CHAP. X. 



MIDDLE AGES. 59 



rum diebus argentarice fossa reperta sunt, in qui- 

 bus multum argentum essefertur effbssum" 



The Duke of Lorraine, Antoine, in a deed 

 dated in 1 120, made some extensive grants of 

 land, but retained to himself whatever silver 

 might exist in the mountains. 



These intimations serve to show that some 

 silver must have been known, or have been 

 believed to exist at that time in that part of 

 what was a portion of the Frank kingdom. 



A class of mines has been noticed in France of 

 which it is difficult to determine whether they 

 were worked by the Romans as well as by the 

 more modern possessors of the territory. The 

 greater part of these are in the province of 

 Languedoc. These are minutely enumerated 

 by Genssane in his " Histoire Naturelle de la 

 Province de Languedoc," published at Mar- 

 seilles, 1766. 



There is at Pradal, a small village situated a 

 little above the town of Ville-Magne, abundant 

 proof of very extensive mining-operations. All 

 the works which are above the level of the 

 little river Maire, and which are of an immense 

 extent, exist to this day. They have been car- 

 ried below the bed of the river, and that portion 

 of them has been' submerged. If attention be 

 paid to the enormous excavations in the interior 

 of the mountain, it will be evident that a vast 



