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CALIFORNIA STATE MINING BUREAU.

THIRD AKNUAL REPORT

STATE Mineralogist

For the Year Sndinq June l, 1883.

SAORAMENTO:

STATK OFFICE, JAMES J. AYERS, 8UPT. STATE PBINTIMQ.

1883.

j LELAND
L UN

LIBRARY

OF THE

STANFORD JUNIOR

IVERSITY.

. /^J?^^

To his Excellency George Stoneman, Governor of California:

Sir: I have the honor herewith to submit to you the third annual
report of the State Mineralogist of California, in compliance with sec-
tion three of an Act of the Legislature, entitled " An Act to provide
for the establishment and maintenance of a Mining Bureau," approved
April 16, 1880.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully,

HENRY G. HANKS,

State Mineralogist.
San Francisco, June 1, 1883.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

The California State Mining Bureau was created by an Act of the
twenty-third Legislature, approved April 16, 1880. The first section
of the Act provides for a principal office in the City of San Francisco
" in which there shall be collected and preserved for study and refer-
ence all the geological and mineralogical substances — including min-
eral waters — ^found in the State." The same section further provides
for a collection of minerals, rocks, and fossils of other States, Terri-
tories, and countries, to be at all reasonable hours open for public
inspection, examination, and study.

Section three provides for a library of works on mineralogy, geology,
and mining, a collection of models and drawings of mining and milling
machinery used in the reduction of ores, and directs the opening of
correspondence to obtain information respecting improvements in
mining machinery of practical value to the people of the State. The
State Mineralogist is instructed to visit the several mining districts,
to ascertain and record their history, and to describe their geology
and the ores they produce. At the close of the year he is directed to
report in detail to the Governor. By section four the State Mineralo-
gist is allowed to appoint assistants when the condition of the funds
will permit. All other provisions are secondary and subservient to
the Museum, which is made the principal feature of the institution.

The full text of the Mining Bureau Act was published in the first
report of the State Mineralogist, December 1, 1880.

Since the second and last report, October 1, 1882, a fair progress
may be reported.

The Mining Bureau still occupies the premises No. 212 Sutter
Street. Important and valuable additions have been made to the
Museum, a considerable portion of which have been catalogued and
placed in the cases. The actual number of Museum specimens
entered since the last report, is 1,065, and the total number in the
catalogue, 5,212. There is as yet no catalogue of the books, of which
many have been received during the year.

The following is a list of names of donors, whose contributions have
been entered in the catalogue. Others will be published in the next
report. Some of the donors have made a number of gifts, although
the name appears but once in the list. When the new catalogue is
published full credit will be given for each specimen presented. The
donations to the Museum and Library have oeen of unusual interest,
and many of them of great value.

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

LIST OP DONORS.

Abbott, Henry,
Alderman, E. M.,
Aldrich, H. A.,
Alexander, A. M.,
Allen, C. F.,
Amick, M. J.,
Attwood, Melville,
Ayres, William,
American Museum of Natural
History.

Ballarat School of Mines,
Balser, George,
Barnard, John Kirk,
Barnes, Edward,
Basse, Louis,
Bassett, William D.,
Battursby, Captain,
Beardsley, George F.,
Behrens, James,
Bilty, Theodore G.,
Bluxome, Isaac,
Booth, Edward,
Borden, R. V., '
Bo^d, Mrs.,
Griggs, Rev. Mr.,
Brown, Charles W.,
Brown, William, Jr.,
Brumagim, J. W.,
Buckingham, N. D.,
Burchard, Horatio C,
Burke, Morris,
Bush, Mrs. A. £.,
Buswell, Alexander,
Butler, J. H.

Cain, J. W.,

Caldwell, H. M.,

California State Geological So-
ciety,

Carmany, J. H.,

Casanueva, F.,

Casarello, J.,

Cherry, William,

Cincinnati Society of Natural
History,

Clark & Son,

Clarke, William,

Classen, J. M.,

Cohen, Richard,

Cole, A. M.,

Colerick, J.»K.,

Collins, S. W.,

Comstock, Charles H.,

Connelly, T. F. A.,

Cooledge, C. C,

Cook, rrof. George H.,

Cooke, J.,

Cooper, Ellwood,

Cresswell, John,

Cresswell, Mrs. John,

Grossman, J. H.,

Culver, J. H.,

Currie, William.

Daggett, JSon, John,
J>ana, A. W.,
Daunet, I.,

"^venport Academy ofSciencea,

Davies, P.,

Davis, J. Z.f

Day, Mrs. H. H.,

DeBegon, L.,

Decker, Peter,

DeGoha, A. W.,

Department of the InterioVjU.S.

Donough, T.,

Donnelly, Dr. E.,

Dorman, Levi,

Drake, Frank,

Dunn, R. L.,

Durden, H. S.

Edman, J. A.,
Eeer, Dr. L.,
Eleau, H.,
Elliott, Andrew,
Ellis, John E.,
Elwyn, F.,
Emersley, J. D.,
Emerson, George W.,
Everett, T. B.,
Ewing, Thomas.

Farrington & Moss,
Faulhaoer, Carlos,
Fay, Caleb T.,
Febiger, C,
Figel, Philip I.,
Figg, E. P.,
Figuera, L.,
Folingsby, T. H.,
Fracker, A. H.,
Friend, Charles W.,
Frost, C. W.

Galbreath, R. H.,
Gallagher, Edward A. T.,
Gallagher, Frank,
Gascoyne, W. J.,
Gates, Harry,
George, Arthur T.,
George, Dr. S. G.,
Gilmore, Thomas,
Gladding, McBean & Co.,
Glass, Louis,
Gorley, Captain H. A.,
Gould, James,
Graham, J. M.,
Green, H.,
Green, J. C,
Griffin, J. B.,
Griffin, Thomas,
Grigsby, R. P.,
Gutzkow, Fr.

Haggin, J. B.,
Haher, E. C,
Hain, E.,
Hanks, H. G.,
Hartley, H. H.,
Hartson, Hon. C,
Harvey, Dr. Philip,
Hawes, G. H.,
Hawkshurst, H.,
Hazen, General William B.,
Heald, E. P.,
Heam, Dr. F. G.,

Heverin, M.,
Heydenfeldt, S., Jr.,
Hittell, John S.,
Hoitt, J. S.,
Holcombe, S. E.,
Holmes, A. J.,
,Holt, W. H.,
Howe, H. M.,
Hughes, Dr. C. B.,
Hulford, E. W.,
Hunter, Thomas G.,
Hyde, H. C.

Johnson, J. P.,
Jones, Dr. William.

Itaufman, Charles,
Keeler, Hon. J. M.,
Keeney, G. D.,
Keep, Col. Albert,
Keep, Mrs. A.,
Kennedy, Ed.,
Kimble, George W.,
Knapp, C. R.,
Knox & Osbom.

Landis, John,
Lawton, W. S.,
Leary, John,
Linton, W. D.,
Liversidee, Prof. A.,
Lombard, J. W.,
Loomis, J. W.

MacKillican, D. R.,

Manning, J. G.,

Manter, J. R.,

Marcou, Jules,

Marcus, Morris,

Marriotte, Noel,

Martin, E. W.,

Martin, G. W.,

Mason, W. B.,

May, Henry,

Maynard, H. G.,

McDougal, W. C,

McGrew, William K.,

Mercantile Library Association,

Merrill, F. H.,

Minister of Mines, B. C,

Mintzer, William H.,

Monte verde, F. E.,

Montgomery, Zach.,

Moody, W. H.,

Moraga, J. C,

Morales, A.,

Morgan, D. W. C,

Moss, Joshua,

Munroe, Prof. Charles E.,

Murdock, W. B.,

Murray, Welwood.

Nichols, George.

Oakland Gold Mining Company,
Ogg,C.,

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Parker, James E.,
Paul, A. B.,
Peck, W. H.,
Perkins, Henry C,
Peticolas, C. L.,
Philips, Greorge K.,
Pilsbury, Charles J.,
Porter, ^W. H.,
Pownall; J. B.,
Price, Col. E. H.,
Price, Edward M.,
Putnam , Mr.

Quayle, William.

Ramsey, Prof. Alexander,
RandsJl, William H.,
Randol, J. B.,
Raymond, W. H.,
Rhodes, John,
Roberts, A. E.,
Rol)erts, E. W.,
Robinson, William,
Roeecrans, General,
Rowley, A. B.,
Russell, B. D.,
Russell, B.,
Ryan, J. F.

Sarvis, George C,
Schaeffle, E. H.,
Scott, Chalmers,
Scupham & Childs,
Scupham, J. R.,
Sellers, Charles,
Sheerer, Joseph,
Shepard, Prof.C.W.,
Silver, Lowry,
Sime, William K.,
Skellings, £. M.,
Skinner, M.,
Sletcher, F.,
Smith Bros.,
Smith, F. W.,
Stanley, W.H.,
Stearns, Robert E. C,
Stokes, W. C,
Stone, Charles S.,
Stone, Dudley C,
Stout, Dr. A. B.,
Stoutenborough, J. H.,
Szabo, Dr. Joseph.

Taglebue, Frank,
Tanner, Mrs. J. G.,
Thomas, R. P.,
Toomey, M.,

Townsend, Mrs.,
Truett, M. F. ;
Tryel, Mr.,
Tyler, Charles M.

Union Pacific Salt Company.

Walkinshaw, Robert,

Ward, H. H.,

Ward, W. E.,

Wasson, Hon. Joseph,

Waterman, J. S.,

Weir, J. C,

White, D. Morgan,

White, Mrs. J. S.,

Williams, Albert, Jr.,

Williams, Blanchard k Co.,

Williams, Col. A. F.,

Williamson, Col. R. S.,

Wilson, George R.,

Wilson, J. F.,

Wilson, W. H.,

Winterburn,

Woodhull, S. D.,

Woodley, W. J.,

Worcester Royal PorcePn W*ks,

Wynant, N.

Young, W. W.

The following newspapers have been sent to the Mining Bureau
gratuitously:

1. Engineering and Mining Journal, New York.

2. Mining Record, New York.

3. Mining Review, Chicago, Illinois.*

4. Economist, Boston, Massachusetts.

5. Daily Report, San Francisco.

6. Daily Transcript, Nevada City, Nevada County, California.

7. Grass Valley Union, Nevada County.

8. Sierra County Tribune.

9. Democratic Standard, Eureka, Humboldt County, California.

10. Inyo Independent, Inyo County.

11. Reno Evening Gazette, Reno, Nevada.

12. Arizona Gazette, Phoenix, Arizona.

LIBRARY.

The increase of the library has been principally by donation — ^a
few indispensable volumes only have been purchased. The library
of the State Mining Bureau should contain all standard scientific
works and books of reference, specially those bearing on mining,
metallurgy, chemistry, mineralogy, geology, paleontology, etc., and
publications of scientinc societies at home and abroad. These works
should always be accessible to those who wish to study, but never be
taken from the rooms.

PUBLICATIONS.

The State Mining Bureau has made two reports, and published the
First Annual Catalogue of the State Museum. For reasons set forth,
they were not issued at regular intervals, but are equivalent to annual
reports. The dates of the publications are as follows:
First Report^ from June 1 to December 1, 1880- forty-three pages.
Second Report, from December 1, 1880, to OctoW l,!^^'!', SvN^Vxisv-
dred and fourteen pages.

8 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

First Annual Catalogue of the State Museum of California, for th
year ending April 16, 1881; three hundred and fifty pages.

Of the first report a second edition was ordered printed by join
resolution of the Legislature. Both editions of the First and th(
whole of the Second Report have been distributed ; a few copies o
the Catalogue remain.

Owing U) inexperience and want of proper assistance, the Seconc
Report was defective in being without an index, which has been aj
far as possible remedied by the printing of an index and a correctiot
sheet, which will be furnished to those having copies of the report
upon application. A few copies of the Second Report were reservei
until photographs showing the modes of hydraulic mining in Cali
fornia could be prepared. Copies of the illustrated report have beei
sent to the Secretary of State of every State and Territory in th.
Union and to the principal Governments of the world.

With this, the Third Annual Report, a second part has been pre
pared, entitled:

"A Report of the Borax Deposits of California and Nevada, givin
the Production, Consumption, Uses, History, Chemistry, and Mine:
alogy of Boracic Acid ana its Compounds^ and other General Informs
tion, with a Map showing the Principal Localities in the Two States,
which is the sixth of a series of papers on the principal nature
products of California; Hydraulic Mining, Forest Trees, Diatomaceoi
Earths, Diamonds, and Salt having been specially treated in the Se*
ond Report.

LABORATORY WORK.

The importance of complete analyses of ores, minerals, miners
waters, building stones, rocks, limestones, cements, fertilizers, etc
laboratory experiments bearing on the working of complex ores, an
a careful study of low grade ores, and those requiring concentratioi
is fully realized by the State Mineralogist; and a course of such worJ
was early planned, the results of which it was hoped would form ai
interesting and important part of the annual reports.

But, owing to the forced closing of the laboratory and discharge o
the Chemist, there is but little chemical work to report. Many exam
inations of minerals have been made by the State Mineralogist pei
sonally, and information sent to those asking it, but this class of worl
has not been done to the extent it should be, for reasons set forth ii
this and preceding reports. A number of analyses of coal from newl
discovered localities, and of ores and minerals, in a few cases, hav
been made; but the meager results have been reserved for futui
publication. The results of considerable study of the borax mineral
of the State appear in Part Second of this report.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

FINANCIAL CONDITION OF THE MINING BUREAU,

California Statb Mining Bureau".
Receipts and Expenditures from September 1, 1882, to June 1, 1883.

Postage

Museum expense .
General expense—

Maps

Salaries

Library

Traveling expense
Gash on hand

Total

$43 85

8 55

2,190 70

7 00

733 70

9 00

63 90

30 55

$3,087 25

Mining Bureau fund

Wells, Fargo & Co. advances.

Total.

$1,882 20
1,205 06

$3,087 25

Amffwnt paid into Mining Bureau Fund and retained by State Treasurer pending the Auditing of

Accounts of -Mining Burmu,

April, 1883 $522 66

Expenses incurred, but not paid, from September 1, 1882, to June 1, 1883.

General expense — $484 80

Salaries _ 600 00

Total .-$1,084 80

The books of the Mining Bureau show a deficiency of $3,864 for the
three years, which has been advanced from time to time by Wells,
Fargo & Co. For this there are vouchers, showing that the amount
has been economically expended. These vouchers have been exam-
ined by the State Board and found correct, but have not been allowed,
because the law provides that the expenditures shall not exceed in
any year the income for that year, but no provision was made in the
law to meet the emergency caused by the rapid diminution of the
fund. Every economy has been practiced to make the expenses as
small as possible without actually closing the Museum, which the law
directs shall be kept open. Messrs. Wells, Fargo & Co. have not only
advanced money to the institution, but have delivered a multitude
of packages free, and have extendea many favors for which the State
owes them a debt of gratitude.

