afforded $1,500,000 since their discovery in 1843, and that their exploration has led to the growth of a village of above 800 inhabitants, situated directly over the mines. They have, moreover, been operated with a very inadequate force, and much of the time have been interfered with by legal disputes and other embarrassments. They are at present, however, making very rich returns to the various parties interested in them, as owners of the soil and lessees.

The average yield of the ore by the first process is $1 50 per 100 lbs. ; but the sands are re-washed, on toll, by different parties of adventurers to the number of five times. The improvements now in progress for a better grinding of the ore, and for securing a more perfect amalgamating process, it is confidently believed, will greatly enhance the value of these mines.

The famous mine of Dorn, in Edgefield. S. C., is also referred to, in this report. It is the only one in the United States which at present is worked to a greater profit than the Gold Hill mines. In Dorn's mine, it has been a very common result for the hands to average $50 each, per day! A single blast of powder has often thrown out $500 in fragments of gold, which the miner could at once step forward and gather up in his hand! This mine is now yielding $200,000 per annum, with a force of scarcely more than twenty men!

The mines at Gold Hill, it may be added, are situated in a perfectly healthy country, as is proven from the fact that they are wrought by European miners and native white laborers.

SEPARATION OF GOLD FROM ARSENICAL PYRITES, ACCORDING TO PLATTNER'S METHOD. BY W. GUETTLER.*

The mines of Reichenstein, in Silesia, abandoned for more than five centuries, have been recently opened with advantage, in consequence of the application, on a large scale, of a method invented by Professor Plattner, for separating gold from the waste of arsenical ores.

The ore at Reichenstein is an arsenical pyrites, containing about 200 grains of gold in the ton. The ore is roasted in a reverberatory furnace surmounted by a large condensing chamber, in which the arsenious acid is condensed as fast as it is volatilized. There then remains on the floor of the furnace, oxide of iron mixed with a certain quantity of arsenic, together with the whole of the gold. This is placed in a vessel so arranged that a current of chlorine can be passed through it, by which the gold and iron are taken up, and afterwards separated from the residuum, by the aid of a certain quantity of water, and the gold is afterwards precipitated from this solution by sulphuretted hydrogen. To prevent the admixture of iron at this stage, a small dose of hydrochloric acid is added to the solution before the sulphuretted hydrogen is introduced. The auriferous compound having been separated from the liquor, is washed and heated in an open porcelain crucible, to drive off the sulphur, by which the gold is reduced to the metallic state, by fluxing it in the usual manner.

This simple and ingenious method, which has made it worth while to reopen the Reichenstein mine, is equally applicable to the vast quantity of refuse accumulated near many other old works. In awarding the Council Medal, the Jury have desired in this case to associate the name of Professor Plattner, the inventor of the method, with that of M. Guettler, who has brought it into operation on a large scale.

* From the Reports of the Juries of the Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations, 1851, London.

LONDON AND VIRGINIA GOLD MINING CO.

The directors of the London and Virginia Gold and Copper Mining Company have received and circulated the report of Captain Hitchins among the shareholders. Captain Hitchins went to Virginia in June, and has lately returned. It appears, from his report, the mine is a very valuable one. There is silver and copper ore in it, but Captain Hitchins states that it is his present belief that for a time the main produce will be gold. It can be most profitably worked, but the assay of the ore brought by Captain Hitchins not having yielded so much as a former assay referred to in the prospectus, the directors have made a new contract, by which the vendors have accepted, as a present payment, half the amount originally agreed to be paid, upon conveyance, in cash and shares, and have postponed a large portion of the price until the shareholders shall have received a dividend of 25 per cent. The directors have issued a report along with that of Captain Hitchins, in which they state that instead of £50,000, as originally proposed, £25,000 will be sufficient capital for the purchase and full development of the mine. They have made a call of 5s. per share, and they believe that, in addition to the deposit already paid, this will suffice.-London Daily News.

JOURNAL OF COPPER MINING OPERATIONS.

COINAGE OF COPPER.

The coinage of Copper at the Philadelphia Mint for 1853, has been as fol

$32,718 29

The coinage of Copper since the organization of the Mint has been as fol

With regard to the result of farther explanation during the season, the Lake Superior Journal makes the following statement:

We have received the most flattering accounts of the recent discoveries made on the Wisconsin side of the mineral range of Lake Superior. A number of exploring parties have been into that section of country this season looking for mineral, and several promising copper veins have been discovered and a number of locations made. The mineral range lies along the extreme south-western portion of the lake, and is accessible from the lake. The veins are simlar

to the other native copper veins of the lake, and they will undoubtedly prove as rich and extensive as those in Michigan.

The Albion Mining Company have commenced opening a new vein, recently purchased, which is thus described in the letter of the superintendent:

The mineral property lately purchased by the Albion Mining Company, consists of one hundred and sixty acres of land. It is situated within sixty rods of the south shore of Portage Lake, Lake Superior, and it lies towards the southeastern side of the trap range, on a slope from the lake of about one in five.

There are six large veins known to be passing through the tract, but the one opened is a continuation of that on which the "Isle Royal" and "Portage" mines are being wrought, and the workings of the latter are near your boundary. The average width of this vein is about fourteen feet, and it is composed of epidote, calc-spar, quartz, amygdaloid, and copper.

The following is the letter of the exploring geologist, Prof. J. T. HODGE, to the President of the Company:

SAUT STE. MARIE, Aug. 4th, 1853.

