1852.] Apparatus for distilling the Mercury from Amalgams. 405 



No. 5 Is a section of a common pipe-clay crucible which may be 

 imitated in earthen-ware by any potter. It is turned mouth down- 

 wards, and should sit upon the inner rim or shoulder of the kolkee. 

 It is about 2 inches in diameter at the mouth. 



No. 6 Is a piece of old tin plate 9 or 10 inches long by 5 inches 

 high, with holes in it, bent into a cylinder to contain the guls or char- 

 coal used as fuel. 



To use this apparatus, place the plate No. 1 over any kind of 

 earthen vase, European or Native, such as a jug or pickle-jar or even a 

 glass tumbler or linger glass as in Fig. III. 



Put the pellet of amalgam into the dish No. 4, and place this upon 

 No. 3, or upon the earthen supports for it, inside the kolkee, and then 

 set the kolkee with its stem through the hole in No. 1, dipping about 

 half or three quarters of an inch into the water with which the vase 

 or glass should be filled. 



Have some good fat clay : That which the natives mix up with cow- 

 dung to line their chulds with is very proper for the purpose ; and fill 

 in the space h (of Fig. I.) squeezing it well in, so as to have no 

 cracks ; this is called " luting." Fill the whole space as shewn by the 

 shade in Fig. III. with the luting clay. 



Put the tin Cylinder No. 6 over the apparatus, observing that it 

 should just fit loosely over the edge of the kolkee, so as to allow of a 

 little air rising up, but not of the fuel falling down below the kolkee, 

 for our object is to drive all the mercury downwards by heat from 

 above. 



Fill the cylinder with small charcoal or broken gools ; and set fire to 

 it at the top, so as to let it burn slowly downwards which it should do 

 out of any draft. If the quantity of amalgam is large, lift off the cy- 

 linder when the first lot of fuel has burnt, and the whole is cold, and 

 clear away the ashes ; and then fill it again with fuel and let it burn out 

 as before. It will then be found on opening the apparatus, that all the 

 mercury has distilled into the water, and that the gold remains in the 

 iron dish, but it should be heated again in an open fire, or melted 

 down, to drive off a little mercury, which always hangs about it as well 

 as about silver when worked by amalgamation, even in the great Mexi« 

 can establishments. 



3 F 