When the Mining Bureau first commenced operations the fund for
its support was ample. During the next twenty-two months, up to
the publication of the Second Report, the income gradually dimin-
ished until the last quarter, during which it fell to the monthly aver-
age of $542 66, upon which it was impossible to support the institution.
Tne deficiency was made up, as before stated, by advances by Wells,
Fargo & Co., without which the institution would have been compelled
to close its doors at a time when its usefulness and importance were
admitted, not only by the citizens of our own State, but by those of
Eastern States and foreign countries.

•It then became apparent that it was a mistake to appropriate an

uncertain sum for the support of a noble State institution; it would

have been much better to set aside a fixed amount, even if it had

beei3 smaller, and to have allowed the tax \,T^\i?)L^T iMw^Xf^^^-^^^^-t*

again to the JState Treasury. The latter, hovje\eiT,\ira\^K)cife <^\^^^ ^^-

port of the institution, great inconvenieixce ioWo^^^ V^^ $L\\£C\x:oc^^i^^^

2 27»

10 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

By dispensing with the services of a Secretary, and for a time with
those of a Janitor, it was planned to return to Wells, Fargo &. Co. the
advances made by them, from the savings. But the decision of the
Board of Examiners made this impossible. There is no doubt in
my mind that the next Legislature will provide for the deficiency
by a special Act.

The Legislature of 1881 was asked to make some provision for the
Mining Bureau, which was recommended by the Governor in his
message, but while that body showed a disposition to do so the eflFort
failed for reasons well known, and it was found, in the extra session
which followed, that no appropriation coul^ be made without amend-
ing the original Act, which could not be done at an extra session. In
the month of February, 1882, the State Mineralogist wrote to the
Governor, stating the decrease of the Mining Bureau Fund, and
informing him that it would be impossible to maintain the eflBciency
of the institution on the income, since which time he has been com-
pelled to practice the utmost economy without sacrifice to the inter-
ests of the State, and has tried to accomplish personally as much as
possible of the labor of the different departments, to the best of his
ability.

It was thought best to keep the museum open until the meeting of
the following Legislature, the more so as it was found that it could
not be closed without incurring considerable expense, and as the
replacing of the museum material would entail considerable loss to
the State.

A bill was introduced in the Senate asking for an appropriation
of 111,000 yearly, for two years, which was reduced by that body
to $5,000 per annum, in which form it became a law. The reduc-
tion was made by the Senate committee, on the assumption that
the tax transfer fund would not fall below that of the quarter pre-
ceding their visit to the bureau, which was about $1,700, or $540 per
month; but it has continued to decrease, and there is reason to believe
that it will diminish indefinitely. It is the experience made by the
management, that the original Mining Bureau Fund cannot be
depended upon, and should not be taken into future calculations. It
is collected three months after it has accrued, and, as the institution
was started three months before any money was paid in to its credit,
the fund for six months is a part of the assets and must be used in
the payment of expenses due.

To close the museum, even for a year, would be to take a step back-
ward; and, while it would not, perhaps, otherwise imp9<ir the useful-
ness of the Mining Bureau, such a retrograde movement would entail
a loss, not only as regards the l&bor expended in bringing the museum
to its present state of perfection, but to this must be added the cost of
packing, and the labor requisite when it was again opened. To allow
the mu§eum in this advanced state to close would be almost as serious
a mistake as the discontinuance of the Geological Survey, which has
always been a regret to thinking citizens. Many persons have donated
largely to the Ste,te Museum with the understanding that their con-
tributions should be cared for by the State and kept on permanent
exhibition. It would not be keeping faith with them if their valuable
gifts should be hidden away for an indefinite period, and it would be
a shame now to hide all the beautiful and valuable specimens which
have been acquired.
The State Museum has only been brought to its ^T^^erA, Q<OTA\t\Q\i.

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 11

by much labor and no inconsiderable expense. As now arranged it
will compare favorably with those of other countries, according to the
verdict of many persons who have visited similar institutions both at
home and abroad; yet there are other specimens on hand, classified
and arranged, in sufficient numbers to double those now on exhibi-
tion. They are packed in boxes in another room, and await the pur-
chase of cases for their display. The specimens already in the museum
are crowded for want of case room. They should occupy from six to
I ten cases more, to show them to the best advantage. This could be
'i' J easily and quickly done if the money was forthcoming to pay for the
^; J extra cases. The boxed specimens could also be displayed within a
if month if the necessary funds were provided.

This is not the first effi)rt that has been made to establish a State
Museum of Geology and Mineralogy in California. The legislative
Act which created the Geological Survey made it the duty of the State
Greologist "to collect the rocks, fossils, soils, and minerals of the State,
and its zoological and botanical productions, to be deposited in such

Elace as should thereafter be provided for that purpose by the Legis-
iture;" but such provision was never made, and the valuable col-
lections of the survey were stored in a warehouse which was destroyed
bv fire. Thus a great loss wa§ sustained by the State. Professor
Whitney, in a lecture in the City of San Francisco in 1864, called
attention to the importance of a State Museum, and it was not his
&iult that the plan was not carried out.

The success of the Mining Bureau Museum proves that such an
institution is wanted by the people. In no other cotintry could so
large and varied a collection be made in so short a time, for in no
other country are so many prospectors interested in having ores and
minerals they discover placed on exhibition. The collection, with
the library and other State property, is certainly worth more than
the cost of the institution. The whole of the property acquired up
to the present time has been derived from the mining community,
but it now belongs to the State. This should be a consideration for
other classes, who are equally benefited, to come forward and assist
in making the State Museum the great institution it deserves to be.

The founding of museums for education and display of national
resources, is almost universal, and it is not to be supposed that the
whole world is mistaken, or has been in the past.

What applies to other countries applies equally to California, for if
there is any State that needs to show up her natural resources it is
California; for she has long invited capital from abroad, and begins
to wonder why her population is so small while her natural advan-
tages are so great.

To the average inhabitant of the earth our State is either wholly

unknown, or is regarded as a vast region of desert lands, valuable

only for tne mines of gold and silver found in them. Even n\en of

education and science make serious mistakes in regard to California*

as, for instance, in Dana's Geology, which is considered a standard

work on that subject, it may be found stated that "chrome iron

occurs in the serpentines of California, but not in a condition to

repay mining;" while, on the contrary, that important and scarce

mineral is largely mined and exported.

There have oeen so many mistakes regarding the character of our
mining districts, and so manjr misstatements to those who have been
asked to invest their capital in Calif ornia, that tYvei^ \^ \i<^<i<i oi %.w

12 REPORT OF THK STATE MINERALOGIST.

official source of information relating to the varied resources of the
State. This can best be accomplished by granting to the institution
already established a liberal support.

The Mining Bureau was located at San Francisco because it was
thought that the museum would be more accessible to the people of
the State generally. It has already been of benefit to the city, and
can be made more so if it meets with the encouragement it deserves.

Both Arizona and Colorado are considering the establishment of a
State Mining Bureau on a similar plan as ours, and a national asso-
ciation has been organized, the object of which is, in part, to encour-
age State Museums. The State of New York gave its credit, and
appropriated $3,500 per annum as interest on the sum required for
the museum buildings in Central Park, and a further amount of
$500,000 for equipping and furnishing the same, to which the citizens
have also largely contributed.

St. Louis has recently subscribed $483,000 for a building for similaf
purposes.

In the encouragement of a State Museum in which all the natural
resources of the State should be placed on permanent exhibition,
San Francisco should take the most active part, because she has
received the compliment of having the Mining Bureau placed within
her limits.

While the institution has been called the " Mining Bureau," and '.
so far, has been paid for by the miners, its usefulness has been gen- ,
eral, and the merchant, manufacturer, and the agriculturist are, or
should be, deeply interested in its success.

In order to manufacture to advantage, crude material must be
both abundant and cheap, and, as far as possible, should be found
within the State borders. It is now known that gold and silver are
not the only metals in the State worthy of attention, but that other
ores having an economic value are abundant. Many such instances
have been made known through the agency of the State Mining
Bureau. It ought not to be true that we waste enough in California
to make the entire population comparatively rich.

The Mining Bureau has grown out of all proportion to the provis-
ion made for its support, and quite beyond the expectations of its
friends; but the management now finds itself in the anomalous posi-
tion of being compelled to retard its progress rather than to push it
forward.

It has long been evident that the State Museum was becoming too
extensive and valuable to be managed by a single individual. The
experience of the last three years has shown that there is a great
future for the institution, if properly managed, and it is well worthy
of the fostering care of the State. But it has already become so
extended in its scope that no person is competent to manage it with-
out the advice and assistance of others. Under this conviction I
asked, in my last report to the Governor, ** that a Board of Trus-
tees be appointed to share the responsibility and management of
the State property, leaving the State Mineralogist free to travel, to
investigate and report upon new discoveries, and to conduct the sci'
entific departments with his assistants." This was recommended by
the Governor in his message, and, although no action was taken, T
am still as strongly impressed with its importance as before.
It js clear to my mind that the time has come when the State
Mining Bureau should be reorganized and placed on a pexTsv^Tifcti?

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 13

basis, or the museum closed, and the institution and office of State
||4ineralogist abolished. In view of these considerations, and not
i-wishing to bear the whole responsibility, I called a meeting of prom-
; inent citizens, asking them to act with me as an advisory committee,
i;Wid to whom I set forth the above stated facts. The following letter
f^as addressed to the gentlemen named below:

CALL MADE TO CITIZENS TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE AFFAIRS

OF THE STATE MINING BUREAU.

California Statr Mining Burrau,

Oppick op State Mineralogist,

San Francisco, March 23, 1883.

Dbab Sir: You are hereby invited to meet with a number of other prominent gentlemen of

' ttiis city, at the rooms of the State Mining Bureau, 212 Sutter Street, on Monday, March twenty-

gixth, at three o'clock, to act as an advisory committee, to take into consideration the future of

, the State Museum. The matter to be laid before the committee is of great importance to the

Btate.

Hoping that you can spare time for this purpose,

I remain very truly,

HENRY G. HANKS,

State Mineralogist.

CITIZENS to whom THE ABOVE LETTER WAS SENT.

George C. Perkins, Mayor Washington Bartlett, H. A. Cobb,

J. Z. Davis, A. Hay ward, R. H. Sinton,

George T. Marye, Jr., A. P. Brayton, J. M. Keeler,

A. B. Paul, Col. J. P. Jackson, W. M. Bunker,

C. Waterhouse, Malter, Lind & Co., Alexander Boyd,

Cornelius O'Connor, William T. Garratt, Robert N. Graves,

Oapt. J. M. McDonald, John H. Carmany, George W. Grayson,

&>£[eydenfeldt, Jr., W. B. Ewer, Melville Attwood,

Horace Davis, L, L. Bullock, Charles M. Tyler.

William T. Coleman, Judge J. S. Hager,

A preliminary meeting was held at the rooms of the State Mining
Bureau, 212 Sutter Street, March 26, 1883. The following gentlemen
were present: George T. Marye, Jr., Melville Attwood, W. M. Bunker,

■ m J. H. Carmany, William T. Coleman, J. Z. Davis. W. B. Ewer, S. Hey-

J denfeldt, Jr., J. M. Keeler, J. M. McDonald, A. B, Paul, and Charles
M. Tyler.

Mr. William T. Coleman was called to the chair, and S. Heyden-
feldt, Jr., acted as Secretary. The object of the meeting was stated,
and, after due discussion of the affairs of the bureau, a committee of
five was appointed, consisting of Messrs. Paul, Heydenfeldt, McDon-
ald, Bunker, and Tyler, as a Committee of Ways and Means, to devise
some plan of appealing to the citizens of the State to come forward
and assist in maintaining the Mining Bureau until the next session
of the Legislature.

After expressing the sense of the meeting as to the value of the State
Mining Bureau, and that every effort must be made to. maintain its
usefulness, the meeting adjourned.

A second meeting was held April sixth to receive the report of the
committee, at which it was proposed to hold a Pacific Coast Min-
eral Exposition during the Triennial Conclave of the Knights Tem-
plars in August, and to appeal to the miners of the State to contribute
specimens and funds to carry out that end, in the belief that the

/needed aid would at the same time be extended lo \A\e^\m\v^^Nix.^»»..

^A new committee was formed, consisting oi ttie io\\oV\xv^^<5^^^^«^^^'«

ti
I

(

14 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Geo. T. Marye, Jr., Irving M. Scott, S. Heydenf eldt, Jr., Almarin B. Paul,
Lloyd Tevis, Melville Attwood, L. L. Bullock, W. M. Bunker, William
T. Coleman, James V. Coleman, C. O'Connor, Jacob Z. Davis, John
Daggett, Warren B. Ewer, C. A. Hooper, W. H. Mills, J. R. Scupham,
Charles M. Tyler.

The members of the committee signed the following agreement:
" We, the undersigned, hereby consent to act as a committee for the
purpose of encouraging an exposition of the mineral wealth of the
State, and to extend me scope and usefulness of the State Mining
BureauJ'

On motion, it was decided to address the several counties of the
State, the address to be prepared and submitted to the committee for
consideration and approval, and that the committee be empowered
to take such action in forwarding the object in view as they may con-
sider most efficacious and suitable.

April seventeenth a meeting* was called by the Secretary of the
Citizens' Committee. Geo. T. Marye, Jr., was elected Chairman ; Irving
M. Scott, Vice-Chairman; S. Heydenf eldt, Jr^Secretary; A. B. Paul,
Corresponding Secretary, and Lloyd Tevis, Treasurer. The Chair^
man appointed an Executive Committee, consisting of Messrs. Paul,
Bunker, Heydenf eldt, Jr., and Davis; Auditing Committee — Messrs.
Attwood, Bullock, and Ewer. Circular No. 1 was approved and five
hundred copies ordered printed, one of which was sent to the Super-
visors of each county in the State.

ICircular No. 1.]

Rooms of the Citizkns' Cohhittkb op thr
Pacific Coast Mineral Exposition,

212 Sutter Street, San Francisco. ^

To the honorable Board of Supervisors of the County of , 8tate of California , greeting :

We, the undersigned, a committee of citizens of the City and County of San Francisco, called
by Henry G. Hanks, State Mineralogist, to consult upon the vital importance of making ft
grand free exposition, or display, of the mineral and material resources of the Pacific Coast,
which shall be a credit and benefit to our great State and to the Pacific Coast, to be held at San
Francisco during the coming Summer, when our metropolis will be filled with distinguished
and influential visitors from abroad, have deemed it just and wise to address the respective
Boards of Supervisors of the several counties, and through them the citizens, that no portion of
the State may fail of the honor and benefit of an equal and full representation in this important
and attractive display. We therefore respectfully call your attention to the reasons and con-
siderations which have influenced the committee, viz.:

Whereas, The provisions made for the support of the State Mining Bure-au by the Act which
brought it into existence, even adding the recent legislative appropriation, are entirely inade-
quate for the purpose, and are insufficient for the conduct of the institution in any way
commensurate with its splendid advancement and fine acquisitions of new material and v&l'
uable specimens,- and wheresw, the coming Summer will anord one of the great opportunities
of an .age for a noticeable and important free display of our mineral and material interests; aiK^
whereas, we have been impressed with the importance of so arranging the specimens that those
of each county may be displayed together, an arrangement which cannot now be made for lax^^
of cases ,• therefore we most respectfully lay before your honorable body the result of our delit^
erations, viz.:

First— It is proposed that the citizens of the City and County of San Francisco (and liberal''
minded citizens of the State who may so desire) raise all the funds required to project andcart^
out a Free Pacific Coast Mineral Exposition, and make the display one of unequaled attraction
and interest to all who may visit the city.

Second — That the respective counties, and the citizens thereof, be earnestly solicited to ooH"
tribute the sum of one hundred dollars for each county — by appropriation or by private sul>"
Bcription — which may be sent to Lloyd Tevis, Esq., Treasurer of this Citizens* Expositia**
Committee, to go into what will be styled " The County Case Fund of the State Mining Burea-*^
and Museum," to provide neat and uniform cases, which will bear the names of the respective
counties so contributing.

It is also most earnestly requested that immediate measures be taken by the respective Boardl^

to Bolicit speoimenB, which, may be sent by express, free, directed to the State Mining Bureaf-^

fFJt/i names of donors, which will appear on printed display cards m t\ie Tes^^cfcvi«iCo\iiLty case^'

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 16

Many relics, fossils, etc., will no doubt be sent which cannot go in cases, and for these a county
■pace will be assigned by the committee.

Believing that the main thoughts aimed at and brought out in this circular will afford an
ample incentive to earnest and practical effort, and that opportunity will be furnished for one of
the meet important displays the State has ever made, we submit this circular, hoping that what
it asks for and aims at will meet with your approbation and receive your hearty cooperation.

We are, gentlemen, yours very respectfully,

MELVILLE ATTWOOD,
L. L. BULLOCK,
W. M. BUNKER,
WM. T. COLEMAN,
JAMES V. COLEMAN,
C. O'CONNOR,
JACOB Z. DAVIS,
JOHN DAGGETT,
WARREN B. EWER,
S. HEYDENFELDT, Jr.,
C. A. HOOPER,
GEO. T. MARYE, Jr.,
W. H. MILLS,
ALMARIN B. PAUL,
I. M. SCOTT,
J. R. SCUPHAM,
CHAS. M. TYLER.

Letter accompanying Circular No. 1 :

PACIFIC COAST MINERAL EXPOSITION.

Rooms op the Citizens* Committee, 212 Sutter Street, )

San Francisco, April 21, 1883. j

To the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, Ckmntyf California :

Dbar Sir : Inclosed please find circular letter in triplicate, addressed to your honorable Board
of Supervisors. I believe it will be your pleasure to send the same to the gentlemen of the
Board in their respective districts, if they are not at the county seat, retaining one for yourself
that you may be able to advocate the purpose set forth. An early response is earnestly desired.

Very respectfully,

S. HEYDENFELDT, Jr.,

Secretary of Committee.

A special committee was appointed to draft Circular No. 2, inform-
ing the public that an exposition would be held, and Circular No. 3,
giving instructions how to pack and send specimens, both of which
were accepted, ordered printed, and sent to the several county seats,
and to every newspaper published in the State. A large number
were reserved for distribution in the city.

[Circular No. 2.]

PACIFIC COAST MINING EXPOSITION.

RooMR OP THK Citizens* Committer, )

212 Sutter Street, San Francisco. /

Baring the session of the Triennial Conclave of the Knights Templars, to be held in San
Francisco during the month of August, 1883, it is variously estimated that from 15,000 to
50,000 strangers will visit this city.

In view of this unusual influx of visitors there has been inaugurated by the citizens of San
Francisco a Pacific Coast Mineral Exposition, to be held in this city and kept open daily, for
the free admission of the public, during the month of August.

The exhibits will be in two general classes, viz.: Donations to the State Museum, which will
remain on permanent exhibition after the close of the exposition ,* and loan exhibits, which
will be returned to the owners at the close of the exposition.

In order to make the exposition worthy of our State, all citizens are requested to take a per-
sonal interest therein, ana forward, either directly to the State Mining Bureau, or through
their own county committee, any specimens which may represent any of the resources of the
State or are of interest otherwise.

It is desirable to exhibit specimens of all ores occurring in the State, such as gold, silver,

16 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

copger. lead, antimony, tin, nickel, quicksilver, iron, etc. ,* also clays suitable for brick, fin- j
clay, pottery, porcelain, etc. ; useful and ornamental stones for building, paving, and statuaiT,,^
lime, plaster, etc.; cements, natural and artificial, mineral oils, crude and manufactureoi)
soda and borax, crude or <nanufactured ; nitrates, chromic iron, rocks and minerals of all kii
salt, coal, fossils, woods, native and cultivated, fibrous plants, native and cultivated; PBpvj
material, native and cultivated; tanning material, native and cultivated; sands suitable 6r{
elass-making, etc. ; mineral soap, soapstone, Indian relics, and specimens of curious natani i
formations of any kind that may be interesting.

Information regarding packing, etc., may be found posted up in your Post Office, and cojpkii
of these directions may be had of the Postmaster, or of the regularly appointed committee cl
your county.

Specimens will be received from this date until August 1, 1883, for exhibition daring the
exposition.

The Citizens' Committee is as follows :

GEORGE T. MARYE, Jr., Chairman,

IRVING M. SCOTT, Vice-Chairman,

S. HEYDENFELDT, Jr., Secretary,

ALMARIN B. PAUL, Corresponding Secretary,

LLOYD TEVIS (Pres't Wells, Fargo & Co.), Treasurer,

MELVILLE ATTWOOD,

L. L. BULLOCK,

W. M. BUNKER,

WILLIAM T. COLEMAN,

JAMES V. COLEMAN,

C. O'CONNOR,

JACOB Z. DAVIS,

JOHN DAGGETT,

WARREN B. EWER,

C. A. HOOPER,

W. H. MILLS,

J. R. SCUPHAM,

CHARLES M. TYLER.

[Cfircular No, 3.]

PACIFIC COAST MINERAL EXPOSITION.

Directions to ExhiJbitora.

1. Specimens should not be less than two inches in diameter, excepting very rare or vain-
able minerals*

2. Wrap each specimen up carefully in paper, with a label inclosed, stating locality as ezac^j
as possible — section, township, and range, and name of county — ^also the name of donor.

3. When two or more specimens are sent at the same time, observe Rule 2, and pack together
tightly so as to avoid any rubbing of the specimens.

4. When a number of specimens are sent in one box, in addition to the regular label (Ralft
2) have them numbered and a list of corresponding numbers made out and sent in the box.

5. Tack on the regular address card of the State Mining Bureau, or address '' State Mining
Bureau, 212 Sutter Street, San Francisco.''

6. Use every precaution in sending fragile specimens; pack separately in small box so thai
they do not damage from defective packing.

7. Before sending unusually bulky or weighty specimens, correspond with the Secretary of
the committee concerning same.

8. Advise the State Mining Bureau of every shipment, stating when and how the shipment
was made.

9. Send all small packages of twenty pounds or less by Wells, Fargo &. Co.'s Express, and
charges will be attended to at this office.

April twenty-fourth a meeting was held for general consultation, at
which it was decided that all matters of detail be left to the Execu-
tive Committee, who were instructed to proceed in arranging the
business of the exposition, and to procure the necessary material and
assistance for advancing the same. April twenty-sixth a meeting of
the Executive Committee was held, and the following resolutions
adopted unanimously:

Wherbas, San Francisco will be visited by many thousand people in consequence of the
holding of the Triennial Conclave of Knights Templars during the month of August of this year, 1
and the committee deeming it advisable to have the mineral wealth of the Pacific Coast fully I
represented, and exhibited by the State Mining Bureau; therefore, be it I

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 17

Baolved, That the Executive Committee appointed by the Chairman of the Citizens' Commit-
tee, Geo. T. Marye, Jr., solicit and collect subscriptions of money, and procure mineral specimens
in addition to those now in the museum of the State Mining Bureau, for the purpose of having
exhibited a representative collection of the minerals of this coast, to be made as full and com-
plete as practicable; and to incre£ise the scope of the Mining Bureau, and to aid it in dissemi-
nating useful information.

Be it further resoived. That all moneys collected by the Executive Committee, or by any
member thereof, be deposited with Mr. Lloyd TVm, Treasurer of this committee, to be expended
and applied for the purposes aforesaid, and expressed by the said Executive Committee at its
regular and special meetmgs,and that all specimens received shall be given to the State Mining
Bureau, excepting such as may be loaned to the exposition.

Be it further resolved , That the said Executive Committee be and is hereby authorized and
jmpowered to issue letters and circulars setting forth the importance of carrying out the objects
contemplated in the foregoing resolutions.

Be it further resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the Supervisors of every
»unty in the State, requesting their cooperation, and that the press of the State be urged t<> give
mblicity to the objects which the committee has in view.

THE HONDURAS EXHIBIT.

About the date of this report his Excellency Marco A. Soto, Presi-
ient of the Republic of Honduras, arrived in San Francisco with a
large and valuable collection of the ores, minerals, fossils, woods,
fibers, manufactures, etc., of his country, and a very interesting col-
lection of antiquities from the ancient City of Copan. He applied
to the Mining Bureau for the privilege of exhibiting his collections
in the State Museum, which was granted. The exhibit, which was a
very fine one, remained in the museum for a number of days. On
removing the specimens many duplicates were presented to the State
Museum by President Soto, constituting a fair representation of the
entire Honduras exhibit, and including a full set of the woods of the
country, which in itself is a very valuaole donation. The collection of
antiquities, filling two museum cases, was loaned to the museum for
an indefinite period, and will remain on exhibition. It forms an
I attractive feature of the museum, supplementing as it does the State
collection of antiquities.

Among the minerals shown by President Soto were some remark-
ably fine opals, for which Honduras is celebrated; a large exhibit of
placer gold, and cakes of silver obtained from the cupellation of lead
reducea from galena. Also some beautifully chased silverware, the
manufacture of Hondurians, both ancient and modern.

The ruined City of Copan is in the department of Gracias, Hon-
duras. The ruins lie in a dense forest, and cover an area extending
for two miles on both sides of the Copan River, a branch of the
Motagua, from which the city takes its name.

Among the wonderful ruins are the partly fallen walls of a great
building 624 feet long, supposed to have been a temple. The inclos-
ure is well paved with blocks of cut stone.

From the river to the temple there is a grand stairway of cut stone,
and many monoliths of great size, covered with hieroglyphics in an
unknown language, are found near by, many of them still standing.
These monoliths, which are elaborately sculptured and very orna-
mental, are peculiar to Honduras, and their meaning and history are
probably given in the unread inscriptions which await an unfound
rosetta stone or other key to the deeply ciit hieroglyphics. At the
time of the Spanish conquest the conquerors found tliese ruins in
their present condition, without a history and with scarcely a tradi-
tion.

3 m

18 UEPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Among the numerous specimens loaned by President Soto to the
State Museum are grotesque ornaments in baked clay, ornamented
vessels of the same material, vessels cut in stone, fragments of the
characteristic monoliths above mentioned, and ornaments and
designs showing both taste and skill on the part of the ancient
sculptors. A very remarkable and beautiful corn mill of diorite is
shown with roller of stone, upon which the modern rolling pin is
no improvement. On the gracefully curved face of the mill, cakes
or flat sheets of bread were prepared. The character of this beauti-
ful utensil is such, and the amount of labor expended in its con-
struction so great, that none but a person of wealth or high position
could have owned it.

Another remarkable carving is that of a sphinx, which seems to
prove that the ancient people were in communication, direct or
indirect, with the Egyptians, and it seems as likely that the latter
derived their idea of that fabulous monster from the citizens of
Copan, as the reverse.

VISITORS.

Since the last report the number of visitors has notably increased,
the museum becoming more widely known. From the commence-
ment up to June first, 8,172 names have been entered in the register.
But this by no means represents the number of visitors, for an
.unaccountable reluctance to register has been noticed, and those who
have previously visited the museum frequently decline to enter their
names again. There is no way of keeping a record of the visitors,
while no regular museum attendant is employed. It is safe to esti-
niate five visitors for each name registered. Many persons daily
visit the offices of the Mining Bureau for information and on busi-
ness who do not enter the museum.

DEATH OF JOSEPH WASSON.

Since the publication of the last report the Honorable Joseph Was-
son, to whom is due the founding of the State Mining Bureau, died
in Mexico. The date of his death was April 18, 1883. He was
appointed United States Consul for the port of San Bias, and his
friends thought the change of climate would restore his failing health.
This hope, unfortunately, proved groundless. However great the
State Mining Bureau may become in the future, the name of Joseph
Wasson will always be associated with its commencement.

Mr. P. L. Peters, a well known artist of San Francisco, offered to

Eaint, gratuitously, a portrait of Mr. Wasson from a photograph taken
efore his death. He has produced an admirable likeness, which
has been hung in the library of the State Mining Bureau as a part of
the history of the institution.

This incident suggested the idea of obtaining and preserving por-
traits of all those connected with the geological surveys of the State.
To this end a snaall photograph of Dr. J. B. Trask, first State Geolo-
gist of California, was obtained from his wife and enlarged and
retouched by C. E. Watkins, of San Francisco, which is now also
framed and hung in the library. A letter was written to Professor
J. D. Whitney, former State Geologist, asking for his photograph,
and he has promised to send it, but up to the present time it has not
een received. These portraits will be inoTe p^vLed m tha €\itvire
iJ2 now.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 19

ANTICIPATED REMOVAL.

Notice has been given to the State Mineralogist that the building
now occupied bv the State Mining Bureau will soon be remodeled,
and that it will be necessary for the museum and offices to be
removed during that time. No date . has been set for the work to
commence, but removal is only a question of time. The work will
probably be commenced immediately after the Winter rains.

To move the museum implies the packing in boxes of all the
museum material, and replacing it again in the new rooms. To
those who have had no experience, the magnitude of this work cannot
be realized; nor can it be done without loss, for some of the speci-
mens are so fragile that they may become broken, notwithstanding
the greatest care. The Mining Bureau has before been compelled to
remove at short notice, and for the same reason. It will be very dif-
ficult to find rooms suitable for the purpose, and at the present this
seems almost impossible. Unless there is some provision made for a
permanent building, there seems to be no alternative but to pack the
specimens in boxes and store them for an indefinite period. But
such a course would be a serious blow to the institution, and one
from which it would not soon recover.

DANGER OF FIRE.

In my second report I alluded to the danger of fire, and the great
loss the destruction of the museum would be to the State. The
importance of this subject becomes greater with the increase of the
collections. It is a question whether it would not be better to sacri-
fice accessibility to safety, and to remove the museum to the Park or
other locality with less risk of fire. To test the practicability of such
amove, I made application to the Park Commissioners, asking them
if a building could be furnished, but as yet have received no reply.

The museum should as soon as possible be placed in a suitable
building, which should be absolutely fireproof.

STATE MAP.

In a recent report, the State Engineer called attention to the large
map of California in his office. This is a very valuable work, and
one that is not fully appreciated by the people.

It is proposed to issue the map in sections, which should furnish
the groundwork for all future maps of the State. Each County Sur-
veyor should be furnished with sheets, upon which he could fill in
the details of his county surveys. The State Mineralogist should
have sheets, upon which the results of his study of the geology of
the State could be entered from time to time, and the locality of all
known minerals marked.

The want of such a map is daily felt in this office. The United
States map of California, used by the State Mineralogist, was sent to
the State Engineer, who has marked upon it lines showing the sheet
sections of his great map.

It is to be hoped that early action will be taken to furnish sectional
sheets to all those working in the interest of the State.

20 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

ECONOMIC CONSIDERATIONS.

It is beyond question that mining and metallurgy as practiced in
California are wasteful and extravagant. The amount of gold Icrf
in milling and hydraulic mining is much greater than is generally
admitted. As an example of the latter I give a statement recently
made to me:

May 26, 1883, Mr. C. H. Hankins, of Nevada County, called at
the State Mining Bureau and stated that he had, during a period
extending from 1869 to date, taken $125,000, in gold, wholly from
tailings rejected by the Bird*s-eye Creek Hydraulic Mining Company,
at You Bet, Nevada County, in this State. After saving all he could,
his tailings still contained gold, which would pay to work, but which
were no longer on his ground. He employs the same water used by
the hydraulic company, and in the same Kind of sluices.

For five or six years the gross yield per annum has been $16,000.
He has never seen rusty gold, and knows nothing of the subject. The
hydraulic company uses 1,500 inches of water.

Mr. Hankins thinks the large quantity of gold in the tailings could
be recovered by ground sluicing, even if hydraulic mining should be
stopped. His plan is to commence at the lower end of the cafion,
which is a mile or more long, and to sluice out the tailings, now sev-
enty-five feet deep. The gold is very fine.

Professor Edison was the first, I believe, to call public attention to
the presence of gold in tailings from hydraulic mines, in a condition
invisible to the eye, and in considerable quantities. In June or July,
1879, he sent letters to many hydraulic mines in California, and to in-.
dividuals, asking for information, and for samples of platinum, which
he found indispensable in his electric light inventions. This led to
his receiving many samples, in some of which he found large pro-
portions of gold, as stated. He then invented an apparatus for sep-
arating the magnetic particles, figured in the Mining and Scientinc
Press of June 15, 1881, and in the Popular Science Monthly of a
recent date. At the time, I thought he was mistaken as to the quan-
tity of gold, or had based his opinion on an accidental specimen of
unusual richness. But recent experiments made by myself, and
others by Mr. A. B. Paul and Melville Attwood, have fully sustained
him. It is difficult to understand how hydraulic miners have gen-
erally overlooked this great loss.

It has long been known that placer miners did not save all the
gold, and instances are numerous in which they have washed the
same ground several times, realizing a crop of gold from each wash-
ing nearly as great as the first. But it has been claimed that with
improved appliances, hydraulic miners saved nearly all of the pre-
cious metal. Few Superintendents are willing to admit a loss greater
than fifteen per cent. Mr. Hankins' success, and the discovery by
Professor Edison, show the fallacy of this estimate.

The more that hydraulic sands are studied the more interesting the
subject becomes. Realizing this, I have collected sands from many
parts of the State for future study and reference. The question of
slickens and mining debris as antagonistic to agriculture, is one of
^reat importance to the State. It has been thought best to studv the
soiJs as well, to learn any lesson they may teaeh a^\.o \\v^\ia\xvt^ ^^sy-
'ntegration of the rocks, which seeius to ha\^ \>^^xi. ^^h^t^^ qn^x-

a
.0:

lei

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 21

looked in the more important study of slickens and debris, produced
by artificial means. I have prepared, also, several sets of micro-
scopic slides, as shown in the following extract from the museum
catalogue. One set of each has been sent to the following institu-
tions:

The Geological Society of England.

The Geological Society of France.

The Royal Microscopical Society of London.

The Microscopical Society of San Francisco.

And one set retained in the State Museum.

MICROSCOPE SLIDES,

Shnng the condition of Alluvial Gold as collected in HydrauliCf Placer , and Drift Mining in
Odifomia, vfith associate minerals found in "cleaning up" the sluices f as described in the Reports
of ike State Mineralogist of California. {Presented by the Galifomia State Mining Bureau.)

,1 4556. — Microscope Slide. Crystallized Gold, White Bull mine, Linn County, Oregon. See
Orf fieport State Mineralogist for 1882, folio 144.

4557.— Microscope Slide. Grold Crystals after stibnite. (?) Lake mine, Napa County, Califor-
nia. Several pans of dirt were taken from the gulch, washed down in a miner's pan to a small
qaantity, a portion of mercury added, the mercury separated without rubbing, and boiled in
nitric acid ; these pseudomorphic (?) crystals remained. An attempt was made to produce sim-
ilar crystals by treating precipitated gold in the same manner, but without success.

4558. — Microscope Slide. Gold from a quartz mine, Beverage, Inyo County, California.
Some of the gold is rolled into cylinders under the muller while being crushed.

4559. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold from upper San Joaquin River, Fresno County, Cali-
fornia. This gold is fine and free from coating, except to a slight degree on some of the pieces.
It shows a tendency to crystallize.

4560. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold, San Luis Obispo County, California. Very pure and
free from coating.

4561. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold from shores of Mono Lake, Mono County, California.
This ^Id is remarkably pure and free from coating. It amalgamates perfectly and immediately
on bemg brought in contact with mercury.

4562. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold, Chile Gulch, Calaveras County, California. This gold
is in a cryptocrystalline state not easy to account for. Many of the grains inclose quartz, which
would seem to indicate that it has its origin in some quartz vein in the immediate vicinity. It
differs from ordinary placer gold, and may have been collected by mercury and overheated in
ttie retort. The Mining Bureau has no history of this specimen more than is shown in the label.
4563. — Microscope Slide. Electrum, Bodie, Mono County, California. See First Annual
Report of State Mmeralogist, folio 25.

4564. — Microscope Slide. Gold and Platinum, beach at Coos Bay, Coos County, Oregon. See
Report of State Mmeralogist for 1882, folio 252.

4565. — Microscope Slide. Typical specimen of Coated or " Rusty " Gold, Red Hill Hydraulic
Mine, Butte County, California. All attempts to collect such gold by amalgamation results in
£ulure; for this reason a large proportion of the placer gold, and especially that from the ancient
river beds, is lost to the world. The loss is so great, and the matter so serious, that miners,
inventors, and scientific men should devise some plan by which such gold may be saved.
Attention is called to this subject in Report of State Mineralogist for 1882, folio 117.

4566. — Microscope Slide. Rusty or Coated Gold, from a large deposit of tailings below Oro-
▼iUe, Butte County, California. Described in First Annual Report of State Mineralogist, folio
39. It may be seen that the particles of gold are not to the same extent coated, but that all are
more or less so.

4567. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold from the Bonanza Hydraulic Mine, Gold Run, Placer
Coanty, California, collected in crevicing. The particles are considerably coated. Crevicing
has been described in Report of State Mineralogist for 1882, folio 113.

4568. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold, coatS with silica by pressure and friction, from the
Blue Lead bedrock, below the gravel, Chalk Bluffs, Nevada County, California.

4569. — Microscope Slide. Placer Gold with pyrite and magnetite, Nevada County, California.
The gold is, to a considerable extent, coated.

4570. — Microscope Slide. Hydraulic Gold, amalgamated and boiled in nitric acid, by which
the mercury was dissolved. The product is beautifully crystallized. The gold used was amor-
phous.

4571. — Microscope Slide. Gold precipitated from solution of sesquichloride by solution of
protochloride of iron.

4572. — Microscope Slide. Precipitated Gold (see No. 4571), amalga.rci8A,ftd ^Ti6LViQ\\^^\\s.\i!&xss5.
add. It is cryptocrysteJJine, but in no way resembles ^o. 4tb*lQ, ot 'So. \S>Vl ,^V\Oji. \xv\^gQN.\3ftk
expeeted.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

4573. — Microscope Slide. Grold (portion E, Report of State Mineralogist for 1882, folic?
from Spring Valley Hydraulic Mine, Butte County, California. This gold was in the ftyn
amalgam, from which the mercury was volatilized by heating to redness in a porcelain ca^ps

4574. — Microscope Slide. Platinum with indosmine, Mormon Island, Sacramento CoU£
California.

4575. — Microscope Slide. Platinum and iridium. Concentrations from Spring ValJ
Hydraulic Mine, Cherokee, Butte County, California. See No. 4224, and Report of State Mi
eralogist for 1882, folio 252.

4576. — Microscope Slide. Concentrations from placer washings, Chiquita Joaquin, FresJ
County, California. Containing zircons with gold; curious as showing gold in two condition
as pure gold, or nearly so, and as electrum, a natural alloy of gold and silver. See No. 4563.

4577. — Microscope Slide. Gem Sand (so called), Lower Gold Bluffs, Humboldt County, C&li
fornia. Containing gold, platinum, magnetite, chromite, quartz, zircons, and red crystals. 1
is the result of natural concentration by the action of the waves on the ocean beach.

4578. — Microscope Slide. Concentration from Spring Valley Hydraulic Mine, Cherokee Fli
Butte County, California. (Portion D.) Zircons picked out by hand. See Report of Sta)
Mineralogist of 1882, folio 114.

4579.— Microscope Slide. Zircon Sands, Amador County, California. Concentrated in plao
mining.

4580. — Microscope Slide. Dune Sands, San Francisco, California. Described in Report
State Mineralogist of 1882, folio 196. All, or nearly all, of the grains are rounded. In th
deposit, which is quite extensive near the City of San Francisco, there are beds of iron san
in varying stages of decomposition, showing how some sandstones are mottled and beoon
shaded in process of induration.

4581. — Microscope Slide. Fine Sand from the Colorado Desert, San Diego County, CalifomJ
The grains are rounded by the action of both water and wind. See Report of State Mineral
gist for 1882, folio 236.

4582. — Microscope Slide. Fine Sand from Spring Valley Hydraulic Mine, Cherokee, Bd
County, California. All the grains are angular.

4583. — Microscope Slide. Fine Quartz Sand from the Polar Star Hydraulic Mine, Dut
Flat, Placer County, California. (Portion H, after boiling in nitric acid.) See Report of Sti
Mineralogist for 1882, folio 101. AH the grains are sharp and angular.

4584. — Microscope Slide. Tryonia clathrata. Tertiary fossils mentioned in Report of Sts
Mineralogist of 1882, folio 229. Colorado Desert, San Diego County, California.

4585. — Microscope Slide. Placer gold with globular pyrite in the form of sand. Last Chan
Mining District, Placer County, California. This gold is but slightly coated. The small co
cavities are in some cases coated with silica, and some grains show the pyrite attached. T
gold is remarkably fine, probably the most so of any in the State, being 996 fine. The pyrii
sand is very interesting when examined microscopically. This association is rather rare. T
exact locality is section 34, township 15 north, range 12 east. Mount Diablo meridian.

Mr. Attwood has made a special study of No. 4557 of the abo)
catalogue, from the result of which he thinks it to be amalgam, an
not a pseudomorph, as at first supposed.

To obtain soils for microscopic examination, circulars were sent
the following Post Offices, from nearly all of which samples we:
received. This collection of soils is highly interesting, and there
sufficient quantity of each to admit of a chemical analysis when
suitable laboratory is provided:

POST OFFICES TO WHICH CIRCULARS WERE SENT ASKING FOR SAMPL

OF SOIL.

1. Alma,

2. Altoona,

3. Allendale,

4. Bakersfield,

5. Ballena,

6. Bath,

7. Bear Valley,

8. Bellota,

9. Benton,

10. Bieber,

11. Bolinas,

12. Bullards Bar,

13. Burgettsville,

14. Crescent City,
J J. Caliente,

16, Calistoga,,

17. Calpella,

18. Capell,

19. Carpenteria,

20. Cedarville,

21. Cherokee,

22. Cholame,

23. Cisco,

24. Citrus,

25. Clarksburgh,

26. Clayton,

27. Clear Creek,

28. Cloverdale,

29. Coloma,

30. Columbia,

31. Coyote,

32. Downieville,

33. Davenport,

34. Douglas City,

35. Drytown,

36. Dunnigan^

37. Eureka,

38. Elder Creek,

39. Elk Creek,

40. Elliott,

41. Emmett,

42. Etna Mills,

43. Fairford,

44. Farmersville,

45. Felton,

46. Forest Home,

47. French Camp,

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST. 23

49. Olenooe, 60. Milton, 71. Requa,

50. Grayson, 61. Meadow Valley, 72. Ripon,
U. Gaalala, 62. Mineraville, 73. Rock«

52. Haeneme, 63. Mohawk, 74. Soquel,

53. Judsonville, 64. Mono, 75. Susanville,

54. Kernville, 65. Monticello, 76. Soledad,

55. Kingston, 66. Moons Ranch, 77. San Luis Obispo,
66. Lakeport, 67. Newberry Park, 78. Santa Barbara,
57. Los Banos, 68. Princeton, 79. San Bernardino,
68. Linden, 69. Poway, 80. Saticoy,
59. Markleeville, 70. Quincy, 81. Tehama.

A serious loss of gold attends the milling of quartz, even in the
best mills of the State, but I am not prepared to state to what extent.
The principal loss occurs in the concentration, roasting, and chlo-
ination of the sulphurets containing gold, which are not decomposed
D the process of milling, but which require special treatment as
bove. This loss arises from several causes: First — From defect
1 the concentration, which in many cases is unskillfully done. Sec-
ad — Roasting, in which a serious loss results from the volatility of
16 gold, as proved by the specimen in the museum of the State
Fniversity, and mentioned on folio 152 of the Second Report of the
tate Mineralogist. The sulphur, too, is wasted — a very valuable
roduct, which should be saved, and made into sulphuric acid, to be
sed in the metallurgy of the very ores from which it is extracted,
hird — In the operation of chlorination the loss of gold is known to
e considerable. The roasted sulphurets, after treatment to extract
16 gold, are thrown aside as worthless, when they contain iron in
16 condition best suited for its extraction by sulphuric acid, to obtain
reen vitriol, or other salts of iron, or to be smelted as other iron ores
re smelted, or washed with water, whereby a valuable pigment may
e produced, almost equal to the best Venetian red. At the iron fur-
aces at Clipper Gap, Placer County, great quantities of wood are
urned in kilns to produce the charcoal required to smelt the iron;
U the methylic alcohol and pyroligneous acid are allowed to go to
aste. The loss of coal slack at the coal mines is very great. In other
)untries this material is used as a manure, or is made into blocks by
16 addition of coal tar or other suitable cement, and burned.
Large sums of money are expended for steam engines and fuel,
here ample water power is running to waste.

