THE WORLD'S ADVANCE 



221 



A MERCURY STILL USED BY ALASKAN MINERS 



By Geo. F. Worts 



Several times during the gold strikes 

 in Alaska the cost of mercury, which 

 was used for amalgamating gold from 

 loose sand, rose in price to a point far 

 exceeding that of pure gold itself. This 

 was particularly true when "color" was 

 discovered in the fine sands along the 

 banks of the lower Yukon, several years 

 ago. A miner with a pan and a bottle 

 of mercury could recover as much as $50 

 worth of gold in a day in some of the 

 richer localities, if he worked diligently. 

 When the gold amalgam became satu- 

 rated with the precious metal it was 

 necessary for the miner to suspend min- 

 ing operations and distill the mercury 

 from the gold, thereby recovering in their 

 more or less pure states both the mer- 

 cury and the gold. 



Some of these mercury stills were 

 quite ingenious, although naturally very 

 crude, and their construction, or, at 

 least, their theory of operation will prob- 

 ably contain a helpful suggestion to the 

 amateur chemist. 



The thick, yellow alloy of mercury and 

 gold was placed in a small yet deep 



earthen jug (metal vessels are not suit- 

 able for handling mercury) and from 

 the mouth of the jug a wooden tube was 

 projected. This tube was sealed into the 

 mouth of the jug with clay. About a' 

 foot from the mouth of the jug the tube 

 was joined to another of the same size 

 at a sharp angle by means of wire and 

 clay. This second tube led down into 

 another earthenware jug, which was set 

 in a pan of cold water. The purpose of 

 the sharp angle at the juncture of the 

 two points was to prevent any mercury 

 which condensed in the tube from re- 

 maining there. Then, too, wooden tubes 

 are difficult to bend. 



From the second jug, which was the 

 primary condenser, a third tube ran and 

 was jointed at a sharp angle identical 

 with the other. The fourth tube was led 

 into a second condensing chamber, set, 

 as in the case of the preceding one, in a 

 pan of cold water. 



To operate the mercury-gold still, the 

 amalgam was placed in the first jug and 

 the jug placed upon small stones between 

 which a fire was built. When the tern- 



