CANADIAN ASBESTUS. 529 



out and the asbestus, separated from the containing rock, is 

 " cobbed " i. e., separated by hammering from adhering foreign 

 matter. This " cobbing " is a comparatively easy matter in the 

 case of the finer quality, as it usually separates readily from the 

 gangue, but in the lower grades much difficulty is experienced in 

 separating the fibrous matter from the non-fibrous. At best there 

 is great waste. Much of the asbestus is in thin or narrow veins, 

 and is wasted, as by the present mode of operating it does not 

 pay to separate this from the serpentine. A machine that will 

 enable these narrow veins to be utilized is a desideratum. 



When " cobbed " the asbestus is graded according to purity, 

 color, and length of fiber into three grades and bagged for ship- 

 ment. The finest quality or "firsts" finds ready sale at prices 

 ranging from $80 to $110 per ton ; " seconds " fetch from $50 to 

 $70 per ton ; while " thirds " may be valued at $13 to $15 per ton. 

 In good mines the yield of asbestus is from three to five per cent 

 of the rock quarried, and the cost of mining may be put down at 

 $25 to $30 per ton. Returns obtained by the Geological Survey of 

 Canada show that, for the year 1888, Canada's output was 4,404 

 tons, valued at the mines at $255,000, and this the output of nine 

 different mines. Over three fourths of the whole was shipped to 

 the United States ; small quantities going to Great Britain, Ger- 

 many, France, Belgium, and Italy, and being used in domestic 

 manufacturing. 



Judging from the results obtained in the mines now worked, 

 and the indications in other parts of the serpentine belt, it may 

 be safely said that the asbestus deposits of Canada are well-nigh 

 inexhaustible. There is every prospect that the industry will 

 rapidly expand, as capitalists are turning attention to it, the work 

 hitherto done "proving conclusively that mining for asbestus, 

 when properly conducted, shows a more steady return for the 

 money invested, with less elements of risk, than mining for any 

 other known mineral." 



Upon its non-conducting power and its ability to resist high 

 temperature depend the many varied uses of the mineral. First 

 and most important are its applications in connection with the 

 steam engine and boiler. For packing pistons, flange joints, hot- 

 air joints, cylinder-heads, and similar purposes, asbestus has 

 proved itself invaluable, and for these purposes it is spun into yarn 

 or wicking or rope, or made into mill-board. A large quantity 

 is manufactured into a kind of felt, either alone or, in some cases, 

 along with other fibrous material. Much of this asbestus felt is 

 used as a non-conducting covering for steam-pipes. It is made 

 into sections to fit any size of pipe, and into rolls and sheets for 

 large surfaces. It is in use on the war-ships of the United States 

 Navy, and has there and elsewhere been demonstrated to be supe- 



VOL. XXXTI. 3-i 



