HiOt Scientific Intelligence. — Mineralogy. 



usual deposits of platina, in a bed of red clay, where some slaves 

 were employed in making bricks. Those streams in the beds 

 and on the banks of which the gold deposits are met with, con- 

 tain more of gold, and less platina, on the European than 

 those on the Asiatic side of the Ural Mountains. The amount 

 of gold obtained from these washings, had amounted for the 

 year 1830, to nearly half a million sterhng. It may be well 

 imagined to what an extent their operations must be extended, 

 when the 100 pouds, or 4000 pounds weight of soil, seldom 

 yield above 65 grains of gold, and varies from (55 to 120 grains, 

 — which is there considered lich, — to the 100 pouds. Never- 

 theless, their mining operations are conducted with such skill 

 and success, as even to obtain, of this limited quantity, nearly 

 the whole amount ; and that, too, with such little cost, as to have 

 been, indeed, far beneath my expectation. Of the simple and 

 vet beautiful processes made use of in the gold-washings of the 

 Ural Mountains, I shall speak hereafter, well convinced of the 

 great utility and service which they would be of, if made known 

 to the mining regions of other countries. The Demidoffs, Da- 

 vidofFs, and many other Russian families, are acquiring princely 

 revenues from the employment of their slaves in these gold- 

 washings ; but it is not alone the gold, — the platina itself is ano- 

 ther great source of their prosperity ; more especially since all 

 the platina is now coined at the imperial mint, and established 

 as part of the current coin of the realm. The coins made of 

 platina are beautiful ; those large pieces with the head of tlie 

 Emperor are the best, and show better the effect and polish 

 which coins of this metal can take. Though many hundred 

 pounds weight of platina are coined monthly, into pieces of 11 

 and 22 rubles, they disappear rapidly from the circulation. 

 They may be met with occasionally, and a few at a time, in the 

 hands of the brokers. I consider their price much above the 

 London price of malleable platina, which is at present about 25 

 shillings English per ounce : considering that the crude platina 

 is the produce of the country, the Russian price for malleable 

 platina, which is about 28s., is too extravagant; and yet this 

 does not arise from the expense of manufacturing, but from the 

 cost of the material itself, which is far higher than the platina of 

 South America. The cause of this is the monopoly and easy 



