XII 
CHILIAN MINERS 
2 77 
ments introduced by foreigners have been, first, reducing by 
previous roasting the copper pyrites—which, being the common 
ore in Cornwall, the English miners were astounded on their 
arrival to find thrown a,way as useless : secondly, stamping and 
washing the scoriae from the old furnaces—by which process 
particles of metal are recovered in 
abundance. I have actually seen 
mules carrying to the coast, for 
transportation to England, a cargo 
of such cinders. But the first case 
is much the most curious. The 
Chilian miners were so convinced 
that copper pyrites contained not 
a particle of copper, that they 
laughed at the Englishmen for 
their ignorance, who laughed in 
turn, and bought their richest veins 
for a few dollars. It is very odd 
that, in a country where mining 
had been extensively carried on 
for many years, so simple a process 
as gently roasting the ore to expel 
the sulphur previous to smelting 
it, had never been discovered. A 
few improvements have likewise 
been introduced in some of the 
simple machinery ; but even to 
the present day, water is removed 
from some mines by men carrying 
it up the shaft in leathern bags ! 
The labouring men work very 
hard. They have little time allowed for their meals, and during 
summer and winter they begin when it is light, and leave off at 
dark. They are paid one pound sterling a month, and their food 
is given them : this for breakfast consists of sixteen figs and two 
small loaves of bread; for dinner, boiled beans; for supper, broken 
roasted wheat grain. They scarcely ever taste meat; as, with the 
twelve pounds per annum, they have to clothe themselves and 
support their families. The miners who work in the mine 
itself have twenty-five shillings per month, and are allowed 
CHILIAN MINER. 
