A MINING ROMANCE

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 6, 7 June 1913, Page 9

A MINING ROMANCE

Sorne years ago two swagmen, rabbit trappers, as the sun beat upon them on a fearfully sultry summer clay, dropped their swags in the grateful shadow of a bridge over a creek along which was flowing a stream of clear water that looked inviting to the sun-baked men. After a rest and cooling down they prepared their evening meal—a pot of boiled potatoes, a piece of steak bought at the butcher's shop some distance back, grilled on a piece of fencing wire over a fire, and a billy of tea. The water was obtained from the clear flowing stream. The men never stopped to think where it came from, in a country baked and parched for weeks by the pitiless sun. IT TASTED FRESH, AND THEY USED

Shortly after they were seized with .violent pains. A passing traveller saw them writhing in agony, and certain that /something very serious had happened, got them into his buggy and drove them to the nearest doctor at Blayney. To him there was clear evidence of poisoning, but the men assured him the meat was fresh-killed steak, and boiled potatoes don't carry ptomaine poison, the doctor concluded the trouble was due to the water. They were treated accordingly, and were soon out of danger, A sample of the water was next obtained, and a simple chemical test showed it was carrying a big percentage of copper sulphate. Here was the key to the riddle. But where did the water come from? The stream was followed up to its source—the shaft of the Blayney copper mine, which had lain idle for some years, flooded to the surface, and was now being haled out in order to ascertain whether the sulphide lode in the lower workings would pay to resume active smelting operations, the price of copper having gone up considerably. •Seeing that the lowest workings of the mine were in sulphide ore,'out of which the copper would never be dissolved, no one ever dreamed of having theltaine water assaved. It would have been useless, as far as the sulphide ore was concerned—hence the manager was not neglectful in his work. Later experience, however, confirmed the belief that the sulphate of copper is produced by the surface rain percolating through an oxidised or "emi-oxidised ore body near the surface. But who was to know what would happen? AN ACCIDENTAL DISCOVERY. The next chapter of the story, as told locally, relates that the medical man called on the workmen en the mine, and told them that the water from it was highly charged with sulphate of copper. Baling was at once stopped, and an analysis of the water made by the j addition of potassium hydrate yielded 'i a precipitate of copper' hydrate that ' showed the water carried l%lb of copper to the 1000 gallons of water. j The medical man was vindicated, and the manager satisfied that here was an opportunity to recover a large quantity of copper under cheap and easy conditions. Baling operations were suspended, and as a result of representations made to the directors, two big wooden tanks were built, charged with a layer of sciap iron, and the mine water was emptied on it. At the end of the first week the deposit of copper on the scrap iron was pronounced. But it would take too lonf for an old tram line or railway rail to he converted into a solid bar of copper, whilst the task of strip-Ding off the layer of copper was a tedious process. Something was wanted that would be converted wholly into popper in a short time.

The manager hit upon the idea of using the scrap material from the cutting machines at Lysaght's sheet iron, barhed wire, and wire-netting work's in uSydnev. A large parcel of this waste material was bought, and in a very short time the thin material was converted into solid copper. • The success was complete, and the big heap of scrap cuttings at Lysaght's works became of valuable asset. Before the mine was completely baled out the heap of scrap cuttings had largely disappeared—changed from iron into copper by the mine water. SILENT CHEMICAL CHANGE. When the mine was sufficiently baled to enable the manager to go below, it was seen that the chemical change had I gone on most effectually during the years the mine had been filled with water. Iron and steel tools that had been forgotten when work ceased—drills, picks, gads, and tampering bars—had \been changed into copper. Miners' tin crib cam had become copper, whilst an iron ore truck was converted into copper down to the axles and cast iron wheels.. In one place the cast-iron valve of a Tangye pump was converted into a solid block of copper, which preserved the original outline of the mechanism. At the time these baling operations were being carried on, copper stood at something like £IOO per ton, and as about 80 tons of pure metal were recovered, the value of the product was £BOOO.

The cost of production was small. There were no miners to pay, no smelting furnacis to keep in commissiononly two engine-drivers to pay; also the cost of fuel to keep up steam in the boilers, likewise the purchase of iron scrap.

A prominent -nining man, at the conclusion of the mining operations, remarked:—"lt would not be a bad idea to let the mine again fill up with water and lie idle for a few vears, and to bale her out aga"n, when the price of copper rises."

Ho did not •'•,h?n know he was a prophet, hut that is what actually happened. After lying idle five years—on the previous occasion she was idle onlv three years and a half—the price of" copper rose considerably, and in July of last year the Melbourne directors of the company owning the mine decided to have the water tested. This was done, and was found to be carrying a high percentage of copper sulphate—higher than when the mine was previously baled five years before.

MTNE BALED A SECOND TIME. Accordingly, orders were issued to have the mine baled once more, and the water run over scrap iron. Workstarted last July, but under stringent conditions laid down by the lilayncy Municipal Council as to the rate at which the water was to be baled, and the overflow from the scrap iron tanks allowed to settle in a big dam. so as to minimise the risk of water charged with snlnhnte of copper running over the bv\v.«sh to the danger of human life, as well :'.s of cattle and sheep. Preseiit-dav operations show that tlie water is richer than ever in copper. Tt runs up to (ifllb of copper precipitate to 1100 jralTona of water, whilst, during the previous linlim;- operations the nnalvsis ranged from 28lh' to 3Wb to the 1000 •rations. The recovery now boiii? made is ilinu 1 ; seven tops of <"omier precipitate per month, or about equal to six tons of pure copper.

ft is stuted there are copper mines in the same district that have been waterlogged for manv years, and that an essav of the water shows thev earrv a larT percentage of sulphate of copper. Tt is just possible that a rise in the price of the red metal, say, to £BO, mav lead to these mines being baled—provided a reasonable tribute charge is granted.