Great quantities of low grade ores of lead, copper, tin, antimony,
nc, etc., are allowed to lie unworked, because they will not pay by
le extravagant methods in general use; and yet low grade ores must
ke the place of those of higher grades, which are more difficult to
Qd and less reliable, but which are now considered the only ores
orth working.

In the deserts of California and Arizona, where water is very diffi-
ilt to obtain, even for drinking, dry washing becomes a matter of
le greatest importance. The following description is in reply to a
tter of inquiry sent by the State Mineralogist:

you wish a description of our method of dry washing. We first find a ravine supposed to
itain gold, in which we sink a hole to the bedrock; take a sample of twenty pounds of gravel
m the pay streak and pan it out in a batea without water. If the result is satisfactory, we
in proceed to strip the gravel from the top to within six inches of the bedrock.
\flter having stripped a large surface, we then carefully mine the pay streak, and sweep the
Irock clean, and screen the entire lot through a wire screen of three-eighths-inch mesh, which
lists in drying and pulverizing the material. We then feed the nvasa vnto t,\\ft Vvcira^^x <i^ \Jcifc
ingaman gold drj washer, and remove the concentrations every fv^eeia. tomMX.^^. h^.'Ock.^ Ovs3!%fc
the day we have three hundred to four hundred pounds of ihft (io"n.ciftiv.Vc^\.\QrQ&,^'^^"^^

24 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

carefully run through the machine twice, and the result of the day's work is contained in about
twenty pounds of concentrations, which consist principally of black sand, iron, shot, carbonate 1
of bismuth, and gold.

The gold is separated from the other concentrations by the aid of water and quicksilver in a
miner's pan.

WILLIAM K. SIME,

Phosniz, Arizona.

In Nevada advantage has lately been taken of the abundant dry
sand to produce a steady power, which cannot be obtained by wind.
The sand is elevated to a tank of sufficient height by an elevator of
cups attached to a leather belt, set in motion by a windmill of suffi-
cient power. The sand is run through a spout to the buckets of an =
overshot wheel of considerable diameter, which drives the concentra-
tors or other machinery. The sand is returned to a vat below the
elevator, and is used again and again. This apparatus is as yet an
experiment, but there seems to be no reason why it should not be
used (perhaps in some modified form) for concentration, where wind
and dry sand are plenty, and wood and water scarce.

Too much cannot be said as to the importance of minerals other
than those of gold and silver, and properly designated as economic
minerals, which exist in California in the greatest abundance. It is
a question if they are second in importance even to gold itselt

Coal, iron, salt, clay, and sulphuric acid are the foundation of
manufactures. Clay, iron, and salt are known to exist in large
quantities in the State. Coals, suitable for most purposes, are also
abundant, and coal of a superior quality has been found at several
Pacific Coast localities, which can oe supplied in any quantity when
wanted. Sulphur and pyrites are the foundation of sulphuric acid,,
which has been called the king of acids, for by its use all others are
separated from their compounds. It is the foundation of all the
great chemical manufactures. Pyrites is very abundant in the State.
Sulphur is also found at several localities, but a great deal of this
mineral has been imported from Sicily and Japan. Great quantities
of pyrites containing a small portion of copper are imported into
England and burned in extensive lead-lined chambers, for the sul-
phuric acid they will produce; after which they are treated for
copper. What remains is largely oxide of iron, which is partly
reduced to metal, and partly used in various manufactures. The
amount of domestic pyrites raised in the United Kingdom in a single
year has been as much as 65,916 tons, the value of which was £39,470
sterling.

The roasting of sulphurets containing gold, in the chlorination |

Erocess, as practiced in California, is wasteful in the extreme; as
efore mentioned, not only is a notable portion of the gold lost, but
all the sulphur, arsenic, and other valuable substances allowed to go
to waste. These by-products should be utilized and included in the
profits.

The fir^t question asked at the Paris Exposition of 1878, when the
California minerals were displayed, was, " Where are your fertilizers?"
and next, " Where are your coals?"

It will be well to consider the import of these inquiries. If we do

not return some equivalent to the soil, the crops will gradually

become less bountiful, until a period will be reached when they will

not pay to harvest. If we do not turn our attention to manufactures

we cannot expect to reach a condition of great prosperity.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

The question of fertilizers is one of the greatest importance to the

world at large, and enormous capital is invested in their production

and transportation. It is worthy of note that bone dust is somewhat

largely produced in California, and is mostly, if not wholly, exported.

Gypsum and marl are to be found in the State, and will eventually

be utilized. Because native phosphates have not been discovered, it

does not follow that they do not exist. The amount of Peruvian

: guano imported into England from 1844 to 1873 is estimated to be

[ 6,500,000 tons. Mineral manures are extensively manufactured in

: Great Britain. In the year 1873 the yield of phosphatic nodules, or

; coprolites, at one locality in England, was 32,000 tons.

The amount of common sand consumed in large cities is almost
; incredible. The capital invested in the sand trade of New York City
; is estimated at two million dollars. Four thousand five hundred
tons of sand, on an average, are sent to the great city daily, in boats,
from the beaches of New Jersey. So it is with other minerals gener-
ally considered of little or no value, yet they are indispensable, and
play an important part in the arts which confer comfort and conve-
nience on mankind.

The following list of the most important economic minerals has
been prepared to show how varied and numerous they are. If those
found in California cannot immediately be made available, it does
not follow that they are the less valuable. It is too often the case that
those finding deposits of minerals regard them only as a source of
immediate wealth, and if the mine or deposit cannot be at once sold
it is abandoned as worthless. But while the failure to do this is the
cause of disappointment to the individual, the information so gained
is of great importance to the State, and will be taken advantage of
when a demand is created by the increase of population and manu-
factures.

LIST OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ECONOMIC MINERALS.
Those in Capitals have been found in the State.

Alum,

3. Anhydrite,

6. Boracic Acid,

Amber,

4. ASBRSTUS,

5. Bath Brick Stone,
Building Materials.

7. Borax*

Agalmatolitr, or figure

16. DiATOMACEOUS Earth,

27. Marbles,

stone,

17. Fire Stone,

28. Oolite,

Alabaster,

18. Freestone,

29. Puzzolana,

10.

Asphaltum,

19. Gneiss,

30. Sand,

11.

Broken Stone, for rubble,

20. Granite,

31. Sandstone,

street pavements, and

21. Greenstone,

32. Schist,

macadam ;

22. Gypsum,

33. Serpentine,

12.

Basalt,

23. Hydraulic Limestone,

34. Slate,

13.

Bitumen,

24. Indurated Volcanic Ash,

35. Tile Stones,

14.

Cement Stone,

25. Lava,

36. "Verde Antique.

15.

DiORITE,

26. Limestones,

37.

Burr Mill Stone,

39. Carbonate of Strontia,

41. Chalk,

38.

Carbonate of Baryta,

40. Carnal] ite,

Clays.

42. Chromic Iron.

43.

Blue Clay,

45. Fire Clay,

48. Pipe Clay,

44.

Brick Clay,

46. Fuller's Earth,

47. Kaolin, .

49. Terra Cotta Clay

60.

Cryolite,

51. Emery,

b^. ¥o^^\\.^\^^^^.

^27 It

52. Feldspar,

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

54. Bituminous Shalk,

55. Coal,

59. Ambrite,

60. Agate,

61. Blood Stone,

62. Cat's Eye,

63. Can Del Coal,

64. Chalcedony,

65. Diamond,

79. Glauberitb,

80. Graphite,

81 . Hone Stone,

87. Coal Slack, or Dust,

88. Grecnsand,

94. Antimony,

95. Arsenic,

96. Bismuth,

97. Bromine,

98. Cobalt,

99. Copper,

100. Chromium,

101. Iodine,

102. Iron,

120. Polyhalite,

121. Pumice Stone,

122. Pyrites,

123. Quartz,

124. Red Chalk,

125. Rag Stones,

Fuels,

56. Lignite,

57. Peat,

Qems and Semi-precious Stones.

66. Emerald,

67. Jasper,

68. Jet,

69. Lapiz Lazuli,

70. Malachite,

71. Obsidian,

72. Onyx,

82. Iceland Spar,

83. Kainite,

84. Kieserite,

Mineral Manures,

89. Guano,

90. Gypsum,

91. Nitrate of Soda,

Ores and Minerals Containing —

103. Iridium,

104. Lead,

105. Lithium,

106. Manganese,

107. Mercury,

108. Molybdenum,

109. Nickel,

110. Palladium,

111. Platinum,

126. Rotten Stone,

127. Sal Ammoniac,

128. Salt,

129. Soils and Subsoils,

130. Sulphate op Baryta,

131. Sulphate of Copper,

58. Petroleum.

73. Opals,

74. Ruby,

75. Sapphire,

76. Silicifikd Wood,

77. Topaz,

78. Turquoise.

85. Lithographic Stone,

86. Mineral Waters.

92. Ochre,

93. Phosphate of Lime.

112. Potash,

113. Soda,

114. Tellurium,

115. Tin,

116. Tungsten,

117. Uranium,

118. Vanadium,

119. Zinc.

132. Sulphate of Iron,

133. Sulphate of Potash,

134. Sulphate of Strontia.

135. Sulphur,

136. Therandite,

137. Whetstones.

It is the province of the State Mining Bureau to seek locations of
all minerals having an economic value, to learn their quality and
extent, and to place specimens in the museum for studj^ and refer-
ence. To afford an opportunity to do this to the best advantage, the
State Museum should be separated from the office of State Mineralo-
gist, and be placed in charge of a Board of Directors or Trustees.
The State Mineralogist should be ready and free to start at a few
hours notice to any part of the State, to investigate any new or inter-
esting discovery, and should make himself familiar with the condition
of mines and mining. He should know by personal observation the
localities of all the useful minerals in the State, and should spend
most of his time in the field, collecting specimens and information;
the first to enrich the museum, and the latter to be published in the
annual reports.

CALIFORNIA STATE MINING BUREAU.

Part 2. Third Annual Report of tlie State Mineralogist.

REPORT

BORAX DEPOSITS

CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA,

By Henry G. Hanks, State Mineralogist.

SACRAMENTO:

state office, JAHES J. AYERS, 8UPT. STATE PRINTING.

1883.

To his Excellency George Stoneman, Governor of California :

Sir : I have the honor herewith to submit to you part second of
the third annual report of the State Mineralogist of California, in
compliance with Section 3 of an Act entitled An Act to provide
forthe establishment and maintenance of a Mining Bureau," approved
April 16, 1880.

I have the honor to be, very respectfully,

HENRY G. HANKS,

State Mineralogist.
San Francisco, June 1, 1883.

INTRODUCTION.

In this report I have endeavored, by compilation from every source
at my command, joined to the results of personal observation and no
inconsiderable original laboratory work, to render it so far a mono-
graph as to afford the student, prospector, or dealer in borax, all
information necessary to a general understanding of the subject.

The work is not intended to be scientific, but practical, and is spe-
cially prepared for the use of Californians interested in the produc-
tion of borax, and for the public generally.

The work has been done during such time as could be spared from
the more pressing demands of the Mining Bureau ; for this reason it
is hoped that errors and omissions will be excused.

HENRY G. HANKS.
San Francisco, June 1 , 1883.

BORAX.

BIBOBATE OF SODA, ACID METABORATE OF SODIUM (ENGLISH), BORATE DE
80UDE (FRENCH), BORAR,BORSAURE NATRON (GERMAN), BORRACE (ITALIAN),
BOORAK OR BAURACH (ARABIC), SOD^ BIBORAS, PLINIAS CHRYSOCOLLA
(LATIN), POUNXA, SWAGA, ZALA, TINCAL, TINKAL.

The word borax is of Arabic origin, and, as far as we know, ap-
pears first in the writings of Geber, an Arabian alchemist who lived m
about the seventh century. The word " gibberish " anciently written
gAerishy was applied to his writings, which were filled with indefinite
allusions. According to Professor Royle, the name tincal is derived
from "tinccmay^^ihe Sanscrit for borax.

The early history of borax is vague and uncertain. The statement
by some writers, that the substance was known to the ancients, lacks
confirmation. There is but little reason to believe that chrysocollay
literally, gold alue, was borax. Pliny's description shows it to have
been of entirely a different nature. The name chrysocolla was given
to borax by Agricola (de re metallicd) because it was used in solder-
ing gold. Agricola was a celebrated, metallurgist who lived in the
first part of the sixteenth century. One author (Parke's Chemical
Essays, London. 1830) quotes from the writings ( Vita Caligulse) of
Suetonius, who lived in the first century, that " the circus in his time
was covered with vermilion and borax." The first borax known in
Europe came from the East.

In 1732, Stephen Francis Geoffrey, a celebrated chemist, made the
first analysis of borax, and was the first to notice the green flame
irctparted to burning alcohol by free boracic acid.

In 1748, Baron announced the discovery that borax was sedative
salt and soda.

In 1772, the first authentic accounts were received in Europe as to

the borax lakes of Thibet. According to Turner, "these lakes lie a

few days' journey from Tezhoo Lomboo. The borax is found in

masses in the mud at the bottom, beneath the stagnant water, with

salt and alkali. Blanc and Pater Rovato say that these lakes lie

among the mountains. The most noted (called Necbal) is located in

the Canton of Sumbul. The water is conveyed in sluices, in which

salt crystallizes. The liquor containijig the borax is conducted to

evaporating basins, in which the borax crystallizes out. It is impure,

ana has the form of six-sided crystals, sometimes colorless, at others,

yellowish or green ; always covered with an earthy incrustation^

&tty to the touch, and with a soapy smell." Another account informs

us that " the borax is dug from the margin of the lake. The crystals

^^xnoved are replaced by others after the lapse of a certain time."

The following description of crude borax, as received in Europe
^"t the time, is from the Elements of Mineralogy, Richard Kirwan ;
London, 1784 :

8 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

fiorax oomes to Europe from the East Indies in a very impure state in the form of fit
hexangular, irregular crystals of a dull white or greenish color, greasy to the touch ; or i
small crystals, as it were, cemented toother by a rancid, yellowish, oily substance, intermize
with marl, gravel, and other impurities. In this state it is called brute borctXf crysocoUat •
iincal. It is purified by solution, filtration, and crystallization, and the crystals thus obtainei
are calcined to free them from greasiness, and then dissolved, filtered, and crystallized a secon(
time. Sometimes more mineral alkali is added, as it is said that tincal contains an excess o
sedative salt. It has long been thought that borax was a factitious substance, but it is noi
beyond all doubt that it is a natural production, since M. Grill Abrahamson sent some to
Sweden in the year 1772, in a crystalline form, as dug out of the earth in the kingdom o(
Thibet, where it is called pounxa my poun and houi poun. As borax is purified also in the
East Indies, Mr. Eneestrom suspects that tincal is only the residuum of the mother liquor ef
the borax evaporated to dryness, and that the greasiness arises from its being mixed with but-
termilk to prevent its efflorescence. It is said to have been found in Saxony in coal pits.

