LOSS OF GOLD AND QUICKSILVER.
Loss of Quicksilver.—There
is an unavoidable loss of quicksilver, the amount of which depends on
the character of the gravel washed, the quantity of water used, the
grade, length, and condition of -the sluices, and the number of days
run. The use of a long line of sluices, kept in good order, and the
employment of undercurrents, tend to diminish it.
La Grange.—The
aggregate amount of quicksilver lost at the La Grange Hydraulic
Company's mine in running six claims, during a period of two and a
half years, aggregating 1,520* days (24 hours each), washing and moving
2,275,967 cubic yards of gravel, and using 1,533,728 miner's inches of
water (2,159 cubic feet each), was 553.75 pounds.
The exact loss of quicksilver during four years' work on the various claims of this company amounted to 1,200 pounds.
North Bloomfield.—For
the year ending Novem ber 3, 1875, the North Bloomfield claims used
464,600 miner's inches of water (2,230 cubic feet each), and 9,649
pounds of quicksilver were employed in the sluices.
The loss of quicksilver at the respective claims was as follows:
