in Norway and in Canada. 11 



silver), containing of silver, 14 oz., per cwt. The slag from this 

 second operation is what is used in the raw smelting. The 

 lumps of metallic iron formed at the same time, and called iron 

 swine, are worked up with the lead regulus, by being smelted 

 together with the litharge and the hearths from the cupellation of 

 the argentiferous lead. This operation produces lead containing 

 only from 1^ to 2 per cent, silver, which is used in the treatment 

 of the argentiferous regulus, as described above. 



The lead regulus from this last smelting, which contains from 6 

 to 20 oz. of silver per cwt. is again smelted with lead, 

 and its silver content is thus brought down to 4 or 6 ounces. It 

 is then roasted and smelted with its own weight of poor slags 

 containing 6 to 8 oz. of silver, when there results lead containing 

 4 to 5 lbs. of silver per cwt., which goes to the second operation ; 

 together with slags which are used in the first operation ; and a 

 copper regulus, containing 1 per cent silver, and 20 to 30 percent 

 copper. The latter is repeatedly smelted and treated with poor 

 lead, until it contains not more than J oz. silver per cwt., when 

 it is roasted and smelted to black copper. 



The lead from the second operation, containing from 8^ to 10 

 per cent of silver, is cupelled in a German cupelling hearth, in which 

 operation, hot air is used with great advantage. The resulting silver, 

 and the rich silver ores from the mines, are refined in a furnace some- 

 what like the English cupelling furnace, the hearth of which rests on 

 a well-arranged carriage, on which, after the operation is completed, 

 the hearth is lowered on the one side, and the silver poured into 

 the moulds standing prepared for it. The sweepings of this re- 

 finery, and the furnace hearths, are carefully smelted in a 

 small furnace, and the products worked up, according to their 

 contents in silver, in one or other of the operations already des- 

 cribed. 



The Eker copper mine consists of an irregular mass of iron and 

 copper pyrites, situated on the strike of a fahlband, part of the 

 impregnated rock of which is found to be so richly impregnated 

 with copper pyrites as to be worth smelting. The ores are 

 brought up by hand-picking at the mines, to about four per cent. 

 They are then carted about four miles to the smelting house, where 

 they are roasted in heaps. The roasted ore, with the addition of 

 a little limestone, is smelted in shaft furnaces. The resulting re- 

 gulus, of about 16 per cent, is concentrated by being again roasted 

 and smelted, yielding a regulus of from 40 to 50 per cent. This 



