397 
Prof. Milne — Across Europe and Asia. 
This mine is of interest, as it is now, I believe, the only one in the 
Urals from which the malachite which is such a prominent feature 
in the decoration of Russian palaces and churches is obtained. 
Another great deposit existed at Sisserski in the south, but this is 
now under water, and consequently unworkable. It was from this 
latter mine that the large piece lying in the Imperial School of 
Mines at St. Petersburg was obtained. The depth of the Tagil 
mine is about 82 sageen (574 feet). As might be anticipated from 
the Situation of the mine and the faulted nature of the surrounding 
country, it is very wet. In places, water streams upon you in 
torrents, and some of the levels are like rivulets. In spite of a suit 
of leather, I was quickly soaked through. In the sides of the levels 
there are many small holes from which water issues in powerful 
jets. Boards are placed in front of these, to break their direction. 
All this water, together with the clayey nature of the ground in 
which the levels are driven, renders this mine for visitors as un- 
pleasant as can be well conceived. • In many places corresponding 
points on the walls of the lode appeared in some cases to have been 
moved to the right or left — lateral shifting which was probably 
produced at the time of the opening of the fault. At the south-east 
end of the mine, where the levels are driven along through the clay 
of the faults, there is a limestone on one side and a slaty rock upon 
the other. Here there is the greatest yield of malachite. As you 
travel in an opposite direction towards the north-west end of the 
mine, the clay appears to be replaced by brown iron-ore, and with 
the malachite one also finds some cuprite and phosphate of copper. 
At this part of the mine slates form both walls of the lode. Con- 
tinuing still farther to the north-west, you enter the rock which is 
called diorite. It is very chloritic, and so soft that gunpowder is 
never required. Here native copper and cuprite are found. 
Although the ore at this end of the mine is the poorer of the 
two, yet it is more concentrated. In this diorite an isolated mass 
of magnetite has been found. 
A section made at right angles to the general direction of the 
lode, which is from S.E. to N.W. across its northern end, gives a 
curious parallelism of materials. First, as a wall upon the westerly 
side, there is limestone. Then comes a band of magnetite containing 
copper pyrites : this is seven feet broad, and thins out at eithev 
end. Next comes a slate, which is followed by a second band of 
magnetite, and more slate. After this there is a mass of diorite, 
seventy feet in width, followed by a mass of brown iron-ore ; then 
once more we have diorite, and last of all slate. 
From the northern end of the workings, where the deposit is cut 
off by a counter lode, and past which explorations have not as yet 
been made, to the other extremity of the mine at the Southern end, 
the distance is about half a verst. 
The yield of ore from this mine may be judged of by the quantity 
I have given as having passed through the smelting works. As 
labour is cheap, ores which do not yield more than two and a half 
per cent. of metal can be worked. 
