SIXTH REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR I9O9 3 1 



in all the mining regions of the world. No reasonable explanation 

 for its failure in the present instance has been forthcoming, though 

 by the use of such vague terms as " volatile gold," " atomic con- 

 dition " and " chemically combined gold," there seems to be an 

 implication that the gold is driven off or left untouched by the fire. 

 As a rule the gold found by fire assay is several per cent more 

 than the. amount extractable by the most refined commercial 

 processes. 



The exact methods for the recovery of the gold have usually 

 been kept secret, out of the reach of scientific inquiry. They, 

 rather than the mines themselves, seem to be the principal con- 

 sideration in the organization of these ventures. From such in- 

 formation as has been given to the public, it would appear that 

 they are generally based on some variation of well known methods 

 or are a combination of processes in use elsewhere for gold 

 recovery. 



A good example of Adirondack practice, if it may be called 

 such, is to be found in the so called Sntphen process which was 

 in vogue about 10 years ago. Mills of ambitious design were 

 erected at Hadley and Glens Falls for its exploitation. It involved 

 pulverization of the sand, treatment with a secret solution, and 

 amalgamation. The necessity for grinding the sand, already in a 

 fine state, was alleged to be the distribution of the gold in the 

 interior of the quartz grains. The success of the treatment, how- 

 ever, hinged on the character of the chemical solution, since the 

 metal was stated to exist in combination with bromine and had to 

 be set free before it would amalgamate. So much information 

 was vouchsafed by the principals of the enterprise in an investiga- 

 tion by this Survey. A sample of sand taken from the bank from 

 which the mill at Hadley was supplied showed by fire assay only 

 a trace of gold, or less than 25 cents a ton, and no bromine. The 

 enterprise received a great deal of attention during its brief career. 

 The yield from the mill was said to have been as high as $7 a 

 ton, and the working costs only $2.50 — a handsome margin of 

 profit for gold mines of the present day. 



It would appear as a matter of general experience that a neces- 

 sary condition for the supposed widespread distribution of aurifer- 

 ous sands is the existence of quartz veins or other deposits of 

 primary nature to which die sources of the gold could be traced. 

 So far these have not been found, and in view of present knowledge 

 of the Adirondacks, it seems very unlikely that they ever will be 

 discovered. The quartz veins that occur in the region partake little 