Early writers knew but little about borax, as will be seen from the
following quotations from old works on chemistry and mineralogy:

HISTORY OF BORAX.

[From the Chemical Works of Caspar Neuman, London, 1773.]

It is commonly said that borax is prepared in the eastern countries from a ^^en saline liquor
which runs from certain hills and is received in pits lined with clay, and suffered to evaporati
by the sun's heat ; that a bluish mud which the liquor brings along with it is frequently stirred
up, and a bituminous matter which floats on the surface taken off; that when the whole is
reduced to a thick consistence some melted fat is mixed, the matter covered up with dry v^
table substances and then a thin coat of clay, and that when the salt is crystallized it is separated
from the earth by a sieve.

In some countries is found a considerable quantity of a native mineral ancaiine salt on the
surface of the earth, sometimes tolerably pure, more commonly blended with heterogenous
matters of "yarious colors — the "nitrum** or "natron'* of the' ancients, the "baurach" of the
Arabians — this alkali appears to be the same with the basis of this salt, and with the lizivial
salt of kali or kelp, and some other maritime plants. It differs from the common vegetable
alkalies in being milder and less acrid in taste, assuming a crystalline appearance, not deliquesc-
ing in the air, or very slowly, forming with the marine acid a perfect sea salt, with the nitrous,
quadrangular nitre, and with the vitriolic, sal mirabile.

Mr. Pott received from Tranquebar, whence the greatest quantities of borax are made, a sand
under the name of ** ore of borax" with an account that certain acrid vegetable matters were
added in the preparation of borax ,* the ore yielded on elixation only the mineral alkali, with a
little sea salt.

The mineral alkali appears from experiment to be a principal ingredient in borax. On treat-
ing borax with acids about one fourth of its weight of a peculiar saline substance called " seda-
tive salt," is separated, and the residuum proves a combination of the alkali with the acid
employed ; thus when the marine acid is employed a genuine sea salt remains, when the
nitrous, a quadrangular nitre, and when the vitriolic, a sal mirabile. The substance separated,
joined to the mineral alkali, to the basis of sea salt, or the salt of kali, recomposes the borax
again.

Thus we find borax composed of two principles — one everywhere plentiful, another which
has not hitherto been obtained but from borax itself; the last in the smallest proportion.
How far this peculiar substance is natural, of mineral or of vegetable origin, is wholly
unknown.. Borax comes from the East Indies in little crystelline masses, somewhat resembling
small crystals of sal gem, mixed with earth and other impurities. Whether it is natural oz
artificial we have no satisfactory account; most probably it is in a great measure artificial, and
the earthy matter mixed with it to make us look upon it as a fossil salt peculiar to the Indies.
It is refined in Europe, but the process is also kept a secret. Some additional substances arc
generally supposed to be employed, the refined borax being in larger crystals than we cai
make this salt shoot by itself.

BORAX OF SODA.

[jFVoth the Elements of Natural History ami Chemistry f M. Fourcroy, London f 1790.]

Borax of soda or common borax, is a neutral salt,formed by the combination of the boraci

acid with soda. We get this salt from the East Indies, but its history is very little known

• We know not certainly whether it be a product of nature or art. The discovery of boracic aci*

existing in a state of solution in the waters of certain lakes in Tuscany, give us reason to thin.

borax a product of nature. A variety of facts which we shall' hereafter mention concur t

show that this salt may be also formed by artificial processes as well as nitre. Borax of socL

appears in commerce in three different states. In. the fttat \\. \a CT\3A%\iCiT^-x.,\.\\i<sa.\,o\: cbryac

coJJa — this we get from Persia. It is in greeniah. maaaea wVi\c\i ^eeV ^te^aa^ , ot mQi^ia.Q^^ Q;\^^\a

colored like green leeks, which are prismatic ftgures o? 8\x. ^afc^a, \«txQ:vaa.\:va.^ Vcv Vcx^^bol

pyramids; there are even two kinds of these greeniaYi cryataVa eiVffeTm?, ^tom <&^\i. ^JOafcx vxv

Tliia salt is very impure, a great many extraneous axibstaivcea b^ms \ijJwiTmvt^ ^vob. \x..

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 9

The second species, known by the name of China borax, is rather more pure than the
farmer. It appears in the form of small plates or in masses, irregularly crystallized, and of a

, dirty white color. It displays the beginnings as it were of prisms and pyramids confounded
together without any systematical arrangement j the surfaces of these crj'stals are covered with
ft.white dust which is thought to be of an argillaceous nature.
The third species is Dutch, or refined borax; it appears in fragments of crystals transparent

» and tolerably pure. Pyramids with a number of faces are observed in it, but their crystalliza-
tion appears to have been interrupted ; its form affords a certain indication of the manner in

! wKich the Dutch purify this salt — it is by solution and crystallization. Lastly it is prepared in
Paris by Messrs. Lefguillers, druggists, and their purified borax is in no way inferior in purity
to the Dutch borax. Besides these four kinds of borax, M. La Pierre, apothecary in Pans, has
imagined it to be formed in a mixture of soapsuds with dirty kitchen water, which a certain
individual preserves in a kind of ditch, obtaining from it at the end of a certain time genuine
borax, in beautiful crystals. But this fact, though first communicated to the public ten years

■ ago, has not yet received confirmation. •

We are still ignorant, therefore, in what manner borax is formed, only it seems to be produced
insta^ant waters containing fat matters; some authors assure us that it is artificially composed
in Chma by mixing in a trench, grease, clay, and dung, in alternate layers, watering this col-
lection of matters at proper times, and leaving it untouched for several years; at the end of this
time, by forming these matters into a lixivium, crude borax is obtained.

Others would persuade us that it is got out of water filtered through copper ore. M. Baum^
positively asserts that the former of these processes succeeded very well witn him. * * ♦
We leave it in possession of the name of borax in order to distinguish it from genuine borate
of soda, which is saturated with boracic acid. We likewise call it borax supersaturated with
soda, to indicate the nature of the combination.

[JFYom Thompson's Chemistry, 1818.]

BORATE OF SODA.

Of this salt there are two sub-specifics, namely : borate of soda and bora^. This salt (borate
of soda), which may be formed by saturating borax with boracic acid, has never been examined.
Bergman informs us that about half its weight of boracic acid is necessary to saturate the borax.
* • * From the experiments of Wenzel, the proportion of its constituents seem to be, acid
100, base 44, but no confidence can be put in this analysis. Berzelius attempted to ascertain its
composition; but met with difficulties which he was unable to surmount.

BORAX.

This salt, the only one which has been accurately examined, is supposed to have been known
to the ancients and to be the substance denominated chrysocoUa by Pliny. * » * Berg-
man was the first who demonstrated that it has an excess of base and is therefore a sub-borate.
This salt is brought from the East Indies in an impure state under the name of" tincal," enveloped
in a kind of fatty matter, which Vauquelin has ascertained to be a soap with soda for a base. When
pnrified in Europe it takes the name of borax. The purification was formerly performed by the
batch and of late bv the British, but the process which they follow is not known. Valmont
B<Hnare informs us that they extract 80 parts of pure borax from 100 parts of tincal. The
operations are conducted in leaden vessels, and consist chiefly in repeated solutions, filtrations,
and crystallizations. Valmont Bomare suspects that they employ lime water. The difficulty
in refining tincal arises from the presence of a substance resembling soap, composed of a
natural fatty body which surrounds the crystals.

REFINING OF NATIVE BORAX OR TINCAL.

Tincal was first refined in Venice, whence came the name " Venetian
Joraaj" as a distinction from "tincal " or " crude borax J^ The process
was at a later period introduced into Holland and France by the
Leucuyer Brothers. The process was preserved as a profound secret,
yet a number of descriptions were puolished, of which the following
are quoted :

The following is the improved mode of purifying borax : the crude crystals are to be broken

into small lumps and spread upon a filter lined with a lead coating, under which a piece of

cloth is stretched upon a wooden frame, the lumps are piled up to the heighth of twelve

inches and washed with small quantities of a caustic ley of five degrees Beaum^ (Specific

pavity 1.033) until the liquor comes off nearly colorless; they are then drained and put

joto a large copper of boiling water in such quant\t\ea t\i«LV. \i)^ft w>\MWo\i ^\a.\A^ ^ \?w^w\?i

aegreea BeauinS (SpeciGc gravity 1.160^; caTbonate ot sodsi e«vv3i«\ \.o \.^«^N^ys* «5«v^ ^I'Owftk

w«r mast now be added, the mixed solution aUowed lo SfeVWe, wi^ >iJafc Oi<!»x\\^\^ ^-j^'jitw'^

2''

10 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

off into ciystallizing Yessels. Whenever the mother liquors get foul they must be evaporated
to dryness in cast-iron pots and roasted to burn away the viscid coloring matter.

[From Chaptal*8 Elements of Chemistry, Zd American Edition, Boston, 1806.]

In order to purifv b<>rax nothing more is required than to clear it of the noxious substance
which soils it and impedes its solution. Crude borax, added to a solution of mineral alkali, is
more completely dissolved, and may be obtained in considerable beauty by a first crystal liza- '
tion, but it retams the alkali made use of; and borax purified in this manner possesses a greater
portion of the alkali than in its crude state. The oily part of the borax may be destroyed bj
calcination. By this treatment it becomes more soluble, and may be purified in this way, but
the method is attended with considerable loss, and is not so advantageous as might be
imagined. The most simple method of purifying borax consists in boiling it strongly and for a
long time. This solution being filtered, affords by evaporation crystals rather foul, which m&j
be purified by a second operation similar to the foregoing. I have tried all these processes in
the large way, and the latter appears to me to be the most simple.

[From Knapp*s Chemical Technology."]

In one of these methods the impurities are removed by lime, the tincal being softened in a
small quantity of cold water, and stirred about with a eradual addition of about one per cent
of slacked lime. The turbid lime water is alternately poured off, and when the impuritieB
have settled down on standing, the clear liquid is again poured upon the crystals, and this ^fo-
cess repeated several times in this manner, the greater part of the soapy compound is removed,
and wnat still remains is separated by dissolving the crystals in hot water, and adding about
two per cent of chloride of calcium, chloride of sodium is formed, and an insoluble lime soap,
which is removed by straining, and the clear liquid is evaporated to the consistence of twenty-
one decrees Beaume (=Specific gravitv 1.169). The crystallization is effected in wooden
vessels lined with lead, ana having the K>rm of short inverted cones. This shape is preferable,
because the deposit which may form collects in the lower narrower part, and does not interfere !
with the crystallization. •

The use of lime facilitates the clarification, but may occasion loss by the formation of an
insoluble borate of lime, fdr which reason it cannot be very strongly recommended.

Clouet recommends the powdering of the tincal, which is next
mixed with ten per cent of nitrate of soda, and calcined in a cast-
iron pot. The fatty substance being thus destroyed, the calcined
mass is dissolved in water, and the solution evaporated to crystalli-
zation.

ARTIFICIAL BORAX.

Crude boracic acid from Italy is principally sent to England and
the United States, where a large proportion of it is manufactured into
borax by combination with carbonate of soda artificially. This
manufacture was commenced in England, in 1818, since which time
the price of borax has steadily declined, while its uses in the arts
have multiplied.

There are two varieties of borax, the octahedral, most desired ia
France, and the prismatic, largely made in England and Amerjioa,
and known as the borax of commerce.

Prismatic borax has the following composition:

Boracic acid 36.6

Soda _- _ Idij^

Water 47.^

100 .00
Chemical formula, NaO, 2BO3+IOHO.

Prismatic borax crystallizes in the monoclinic system. The
simple forms of this system are the right prism with rhomboidal base,
and the oblique rhombic prism . Natural borax is always in this form.
It is said that octahedral crystals have beeii ^een in Q.T\ide tincal from

China, but this statement has not "been vexi^ed.
The following Rgnres of prismatic botax (iT^^\«\^ a^^ i^ouv lioi^v

Thm^e de Mineralogie :

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

Prismatic borax is manufactured in England in the following man-
ner ; A solution of crystallized carbonate of soda is made in a lead-
lined vat (A), figure 4, which is heated by steam from the boiler (6),

the quantity of steam reciiiired being regulated by the valve (f). The
steam coil (f ) and (i")is pierced with a multitude of small holes through
which the steam escapes into the solution. This is called a wet coil,
in contradistinction to a similar coil without holes, called a dry coil,
used in evaporation, and in cases where it is undesirable to add water
tothe solutions. These terms will be used in all following descriptions.
When the chaise of carbonate of soda is wholly dissolved, and the
temperature has reached 212 Fahr., boracic acid is added portion wise,
ftiat effervescence may not cause the liquid to overflow the sides of
the dissolving vat. when the required acid has been added, the vat is
covered, and the temperature raised to 219-221 degrees, when the steam
is shut off. The boiling solution should mark 21 to 22 degrees of
Beaum^'s hydrometer. If the solution should be too weak, a suffi-
r cient quantity of crude borax is thrown in; if the reverse, boiling
water IS added. The liquid is allowed to stand twelve hours,' to
settle, during which time the heat is kept up by a dry coil, through
which steam is caused to flow. The cleat soV\iti.QYi, ia ttisiYi i"c%j«\i.'i^
^rough the cock (r) into the wooden \ead-\mfeA. cTj'aXsiKviKw. '<^.
Wbea the crjrstalUzation is complete, tUe moftvet \\o;viOT* m^^wr^
snto the cast-iron receiver C-E) by the openm«& "o^l ,^V\d£v fts-e. ws**

EBPOET OV THE STATE MINEKALOOIST.

by a long wooden plug, shown in the engraving. The crystals ar
removed and drained on the inclined plane {M), from which Ui
mother liquor flows into a special receiver. The impurities whici
have formed during the solution in the vat(^) are drawn off througl
a large cock {K) into a cast-iron receiver {D).

The vapors arising from the boiling operation contain a notable
quantity of carbonate of ammonia. They are conveyed by the pipe (i|
to a covered tank (P) containing a dilute solution of aulphunc aad,
by which they are absorbed and retained.

The usual charge is 26 cwts. (2,912 lbs) of carbonate of soda, dis-
solved in about 330 imperial gallons of water. To saturate thii
solution, 24 cwts. {2,688 fiis) of crude boraoic atid are required. The
crystallization generally requires two to three days, the mother
liquors are returned to the Doiling vat until they become too foul,
when they are separately concentrated, the sulphate of soda they
contain crystallized out, and the remainder evaporated to dryness
and sold to the glass-makers.

