292 MINES 



worked at Keban Maden and Ghumush Khaneh in Asia Minor ; whilst that of copper at 

 Arghaneh Maden, in the Taurus, yields a large supply of the ores of that metal, -which 

 are refined at Tocat. Some also occur in Arabia and in Persia ; and in the territories 

 round the Caucasus. Persia has mines of argentiferous lead a few leagues from 

 Ispahan ; and Natolia, or Asia Minor, furnishes orpiment and chrome iron ore. 



Thibet passes for being rich in gold and silver mines. China produces a great 

 quantity of iron and mercury. The copper mines of this empire lie principally in the 

 province of Yu-Nan and the island Formosa. Japan, likewise, possesses copper mines 

 in the provinces of Kjjunack and Sarunga. They seem to be abundant ; and are now 

 being explored. Japan presents, moreover, mines of quicksilver, also mines of gold, 

 silver, tin, red sulphide of arsenic, &c. But in China, as in Europe, coal is the most 

 important of the mining products. This combustible is explored, especially in the 

 environs of Pekin, and in the northern parts of the empire. See COAL. 



Iron mines exist in several points of the Bunnan empire, and of Hindostan. Near 

 Madras, there exist excellent ores of sparry iron, and black oxide, analogous to the 

 Swedish ores. The islands of Macassar, Borneo, and Timor, include copper mines. 

 The tin obtained from the islands of Banca and Billiton, and from the peninsula 

 of Malacca, and several other points of Southern Asia, proceeds entirely from the 

 washing of sands. The same is undoubtedly true of the gold furnished by the 

 Philippine Isles, Borneo, &c. It appears, however, that mines of gold and silver are 

 worked in the island of Sumatra. 



In Africa, large quantities of gold are washed by the natives from the alluvium. 

 Some interest has recently been excited by the discovery of gold-fields in South Africa, 

 near the frontier of the Transvaal Eepublic. 



Near the Cape of Good Hope, in Namaqualand, numerous indications of copper ore 

 are met with, which, in a few instances only, have led to the opening of remunerative 

 aiines. At Bembi, near Ambriz, a powerful vein of malachite has been rudely worked 

 by the negro chiefs, and is now leased to an English company by the Portuguese Govern- 

 ment. It is asserted that a great deal of copper exists in Abyssinia. On the banks of 

 the Senegal, the Moors and the Pouls fabricate iron in travelling forges. They employ 

 as the ore the richest portions of a ferruginous sandstone, which seems to be a very 

 modern formation. Morocco appears to contain ores of various metals ; and Algeria, 

 since it has been in the hands of the French, has given rise to active explorations, 

 among which may especially be mentioned the copper mines of Tenes. 



For a description of the South African diamond mines, see DIAMOND. 



MINES OF THE CALCAREOUS MOUNTAINS OF ENGLAND. 



The limestone formation immediately subjacent to the coal-measures, or the car- 

 boniferous limestone, constitutes almost alone several mountainous regions of England 

 and Wales ; in which three districts very rich in lead mines deserve to be noted. 



The first of these districts, Alston Moor, comprehends the upper parts of the valleys 

 of the Tyne, the Wear, and the Tees, in the counties of Cumberland, Durham, and 

 York. Its principal mines are situated near the small town of Alston, in Cumberland. 

 The veins of galena which form the object of the workings, traverse alternate beds 

 of limestone, shale, and sandstone; and are very remarkable for their becoming 

 suddenly thin and impoverished on passing from the limestone into the shale or sand- 

 stone ; and for resuming their richness, and usual size, on returning into the lime- 

 stone. The exploitations are situated in the flanks of considerably high hills, bare of 

 wood, and almost wholly covered with marshy heaths. The waters are drawn off by 

 long adit-levels ; and the ores are dragged out by horses to the day. The galena ex- 

 tracted from these mines is smelted by means of coal and a little peat, in furnaces of 

 Scotch construction. The lead is very poor in silver ; but most of it is now treated 

 by the Pattinson process. The mines of this district produce annually about 25,000 

 tons of lead. Copper ores have been raised, although not in large quantity, from a 

 very strong vein, containing chiefly iron pyrites and some galena, about six miles 

 south-west of Alston. 



This region is bounded by the Cross Fell range on the west, and extends south- 

 ward to the Yorkshire valleys of Swaledale, Arkendale, &c., to Grassington, where 

 numerous lead mines are worked under very similar circumstances. Tho Yorkshire 

 mines yielded in 1856, 8,986 tons of lead. 



The second metalliferous district lies in the northern part of Derbyshire, and in the 

 conterminous parts of the neighbouring counties. The districts called the Peak and 

 King's-Field are the richest in workable deposits. The mines of Derbyshire are 

 getting exhausted ; they are very numerous, but in general inconsiderable. The 

 galena extracted from them is treated with coal in reverberatory furnaces ; but the 

 silver is very small in quantity. They yield annually 5,000 tons of lead ; with a 





