378 Prof. Olmsted on tht! Gold Mines of North Carolina. 



the stream. The surface of the ground and the bed of tlie 

 creek are occupied by quartz and by sharp anguhir rocks of 

 the greenstone family. The first glance is sufficient to con- 

 vince the spectator that the business of searching for gt)ld is 

 conducted under numerous disadvantages, without the least 

 regard to system, and with very little aid from mechanical 

 contrivances. The {)rocess is as follows. During the dry 

 season, when the greatest part of the level above described is 

 left bare, and the creek shrinks to a small rivulet, the work- 

 man selects a spot at random, and connnences digging a pit 

 with a spade and mattock. At first he fienetrates through 

 three or four feet of dark-coloured mud, full of stones in 

 ano-ular fragments. At this depth he meets with that peculiar 

 stratum of gravel and clay, which he recognises as the matrix 

 of the gold. If the nmd be very dense and tenacit)us, he ac- 

 counts it a good sign ; and if stains or streaks of yellow oc- 

 casionally appear on the blue mud, it is a fortunate symj)tora. 

 Sometimes he penetrates through a stratum of the ferruginous 

 oxide of manganese, in a rotten friable state. This he deno- 

 minates "cinders," and regards it also as a favourable omen. 

 Having arrived at the proper stratum, which is only a few 

 inclies thick, he removes it with a spade into the " cradle." 

 This is a semi-cylinder laid on its side, (like a barrel bisected 

 longitudinally and laid flat-wise,) and made to rock like a 

 cradle on two parallel poles of wood. The cradle being half 

 filled with the rubbish, water is then laded in, so as nearly 

 to fill the vessel. The cradle is now set to rocking, the gravel 

 being occasionally stirred with an iron rake, until the coarse 

 stones are entirely freed from the blue mud, — a part of the pro- 

 cess which is the more difficult, on account of the dense adhe- 

 sive quality of the mud. By rocking the cradle rapidly, the 

 water is thrown overboard, loaded with as much mud as it is 

 capable of suspending. The coarser stones are then picked 

 out by hand, more water is added, and the same process- is 

 repeated. On pouring out the water a second time, (which is 

 done by inclining the cradle on one side,) a layer of coarse 

 gravel appears on the top, which is scraped off by hand. At 

 the close of each washing, a similar layer of gravel ajipears on 

 the top, which appears more and more connninuted until it 

 graduates into fine sand, covering the bottom of the cradle. 

 At length this residuum is transferred to an iron dish, which 

 is dipped horizontally into a pool of water, and subjected to a 

 rotary motion. All the remaining earthy matter goes over- 

 board, and nothing remains but a fine sand, chiefly ferrugi- 

 nous, and the particles of gold for which the whole labour has 

 been performed. These are frequently no larger than a pin's 



head. 



