\%6 ON THE GOLD OF LIMONG, 



BY 



T 



Mr. MACDONALD, 



WITH 



A SPECIMEN OF GOLD. 



'HE country of Limong, on the I (land of Sumatra, 

 immediately contiguous to the Prefidency of Fort 

 Marlborough, and between feventy and eighty miles in- 

 land, produces the fineft gold and gold-dud on that 

 ifland. The Limong gold merchants repair annually 

 to Marlborough for the purchafe of opium, and fuch 

 other articles as they may be in want of; in exchange 

 for which they give gold of fo pure a nature as to con- 

 tain little or no alloy. The gold is found fometimes in 

 dull, anci often lodged in a very hard ftone. It is of a 

 whitifh colour, and refembles that in which the veins 

 run in the gold mines of Tiltil in Chili. The gold is 

 extracted by beating the compound mafs in order to 

 difengage it from the ftone, which flies off in fplinters, 

 and leaves the gold cleared of it. This is the mode 

 ufed by a rude people ; by which a part of the gold 

 mult be loft in the fplinters of the ftone which fly off 

 in beating the mafs. They are totally ignorant of the 

 advantage of grinding it to a grofs powder, mixing it 

 ■With quickfilver, and feparating the earthy and ftony 

 particles from thofe of the gold, by the adion of a 

 dream of water on this pafte, carrying off the former, 

 and leaving the latter precipitated to the bottom by their 

 greater weight. They are almoft entirely ignorantof the 

 principles of affaying and amalgamation, but are ex- 

 tremely expert in feparating particles of foreign metals 

 from gold-duft, by a very fuperior acutenefs of vifion, 

 no doubt arifing from experience, and not a peculiar 

 gift. They have people among them who are gold- 

 cleaners 



