?40 COGG'i'N BROWN : MINES & MINERAL RESOURCES OF YUNNAN. 



so low and the margin of profit on metallurgical operations so 

 meagre, any great and permanent decrease in price is bound to 

 result in the rapid decay and final extinction of these industries. 

 K^That modern European mining and metallurgical methods can 

 beJWccesrfully applied to ancient Chinese mines is proved by the 

 operations of the Burma Mines Co., Ltd., at Bawdwin in the 

 Northern Shan States of Burma, and in China itself by the not 

 inconsiderable quantities of mixed zinc-lead sulphides which were 

 exported annually to Germany before the war. According to 

 Ernest A. Smith: — " Lead-zinc sulphide deposits occur in Southern 

 Hunan, but the important Sui-ku-shan mine worked by the Hunan 

 Board of Mines, is the only one in the district in active operation. 

 The ore is argentiferous galena, associated with blende, iron pyrites 

 and calcite. A considerable proportion of the ore mined is dressed 

 at the mine. The dressed blende and the mixed lead-zinc sul- 

 phides are sold to the German firm of Carlowitz and Co., having 

 an ore-dressing plant at Woo-ch'ang, where the material is" further 

 separated, previous to exporting it to Germany to be smelted." 

 (" The Development of the Spelter Industry," Mining Journal, 

 September 30th, 1916, p. 666). 



The mixed sulphide deposits of the Ming-kuan and the reported 

 occurrences of extended ore deposits in Kcng-ma and Meng-hsa, 

 are within comparatively short distances of the Burma frontier 

 in the regions of Myitkyina and Kunlon ferry, respectively. 

 Their existence should not be lost sight of in this connection. 



Whether the deposits of the far interior, such as those of the 

 Wei-ning Chou neighbourhood on the eastern borders of Yunnan 

 will ever be exploited on a large scale would seem to depend more on 

 the future development of communications in the province than 

 on anything else. 



TIN. 



The famous cassitcrite deposits of Ko-chiu in the Meng-tzu 

 region of Southern Yunnan have been mentioned by most of the 

 writers on the province. Few Europeans have ever been allowed 

 to study the underground workings. I have not visited the dis- 

 trict myself and the following accounts are taken from the writings 

 of Leclere, Deprat and Collins. (W. F. Collins, " Tin Production 

 iu the Province of Yunnan, China," Trans, hist. Mia. and Met., 

 Vol. XIX, pp. 187-211.) 



