110 BARRAS DE PLATA. 
to the bottom. Most of the quicksilver is then 
pressed out, and the silver submitted to a 
burning process, by which the remaining por- 
tion of mercury is expelled. 
The silver which is taken from the furnace, 
generally contains an intermixture of gold, 
averaging from ten to thirty per cent.; but 
what is extracted by amalgamation is mostly 
separated in the washing. While in a liquid 
state, the gold, from its greater specific gravity, 
mostly settles to the bottom: yet it usually re- 
tains a considerable alloy of silver. The com- 
pound is distinguished by the name of oroche. 
The main portion of the silver generally retains 
too little gold to make it worth separating. 
Every species of silver is moulded into 
barras or ingots, weighing from fifty to eighty 
pounds each, and usua™# worth between one 
and two thousand dollars. These are assay- 
ed by an authorized agent of the government 
and stamped with their weight and character, 
which enables the holder to calculate their 
value by a very simple rule. When the bul- 
lion is thus stamped, it constitutes a species 
of currency, which is much safer for remit- 
tances than coin. In case of robbery, the 
barras are easily identified, provided the rob- 
bers have not had time to mould them into 
some other form. For this reason, people of 
wealth frequently lay up their funds in ingots; 
and the cellars of some of the ricos of the 
South, are often found teeming with large 
quantities of them, presenting the appearance 
of a winter’s supply of fuel. 