SIR,-In accordance with your letter of instructions, of the 17th ult., I proceeded to Lake Superior, and have with great care examined the tract of land owned by the Cacique Mining Company, and although I had, from long acquaintance with Captain Edwards, great confidence in his judgment and integrity, yet, as I wrote to you from this place on my way up the Lake, I visited the location with a conviction in my own mind, amounting almost to a certainty, that, in this instance, I should, on examination, be compelled to report against the purchase he recommended of the tract by the Albion Company; but, after an examination of the principal vein on this tract, as also of the workings on the same vein on the adjoining Isle Royal and Portage mines, I have found the vein so large and so productive in copper, that I am compelled to decide in favor of the purchase by your Company, and have, in accordance with my instructions above referred to, directed Captain Edwards to transfer all his men and movable property from the old workings of the Albion Mining Company to this location.

Captain Edwards will immediately furnish you with his plan of working the mines, his estimates of the expense of the same, and of the probable product for the next three years; and I take pleasure in adding that I think the great experience of Captain Edwards, both in the mines of Cornwall and Lake Superior, together with his well-known caution in all mining calculations, will justify great confidence in his judgment and estimates.

In conclusion, I will add that the surface indications of this property are such as unquestionably to warrant the expectation that it will become one of the most valuable copper mines on Lake Superior. On my return to New-York, I will report in detail. Very respectfully, I am yours, JAMES T. HODGE.

Of the mining operations west of the Ontonagon river, we find some important particulars in a recent number of the Lake Superior Journal:

Among the mines west of the Ontonagon river, the Norwich continues to attract the most attention, and was never showing more copper in its shafts and drifts than at present. The long adit level, which will drain the mine at a great distance below the surface, and enable them to take out the copper on tram roads instead of hoisting it to the surface, is now nearly up with the shaft, and will connect with it in a few days. They have shipped, this season, some thirty tons of copper, and have on hand, ready for shipment, about as much more. Mr. Davis, the superintendent, is preparing for extensive operations during the coming winter.

The Pittsburgh Mining Company, whose works are near neighbor, on the west, to the Norwich mine, are making some discoveries underground of an interesting character. Mr. Moyle, their able Cornish superintendent, took the course of the Norwich vein and commenced sinking a shaft, a few months ago,

where there was no sign of the rock, and at the depth of about forty feet, through sand and gravel, he struck directly on an east and west vein, and also what appears to be a north and south vein. On drifting to the north and sinking still further, he found a still more promising east and west vein than the first-some four feet in width, carrying small pieces of copper and rich stamp work. This is a promising beginning for a mine.

The Windsor Mine, adjoining the Norwich on the east, under the superintendence of Daniel Plummer, promises to be like its neighbor, rich in mass copper. Mr. Plummer has worked only a small force of men, since the commencement of operations on this location, but he has made every thing tell in the systematic opening of his mine. The Windsor vein is identical with that of the Norwich.

The Colling Mine, situated next to the Windsor, on the east, is looking better in their new diggings than in the old. They have found a larger and more regular vein, which promises well for the amount of work done.

The Forest Mine, the first mine west of the Ontonagon river, is improving as they work south on the vein, and is turning out considerable copper in mass and barrel work, besides the large amount of excellent stamp stuff.

The Ohio Trap Rock Mine, under the management of Mr. Buzzo. is presenting a good show of copper from the new vein which has recently been opened, and which is likely to prove the main vein. They are taking out very rich stamp work and some small masses.

The following very complete sketch of the Portage mining region, where operations have commenced but recently, is from the pen of the editor of the Detroit Daily Advertiser, who has made an interesting and observing tour through this region the last few months:

The Portage mining region, though comparatively newly opened, is already attracting much attention among the scientific and business circles, from the peculiarities which are presented by explorations and mining operations; indeed there is no region upon Lake Superior towards which more interest is manifested.

The mouth of the Portage river is upon the east side of Pt. Keweena, about twenty miles from the extremity of the point. This river, in ascending, soon opens into Portage Lake, which is twenty-five miles in length, some three miles in width, and which with its bays cuts off the point about twelve miles from its base, except a portage on the west side of about one mile. This portage is made for the most part across a swamp, and extends from the bayous of the Portage lake to the "Portage," as it is called, on the west side of Point Keweena. The general direction of the river and lake is west by north. The veins of this region may be easily traced by the numerous pits which have been sunk by the ancients, or "mound builders." They occur in gangs of three parallel veins. The mines which have been most developed are the Isle Royal and the Portage.

The Isle Royal or "Sheldon Vein," as it is sometimes called, has been traced from the south side of sec. 2, in township 54 north, of range 34 west, northeasterly across Portage lake. This mine has an elevation of three or four hundred feet from the surface of Portage lake, from which it is distant one and a half miles in a southerly direction. The direction of the vein is north 33 deg. east, and has been opened on this location by four shafts, at no point of which has the width been less than eight feet. No. 2 shaft at this mine has been sunk sixty-six feet, and the vein has been found fourteen feet in width at the bottom; a drift has been cut north from this shaft entirely on the vein, seventy feet in length, showing it remarkably rich in barrel, masses, and stamp work. No. 3 shaft, which is two hundred feet south of No. 2, has been sunk 120 feet deep, producing copper the entire depth in form of barrel, stamp work, and masses. The vein here is 12 feet thick at the ten fathom level, and from it there is a drift south of sixty-four feet. The appearance of the mine is highly prosperous, and