A process, patented by Sautter, produces borax without the intfii-
vention of water. Thirty-eight parts of pure dry boracic acid are
mixed with forty-five parts of pure diy crystallized carbonate of soda
in powder. This mixture is placed in a room, heated to from 90 to
115 degrees Fahrenheit, on wooden planks, in layers of about an inch
in thickness. This temperature is found sufficient to enable the
boracic acid to expel the carbonic acid and excess of water from the
carbonate of soda, and perfect borax, or biborate of soda, results.

Artificial borax is also extensively manufactured in France from
Italian boracic acid. Nearly the whole produce of northern Italy is
consumed there. The borax produced by the above processes is
sufficiently pure for most commercial purposes, but the crystals are
small and irregular, and there is a small excess of boracic acid. To
correct these faults, a second crystallization is practiced, as follows:

The first process yields "crude artificial borax," and the latter,
" refined borax of commerce."

The crude borax of the first operation is redissolved in a laige
lead-lined vat (A), fig. 5, which has a capacity of 18,000 pounds d

BORAX DBPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 18

borax with the water required for its solution. The heat required is
obtained in steam from a boiler, not shown, which is conveyed
irough the pipe {t) to the wet coil (f if').

The borax is placed in the iron basket (c), which is suspended by
a chain, and allowed to sink just below the surface of the liquid in
flie vat. By this plan the solution takes place more rapidly, the
more concentrated solution sinking to the bottom. The basket is
refilled as fast as the borax dissolves, until the whole charge has been
added. To each quintal of borax (112 pounds), 8 killograms (17.63
pounds) of crystallized carbonate of soda are added, to saturate any
excess of boracic acid, after which the solution is brought up to the
temperature of 212 Fahr. At this heat the solution should have a
density of 21 degrees Beaum6 (specific gravity, 1.169); if not, it must
be brought up by the addition of more crude borax, or reduced with
boiling water, as the case may be.

The solution is then drawn off into the crystallizer (J5), which has
the capacity to receive the entire contents of the boiling vat. The
crystallization must be slow to insure large and perfect crystals of
borax. To this end the crystallizing vat must be kept warm by cov-
ering closely, and sometimes by surrounding it with spent tan bark,
or straw mats. In twenty-five to thirty days the temperature has
become reduced to 77 to 86 degrees Fahr., when the mother liquor is
drawn off and the crystals broKcn down and removed by the aid of
hammer and chisel.

The result is the ordinary prismatic borax of commerce. To
obtain octahedral borax, the solution is made in the same way and
iu the same apparatus. The solution is brought up to 30 degrees
Beaum6 (specific gravity, 1.261), at the temperature of 212 Fahr., at
Fhich stage it is quickly run off into the crystallizer, covered and
left for a time undisturbed. When the temperature has fallen to 174
Pahr., the mother liquors are drawn off, to prevent a deposit of pris-
matic crystals on the octahedral borax, the primitive form of which
is shown in fig. 6.

Fig. 6— Octahedral Borax.

When drawn into suitable vessels the mother liquors deposit a
copious crop of prismatic borax, which may be redissolved or utilized
as such.

Octahedral borax contains but five equivalents of water, and is con-
sequently richer in the other constituents than prismatic borax.
The following is the percentage composition of this salt:

Borax _ ^ft,^^

Water _ _ __.'i»^^^

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

The following is a translation of a portion of a letter from D. Ger-
nez, ProfesscHT au Lycee Louis Le Grand et a L ^Ecole Centrale Des Arts
et ManufactareH, dated Paris, September 28, 1874, in answer to inqui-
ries relating to the manufacture of borax when but little was known
on the subject in California. Professor Gernez is high authority on
this subject:

The least hydrated variety is tlie most esteemed in commerce here. It may be obtained
by the following method : Dissolve the borax in water, kept at the temperature of 101
centigrade by a jet of steam, in a wooden bucket lined with lead, until the solution be
sufficiently concentruteil to mark at least thirty degrees by Beaum^'s areometer. Let the liquid
remain at'tho same temperature, without disturbing, in order that it may be freed from the
insoluble impurities which it contains. Pour the hot liquid into a large covered vessel in which
it can cool slowly, and if you <lesire the crystallization to commence in a large number of points,
as soon as the temperature has reached eighty degrees centigrade throw on the liquid the pow-
der of borax, which you can obtain by roughly pounding some pieces of borax of the variety
you wish to obtain.

Each grain of the crystalline powder will grow larger and give voluminous crystals which
will be the only ones of their kmd, while the temperature remains above sixty degrees, and
which will be the only ones at a still lower temperature if the crystallizers are perfectly covered
and protecte<l from the crystalline powder of the other variety of borax.

If the crystallizers are not well covered it will be necessary to draw off the liquid at this tem-
perature. The mother liquors will give, in cooling, the variety of borax rich^ in water and
that which is leas valued. If, on the contrary, the crystallizers be well covered, and the opera-
tion conducted on a large scale with the care that can be devoted to it on a small one in the
experimental laboratory, by cooling the solution even below sixty degrees, and up to the <mli-
nary temperature, only octahedral borax will be obtained.

None of the difficulties attending the refining of crude natural
borax are met with in these operations. When the manufacture of
artificial borax commenced in Europe from Italian boracic acid, the
crystals were so white and pure that the consumers did not believe it
to possess the strength of the dark colored article from the Dutch
refineries they were in the habit of using, and this prejudice was so
great that the new article did not find a ready sale, it is said that
borax was sent to Amsterdam and shipped back to France as Dutch
borax before it could be sold.

■4

SOLrBILITY OF BORAX IN WATER.

Cent.

Tkmprratuur.
Ftth.

100 parts of Water
Dissolves Anhy-
drous Borax, Parts.

100 parts of Watw
Disaolres Prismatie
Borax N»0, 2 BOi
+10 HO, Parts.

:)2

1.49

2.42

4.06

6.00

8.79

12.93

18.09

24.22

31.17

40.14

55.16

1 2.83

1 4.6$

.__ _ 68 ._ _ _-.

7.88

11.9S

104 _

17.9«

122 __

27.41

140

40.43

158 - _ -_

57.85

___ 176 —

76.19

194 -__

116.66

100

212

201.43

Borax was accidentally discovered in California in 1856 by Dr.
John A. Veatch. The following letter from that gentleman is a his-
tory of his discovery, and is quoted in full :

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 15

STTER FROM DR. JOHN A. VEATCH TO THE BORAX COMPANY OF CALIFOR-
NIA. JUNE 28. 1857.

Bince the demonstration of the existence of boracic acid and the borates in California, in
uantities sufficient for commercial purposes/ a history of the discovery and a defloription of
>me of the more important localities of these useful products become matters of some interoet.
1 believe I was the first to detect the borates in mineral waters in this State, and perhaps, as
'et, the only observer of their localities. My attention was first drawn to this subject by
loticing crystals of bi borate of soda in the artificially concentrated water of a mineral spring
nh\eh. I chanced, at the time, to be examining for otlier matters. This water was fh>m one of
ihe several springs since known as the ^* Tuscan Springs/' and which have gained some fkake,
andverv justly, I believe, as medicinal waters. The spot has been described by Dr. Traek
under t^e name of the " Lick Springs,*' and is so designated on Britton & Rey's late map —
lying in the north part of Tehama County, eight miles east of Red Bluff. The crystals alluded
to were observed on the eighth day of January, 1856. Several pounds were subsequently
extracted by evaporating the water to a certain degree of concentration -and allowing the borax
to crystallize. The pioneer specimens of this product were deposited in the Museum of the Cali-
fornia Academy of Natural Sciences, as an evidence of the existence of a new and important
link in the chain of our mineralogical productions, showing that along with the rich productions
of the noble and useful metals, we have also the mineral substance so essential to their easy
application to the purposes of man.

The water holding in solution so valuable a product was thought worthy of a critical analysis,
and consequently at an early period the aid of a chemist of this city was invoked. The
reported result, which I placed at the disposition of Dr. Trask, was thought worthy of a place
In his Geological Report of that year, and appears in it. I, however, subsequently learned, to
my chagrin, that the analysis was totally unreliable; but as the brilliancy of its proKi«H
results, unreal as they were, led me to further and happily successful investigations, 1 forgiyo
the blundering incompetency of the chemist.

My mind being now alive to the subject, I learned upon inquiry, of other localities, which I
mpposed might yield the borates. One of these, near the mouth of Pit River, forty miles
north of the Tuscan Springs, I had the pleasure of visiting in company with Dr. Wm. 0. Ayers,
n April, 1856. Specimens there obt-ained yielded the borate salts; and from a subsequent
ixamination of the intermediate country several similar localities were found. The quantity
vas too small to be of any practical importance, but the prevalence of tlie salt jcave encourage-
nentto further search. A reconnoissance of the " Coast Range " of mountains, Irom the neigh-
x)rhood of Shasta, over a length of some thirty miles toward the south, brought to liffht borates
n the numerous salt springs abounding in that region, but only in minute quantities. These
iprings were found almost exclusively in the sandstone, or the magnesian limestone overlaying
t, and the borates especially seemed to abound in localities bearing indications of volcanic dis^
.urbance. Thus a kmd of guide was obtained in the prosecution of further explorations. I
>egan to entertain hopes of finding larger streams with stronger impregnations, or acoumula-
iions of the borates, in salt lagoons said to exist in Colusa County, where the sandstone forma-
tion was largely developed, the adjacent foothills presenting volcanic features. Hunters told
:;ales of mineral springs of sulphurous and bitter waters; of lakes of soda, and alkaline plains,
kvhite with efflorescent matters in that region. Not being in a situation immediately to visit
:hcse inviting localities I ha<l, for the time, to content myself with pointing out to hunters and
>ther8 occasionally passing through that country such, appearances as I wished particularly to
6e noted. Their reports, together with specimens sometimes furnished, were all corroborative
of the correctness of my theory. Col. Joel Lewis, of Sacramento City, who occasionally visited
ihe Coast Range on hunting excursions, and to whom I explained tlie object of my seuxsh, and
who, though not a scuentific man, is an intelligent observer, had the kindness- to look in his
perigriuations for certain indications. He subsequently informed me by letter that he had met
with an Irishman, living in Bear Valley, who had found a " lake of borax," as it was pronounced
by an Englishman who lived with the Irishman, and who had been at one time employed in a
borax manufactory in England, and therefore assumed to speak knowingly on tHe subject. He
also informed me in the same letter that a Major Vaiibibber, of Anteloj)e Valley, had disoov-
Bred large quantities of nitre in the same neighborhood. These glowing reports led ma tc.
hasten the excursion I had so long contemplated. In a personal interview with the Colonel he
told me of aft enormous mass of a white pulverulent substance he had himsolf ol)8erved near
;he margin of Clear Lake, of the nature of which he was ignorant. Mr. Charles Fairfax, who
i^as with the Colonel at the time, stated to mo that a small rivulet running at the base of the
white hillock was an intensely impregnated mineral water, totally uhdrinkable,a8he had acci-
lentally discovered by attempting to slake his thirst with it. From the meager information
jathered from these gentlemen I was led to hope the "hill of white powder," as they termed
t, might prove to be borate of litne. I determined to satisfy myself by a personal examina-
•ion at once, and I finally induced Col. Lewis to act as my guide, by furnishing him with a
lorse and paying expenses. It was some time in the early part of September, of last year
1856), that he an<l I left Sacramento for the localities that had so much excited my hopes.
Uthe town of Colusa, which we reached by steamer, horses were obtained, and we proceeded
n 9t westerly direction across the Sacramento Valley to the foothills of the coast mountains, a
listuoe of about twenty-five miles. That portion of the plain skirting the hills gave unmis-

IG KEPOKT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

takable ovulcnoe of a heavy charge of mineral salts, and the exceedingly contorted and inter-
rupted state of the hill strata enabled me at once to predict the presence of the beloved borsto^
which chemical trial on some cfflorej*ccut matter taken from a mviue proved to be the case in i
slight degree. At this point we entertMl ** Fresh Water Canon/' which cuts the hills and fonu
a passway into At\t(tlo|)c and Bear Valleys. Here I received information from a settler, of i
hot sulphur spring a few mile.i south of Bear Valley on one of the trails leading to Clear Lake.
This spring we succeeded in finding on the following day. It was with no small pleasure th«t
I olMerveil the outcro|)ping magnesian limestone in the hills surrounding the valley of the
springs. The strong smell of Hulphuretteil hydrogen and the appearance of a whitish efflo-
rescence on the rocks manifested, oven at a distance, almost the certainty of finding the minenl
I sought. The indications wore not deceptive. The efflorescence proved to be boracic add in
|>art, while the hot sulphurous water held borate «)f soda in solution, together with chloridei
and sulphates.

There are three hot springs at this place and several cold ones, all alike strongly impregnated
with commcm salt and oorax. The quantity of water yielded, in the aggregate, is about one
hundred gallons i)er minute, the hot and cold springs yielding about equal quantities. The
temperature of the hot water is 200° Fahr., and that of the cold 60° Fahr. The same phe-
nomenon occurs hen> that is obscrveil at the Tuscan Springs, viz.: free boracic acid in the ^o-
rcscence on the margin of the springs, while the water itself shows a decided alkaline reaction.
A careful examination proves that the efflorescent matters come directly from the water of
the springs, taken up by cu])illary attraction of the soil and evaporated by the air. The singular
fact may be accounte<l for by the docomixisition of the l)orates by sulphuric acid generated bj
iitmospheric action on the sulphur in which the soil abounds; or the same decomposition may
Im) product by the hydrosulphuric acid passing up in gaseous form fn>m the laboratory Natnie
has established beneath. The same action doubtless takes place in the water; but the borade
acid set free is at once taken up by the excess of alkaline matter while in the efflorescence; no
fiu^Ii supply of alkali otltTing, the acid remains in its free state when once displaced by m<»e
}K)werful acids.

Thi.^'. springs seem t<i Ix^ identical in the character of their waters with the Tuscan Springs,
and therefore doubtless )k)S3css the same extraordinary medicinal virtues.

