OCR Text |
Show QUICKSILVER HAS A NUMBER OF USES Quicksilver Is used mainly, according to the United States geological survey, In the manufacture of fulminato for explosive ex-plosive caps, of drugs, of electric lighting light-ing and scientific apparatus, and In the recovery of tho precious metals, especially of gold, by amalgamation. An Increasing Increas-ing demand has been reported In manufactures manu-factures of electric appliances. An Interesting Inter-esting and Increasing use in Scotland is the floating of the lights of lighthouses upon a body of quicksilver. The metal Js not consumed, of course, and the loss in use Is Insignificant. Concerning this Consul Fleming writes as follows: "The uses of quicksilver In Edinburgh Edin-burgh are for resllvering mirrors and for 'floating' tho revolving lights of lighthouses. light-houses. The commissioners of northern lighthouses, Edinburgh, have in their charge ninety lighthouses on tho coast of Scotland. Up to the year 1900 the revolving re-volving lights were borne on rollers. The 'float' system has been gradually Introduced, Intro-duced, however, and is now in operation opera-tion at thirty coast stations and will bo used at all othors. The lighting machinery ma-chinery rests on a pontoon which runs on quicksilver In a groove. The quantity quan-tity of morcury required for this purpose in a HghthouBo is from seven to eight flasks of seventy-five pounds each. As the waste Is trifling, the total present demand de-mand for this purpose is small." |