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Show SILVER MIXES IX THE L1ME-5TO.VE L1ME-5TO.VE OP I'EKL". - - Mo. I- Seeing in the "MiniDg and Scicniific Press" a few weeks ajzo, a very interesting inte-resting paper on chloride of silver in limestone formations from the pen ot my valued friend, Henry Sewell. now of Salt Lake, I am idduced to communicate commu-nicate "what! know" of these tumorals, tumo-rals, from a five yeara' residence in the countries alluded to by Mr. Sewell, and particularly the district of liuau-tajaya liuau-tajaya in the province of TarapaAia, Soush Peru, eituated in the most favorable position that can be well imagined for foreign enterprise, viz., within six miles of the port of Iquiquc, celebrated lately, hevint; been washed away completely by the earthquake wave. Theso celebrated mines are located in the mountains of Huantajnya, at an elevation of 2.S77 feet from the level of the sea, whioh is reached by a gradually gra-dually sloping road to the edge of the coast range of mountains, where it falls some 1,800 feet and then descends de-scends by an easy grade to the town of Iquique. They have rendered the province of Tarapaca so celebrated in Peru, that it has sometimes been called tho Potoai of tho south. TUcy were discovered in 1556 by Spaniards from Arica, who worked at a spot called the Chiflones, but who, after a time, abandoned aban-doned them. The mines were re-discovered by an Indian, named Cucumate, during one of his journeys to the coast for guano, who made them known to Juan de Loyaya, who commenced working, but died without reaping much beoetiL In 1718 Don Bnrtolomco do Loyaya found rich ore in the vein of San Simon, and in 1727 the pazino or consolidated rock (composed principally of argillaceous argilla-ceous limestone, containing fossil . bell of tho oybter family) was discovered, in which were found the papas or insulated insula-ted masses of silver; one met with in 1S29 weighed 800 pounds, another iu 179-t, 400 pounds. Tliepauizo having been bored through, the principal vein was found, whieh led to the discovery of several others. There are at present about fifty mines opened iu the district, within a nidius of two milec, all of which have yielded ores, more or iesi, consisting of native silver, chloride, ehlobrotuide sulphide sul-phide of silver, and their combinations with oopper, lead, etc , io a matrix ot carbonate of lime, both crystalline and amorphous. Some idea may be formed of the great production of the mines, when it is known that one family alone, the La Fuentea (descendants of whom hold some of the best mines to this day) paid in duties to the Spanbh crown, more than $5,000 000. They sent a mass of native silver weighing nearly 3 700 pounds, to the value ofS750,U00, asa preseat to the king of Spain. It waa rolled by harjd from the mines, and then allowed to Jail, by its own weignt, down the sandy side of the mountain range to Iquique; a portion of the track it made is co be seen to this day. (Vide "Antiquities and Kihoology" of Peru by Wm. Bullaerf, Esq., F. 11. G. S ) Again, in Baron Von Humboldt's "New Spain," vol. 3, p. 341, we find. "I estimate the produotof Huanta-jaya, Huanta-jaya, Porco, and less considerable Peruvian Pe-ruvian mines, from the 1 6th century till 1803 at from 150,000 to 200,UUO mares of silvea per annum $350,OUO,-000." $350,OUO,-000." Also, Vod Tachudi, in his travels in Peru, in 1854, says: "The mines of Huntajayaa, on the coast, were also very rioh, and the silver obtained ob-tained from them was either very pure or containing a very slipht, admixture of foreign substances. They yielded an incredible amount of metal." Towards the latter end of tho eighteenth eight-eenth century 30 of these mines had ceased to bo worked from the following follow-ing amongst other oauses, as stated by Humboldt and others: The extraction of silver was done on tho most primitive primi-tive system, and was attended with such heavy charges, that none but the richest olasses of oro would pay for working, and all rock containing less than 2 per cent, of silver, or $600 per ton, was thrown on tho waste dumps (desmontes) as too poor to pay the cost of reduction. Tho prioo of silver was very low. The consumption consump-tion of gunpowder was escossivo, two-thirds two-thirds being wasted. W. T. Kiokard. F. 0. S., "Mining and Scientific Press." |