268 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. 



washes the gravel from A to B. The coarse parts fall on either side 

 of the double-inclined gr^te, while the finer parts fall through the 



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grates on to the blankets in the box C ; all but the black sand and 

 the gold are discharged. The latter adheres to the blankets. The 

 Dump Box is filled and emptied repeatedly for say ten hours, after 

 which the blanket is washed in an ordinary tub, to the bottom of 

 which the gold and black sand fall. The water is next poured off, 

 and two or three charges of fresh water are poured into and out of 

 the tub in order to further cleanse the gold and black sand. When 

 these are sufficiently clean, they are removed from the tub to the 

 gold pan. This is done by tipping the tub over the pan, and then by 

 dashing water from the pan into the tub. The gold cannot be 

 successfully removed from the tub in any other way. The pan is 

 now held under water and shaken until the mass it contains is much 

 reduced in bulk, by the separation of the lighter portions of the 

 sand. Some quicksilver is poured in, together with clean water, and 

 the pan is shaken until the quick silver has taken up all the gold. It 

 is then again placed under water, and violently shaken to remove all 

 the black sand. The remaining contents are then poured into a 

 wash-leather which has been previously wetted and stretched. The 

 edges of the leather are secured in the right hand, when the centre 

 of it assumes the shape of a pounce. The neck of this is wrung until 

 all the free quicksilver is squeezed through the pores of the leather, 

 and falls in fine beads into the pan placed for its reception. When 

 opened the bag is found to contain a ball of amalgam of silver colour 

 and of about the consistency of putty. This is moulded in the 

 fingers to the required shape, and then placed iipon an iron shovel. 



