. 
ee 
Net 
Se ee 
S255 cs 
eee 
9 = Burra ‘Copper Mine, South Australia.—The Burra oe 
&, 7) co 
wt «.. Scientific Intelligence. 
Deo dividends, of 2i. 10s. per 57. share (or 50 per cent.), have been 
in July, by which the whole of the original has sesh returned ; a 
ird dividend, of 5/. per share, or 100 per cent., has just been declared ; 
and, probably, every month’or six weeks will see a similar one! The 
merchants have lately established a sort of market for the purchase of 
the ore from the different mines as.it arrives at the port. Hitherto, the 
banks would only advance 6/. or 8d. per ton, even on the best ore. 
Now, the merchants, who, from the flourishing sini of trade, have large 
thus sell 100 tons; for es ee e A. B. - guaran tbcii that 100 tons at 
20 per cent.; A. B. takes an average of the e price of metal, from two 
or three MF ‘the last Swansea sales, and says, , for that heap, I will give 
you such a standard; another merchant will, perhaps, raise a little on 
it—so that virtually, the only price settled here and paid for, is the price 
of the copper metal ; the merchant running the risk of profitin gor _— 
by a rise or fall of the metal by the time the ore .arrives at Swansea 
Should the heap, when sold, be found in Swansea to contain 25 per 
cent., instead of 20 per cent., then A. B. makes eae the difference to. 
the company. In the other case, of a less produce, the mine makes 
good the difference to A. B. The arrangement suits both parties. A. B. 
sayes premium on bills of exchange, and makes a commission on sale — 
of ore in England. The mine instead of having to wait twelve or — 
teen months for the net proceeds, being formerly only allowed to dra 
barely enough to pay for the prime cost of ss how is enabled to divide 
profits as fast as the ore is delivered at the - 
read—* it appears that, in about presi months, these mines have 
yielded the extraordinary amount of 9841 tons of rich copper ore—so 
rich, that its total value amounted to 150,000/. The original purchase 
money of the mines, together with the costs of working, from Septem- 
ber, 1845, to March, 1847—the year and a half in question—is some- 
in two dividends, of 50 per cent. each; and the directors are about to 
declare another dividend of 100 percent. We make no comment 
whatever on this extraordinary statement. We suppose it to be without 
a parallel in the whole history of mining successes. A large part of 
the ore has arrived at Swansea for smelting, another portion is on its 
way, and a remnant of some 1600 tons will be forwarded to this coun- 
try, or America, with as little delay as possible. 
10. Histoire des Progrés de la Géologie de 1834 a 1845 ; par Ls 
_ Vicomre D’Arcuiac. Publiée par la Société Géologique de France, 
Be oF, 