As a source of borax these springs could bo made available. But as the owners of this locality
jxissess otiiers of superior richness, it is not likely to be even called (m to yield its mineral treas-
ures. The situation is a pleusanl and romantic one, and might be made a valuable waterinc
phu^\ The distance fn)m the town of O'olusii is thirty-five miles, over mostly a smooth and
pleasant road. From Clear Lake it is eighteen miles, and over a rather rough country. The
Indian name of the phvce is (-o-no-to-tok, a generic word having reference to the white appea^
ance of the ground. Mr. Archibald Peachy located a three hundred and twenty acre school
land warrant on this phu'e on Miulf of the borax company.
I After satisfying myself with the examination of this interesting spot, we proceeded at onee to
I « 'lear Lake, noting nothing of interest save a '^ soda spring,'' the water being impregnated to i
remarkable degivit with car))onic a<:id gas, ul>out eight miles from the lake. A chemical teK
also detected iM^nw.'ie amid in small quantity. The following day we reached the "hill of white
powder," the gt>al of our hopes, on the 'margin of Clear Lake. This "white jiowder hill"
proved an illustration of how little the recollections of mere casual observers are to be depended
upon. The hill, in place of consisting of materials in a state of disintegration, so as to admit of
l>eing "shoveled up," as my friends supposed, proved to be a concrete volcanic mass, bleached
white by sulphurous fumes, and looking at a little distance like a huge mass of slaked lime,
which the unattentive t>b8ervor might readily suppose to be "a hill of white powder." The
hope of a treasure, in the form of borate of lime, vanished forever I

The road had been rather toilsome, the weather excessively hot, and my guide not very well,
and as he had gone the full length of the contemplated journey and felt somewhat disgusted at
the result so far, and had nothing more to draw his attention in this direction, he proposed to
return at onw by way of the Irisliman's '* borax lake" and Van Bibber's nitre placer. This
was agreeil u{>on. So, collecting a few specimens of efflorescent matter from the ground and
filling a bottle with water in the ravine, 1 closed the examination of the " hill of white powder."
The ravine I afterwards called the " boracic ticid ravine," and the white hill is now ciedled the
."sulphur bank." Of these I shall have occasion to s}>eak hereafter.

Before leaving the neighborhood, I dett^rmined, however, to know something more of its

nurroundings. 1 learned, upon inquiry of Mr. Hawkins, who lives near the si>ot, that a place

not far oft' known by the name of "Alkali Lake," presented a rather peculiar 'appearance.

. Hawkins consented to act as my guide. After traveling a short distance and clambering to

I he narrow edge of an almost precipitous mountain ridge, wo looked down the opposite slope,

«?qually steep, on a small muddy lake, that sent up, even to our elevated |X)sition, no pleasant

perfumes. Thus, on one of the hottest days Septetnber ever produced, without a breath of air

to dilute the exquisite scent exhaled from two hundred acres of fragrant mud, of an untold

depth, I slid down the mountain side into "Alkali Lake," wadod knee deep into its soapy nla^

gin, and filled a bottle with the most diabolical watery compound this side of the Dead Sea-

' fathering a few specimens of the matter iucrusting the shore, I luustened to escape from a spot

1 very far from being attractive at the time, but which I have since learned to have no prejudice

against. Of this place I shall have oct»,asion to say more.

On my return to Hawkins' ^ who had the kindnesa to eiiVftTVotm \tv% V\\Xi \}»c^Ci %<«v\3\xv<i V«8^^

iaJ/tjr of A frontiersman, I looked to my last apec'imewd, axid toww^i <?iueo\\x»,%\\i^ \^v\\A*va.'^

p&rtial cbemical examination 1 wju< able U:) give them.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 17

I now again placed myself under the guidance of my friend Lewis, and we started for the
[rishman's house in Bear Vallev. We found the owner of the "borax lake/* but the borax
had evaporated with the water, and left nothing but common salt tinged of a beautiful bluish
red color, which I suppose had given the notion that it was something out of the usual way.
It was the only specimen of salt I remember to have seen in the Coast Range that contained
BO boracic acid in any form ; it was guiltless of even a trace.

The next step was to examine the nitre region. Major Van Bibber, the reputed discoverer,
lieing a grandson of Daniel Boone, ought to possess, one would suppose, an hereditary knowledge
of one of the essential constituents of gunpowder; and as Colonel Lewis had shown me a
neeimen of very fine pure nitre, which he said the Major had given him, I rather expected to
mad a "few more left.'* This, however, was rather worse than the " borax lake'* disappoint-
ment. The Major had absolutely forgotten where the place was, and whether there were any
more specimens than those he gave Lewis. The Major, I believe, must really have forgotten,
for, upon subsequent examination, the specimens proved to be refined saltpetre, that undoubt-
edly came from some shop or drug store. There was certainly a mistake about its origin ; but
Ifeltamply repaid for a hard day's ride in spending a night under the hospitable roofof a direct
descendant of the renowned "backwoodsman of Kentucky." 1 observed near the Major's house, a
small salt pond. Some salt crystals I picked up had the peculiar beveled angles indicating the
preeence of borax. The quantity was inconsiderable. Thus ended my first expedition to Clear
Idtke. We here set our faces direct for Colusa, as there seemed nothing more to be seen, and as I
had engaged the horses we rode at rather a high per diem, I felt anxious to terminate the trip.
FromS>lu8a my guide returned to Sacramento, and I to Red Bluff. From there I came again to
6ftn Francisco for the purpose of testing my specimens more critically than I was able to do in
tbeoountry. The minutiae of the above trips may not interest the company, but I have personal
reasons for setting forth all the facts exactly as they occurred.

Convinced of the richness of my "alkali lake" specimens, it remained to be seen whether
the quantity was sufficient to justify the hope of making it available for practical purposes. A
further and more strict examination was necessary. I felt, too, the propriety ol a thorough
exploration betwixt the Bluff and Clear Lake, and thence to the Bay of^ San Francisco, thus
rendering continuous the reconnoissance from Pit River to the last named point, a distance, in
a direct line, of two hundred miles. After a hard struggle for the funds requisite, I returned to
Bed Bluff, and from thence, in company with my son, commenced a pretty thorough examina-
tion of the Coast Range and the adjoining edge of the Sacramento Valley.

Nothing of much importance presented itself until reaching a saline district, about eighty
miles south of Red Blufir. It is on one of the branches of Stony Creek. Valuable salt springs
ttcist here. The waters contain the borates in minute quantities, and one spring was remarkable
for the enormous proportion of iodine salts held in solution. In our slow onward progress
borax now and again manifested itself, but as it had grown familiar I no longer went into
ecstacies over a mere trace. I still treated, however, the slightest indications with due deference
and noted their localities. •

In due time, I again reached the "white hill." The disgust of the first disappointment had
worn off and I felt disposed to reexamine the locality rather more critically. I now discovered,
Im' the first time, that the "white hill** was mostly a mass of sulphur fused by volcanic heat.
Tlie external crust, composed of sulphur mixed with sand and earthy impurities, formed a con-
er^ covering of a whitish appearance, hiding the true nature of the mass beneath. On breaking
the crust, numerous fissures and small cavities lined with sulphur crystals of great beauty were
brought to light. Through the fissures, which seemed to communicate with the depth below,
hot aqueous vapors and sulphurous fumes constantly escaped. The fused mass, covering many
acres and exhibiting a bluff front some forty feet high, is exceedingly compact and ponderous
in structure, of various shades, from yellow to almost black. It seems to be very pure sulphur.
The quantity is enormous and at no distant day may be made available.

From the "sulphur bank** I again turned my attention to the ravine. The water, as I had
before ascertained, was strongly imi>regnated with boracic acid in a free state. The stream is
small, yielding only about three gallons per minute, and is soon lost in the sandy soil, in its
progress toward the margin of the lake. From the porous nature of the ground surrounding
the spring, and saturated with the same kind of acid water, it is probable a large quantity
escapes without making its appearance on the surface. The soil for some yards on either side
of the ravine is covered to the depth of an inch or two with boracic acid in Summer. Sulphur-
etted hydrogen escapes in continued bubbles through the water — a feature common to all the
borax localities I have yet found; in some places, however, the carburetted takes the place of
the sulphuretted hydrogen. The head of this ravine is about three hundred yards from the
margin of Clear Lake, winding round the base of the "sulphur bank,** receiving some small

2 rings in its course, which seem to have their origin beneath the sulphur. The fiat land bor-
ring the lake, some eight acres in extentj through which the ravine runs, shows a strong
impregnation of boracic acid in its soil. The point where the ravine enters the lake is marked
bjralarge quantity of water of a boiling temperature, issuing through the sand a little within
the margin of the lake. This percolation of hot water covers an area of one hundred and fiftv
by seventy-five feet.. This fact I observed on my second visit, but not until the third or fourth
visit did I ascertain that the water contained a considerable quantity of borax, along with an
excess of boracic acid. From a gallon I obtained four hundred and eighty-eight grains of solid
matter, conaisting of borax, boracic acid, and a smaU porVvon o^ %Vl\cvo\v& mxx^ ^jfCwKt ^i6:^0ci:^
mparitiea. On digging to a slight depth, just outside the \aVLe, V.\i«k \ivi\. ^«.\«t Vvc^N. w^ ^xA^^wca.

18 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

off treely. From one of these places a stream issued of sixty gallons per minute. I have est
mated the entire (juantity at three hundred gallons per minute, and feel very confident (
being largely within hounds. The stream seems to come from the direction of the sulphu
bank, and it would probably be easy to intercept it before it enters the lake by digging a h'ttl(
above high water mark. It may be well to note here that the difference betwixt high and low
water marks in Clear Lako is never more than three feet.

The enormous amount of borax these springs are capable of yielding would equal half the
(juantity of that article couiiumed both in Europe and America. The large quantity of water in
which it is dissolved would, of course, involve the necessity of extensive works for evaporation.
<.ira<lualion. as a cheap and effective method of evaporation, would be exceedingly applicable
here, from the continued prevalence of winds throughout the entire year. These winds, blow-
ing almost unceasingly from the west, form a peculiar feature of the country about Clear Lake.
There is nothing to hinder the manufacture of many millions of pounds of borax per annum,
at a cost but little beyond that of producing salt by graduation. Fuel, for final evaporation,
could })e had in any quantities from the extensive oak forest in the immediate vicinity.

With these observations I dismiss this locality; adding, however, that Mr. Joseph G. Baldwin
located this with a 480-acre school land warrant, for the benefit of the borax company.

Having wandered from the story of my second visit to the ''sulphur bank," and blended it
with observations made in several subsequent examinations, I turn now to my second visit to
''Alkali Lake," or *• Lake Kaysa," as the Indians call it. I need only to say, however, that on
this occiision I became fully satisfied of the great value of the locality, the extent of which has
oiily recently botMi developed. I observed that tlie lake itself contained but little water, bat
that wt'lls, dug anywhere near its margin, immediately filled with the same kind of water; the
conclusion, therefore, was that an almost inexhaustible supply was obtainable. I learned, too,
that what seemed to be mud at the margin, and shelving off and covering the entire bottom to
the depth of some feet, was a peculiar, jelly-like substance of a soapy leel and smell. This
matter I found to be so rich in l>orax that I supposed it might be advantageously used for the
extraction of the mineral. Thus satisfied of the value of the lake, I little thought that within
a few yards of me lay an additional value in the form of millions of pounds of pure borax
crystals hidden by the jelly-like substance I was then contemplating. This important fact was
not observed until some six months afterwards.

This locality is by far the most imfx^rtant I have yet discovered. It is situated in the angle
of two prongs into which Clear Lake is divided at its eastern extremity. The elevated hill
land that fills the angle separates into two sharp ridges, each following its division of the lake,
and leaving a vallej' between them of a triangular shape, near the apex of which lies "Alkali
Lake." Clear Lake is, Iherolbre, on two sides of it, distant to the north about a mile, and to
the south about half the distance. The open part of the triangular plain looks to the east, and
expan<ls into an extensive valley, from which it is cut off partially by a low volcanic ridg^
running across from one hill to the other, and thus inclosing the triangle. This ridge is com-
|K)sed of Inige masses of ro(^k, resembling pumice stone, which floalJB like cork in the water. A
tliiu stratum of ashy-looking soil, scattered over with obsidian fragments, cover the ridge, and
atlbi-ds root to a stunted growth of manzanita shrubs.

The whole neighborhood bears marks of cotnparatively recent volcanic action. Indeed, the
action has not censed yet, entirely. Hot sulphurous fumes issue from several places on the
edge of the ridge just named, on the side next the Alkali Lake.

The"lake," as it is called, is rather a marsh than a lake, in Summer. In Winter it coven
some two hundred acres with about three feet depth of water. In the dry portion of the year
it shrinks to some tifty or sixty acres, with a depth of only a few inches. The "soapy matter"
(iovers the entire extent with a depth of nearly four feet, the upper part for a foot in depth
being in a state of semi-fiuidity, the lower having the consistency of stiff mortar. Beneath
this is a leather tenacious blue clay, the depth of which is as yet undetermined. It has been
penetrated fifteen feet with but little change in appearance. .Probably beneath this lies the
great fountain of intensely charged mineral water forming the lake, the supply of which raurt
come from below, as there are no visible springs running into it. It has no outlet, and never
goes entirely dry. A six-inch auger bored into this clay, at a depth of eight feet, struck a
stream of water yielding eight gallons per minute, accompanied with a jet of carburetted
hydrogen gas. This water was nearly as highly <;harged with solid matter as that of the lake
in its highest Summer concentration; the proportion of borax to the other substances being
greater. The soapy or gelatinous matter, however, presents the greatest feature of attraction,
being filled with the prismatic crystals of pure borax. They vary from a microscopic size up
to the weight of several ounces. These crystals are semi-transparent, of a whitish or yellowisn
(jolor. The form is.an oblique, rhomljoidal prism with replaced edges and truncated angles. In
some cases the edges are beveled, and in others the unmodified hexahedral prism exists. Beneath
the gelatinous matter, on the surface of the blue clay, and from six to eighteen inches in it, crys-
tals of a similar form, but of a much larger size, are found. They weigh from an ounce up to a
pound, and seem to have been formed under diflerent circumstances from the other crystals.
My first impression was they had been formed in the upper stratum, and sinking by their own
gravity had found their present position. An examination proves, however, that they were
formed where they lie, as particles of the blue clay are found inclosed in their centers, which
cou]d not have been the case had the upper crystals been their nuclei, for no blue matter i«
ever found in them.
It is much to be regretted tiiat explorations have not ^et beftvi TCi^ft>a«^oM^ \>cv^ ^^^'CcvoJl'vSj
bJue clay stratum. Many important results may be anUcVpaV^Oi itom w\<i\\ eit^mYaaJOv^xv.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 19

eat source of supply might be reached, and, altliough the water might not contain more borax,
le alkaline matters so redundant at the surface wouhl probably be less, and the difficulty of
iparation be consequently decreased. From the constant escape of inflammable gases over the
niole extent of the lake, there is nothing improbable in the supjwsition that boring to a mo<l-
rate depth would give exit to a quantity sufficient to answer as fuel for evaporating the water,
the same thing occurs in some portions of the United States — gas being used as fuel for exten-
ave salt works. I hope to be excused for theorizing a little as it is intended to point to practical
results. I will now confine myself to facts.

The first inquiry of practical interest relates to the quantity of borax already formed. On
this subject I ctmnot speak with, perfect confidence. The quantity is very considerable, but I
do not look on the experiments heretofore made to test this matter as conclusive. The area
covered by the crystalline deposit is not co-extensive with that of the lake, but has been found
over a space of about twenty acres in the examination made so far. It will probably be found
to cover the same* space the water does at the driest season — say fifty acres. The crystals are
not iudiscrirainately dispersed through the soapy or gelatinous matter, but lie in strata of vari-
ous thickness, from half an inch to six inches, parted by intervening layers of the soapy matter,
and varying frotn one to six in number. In passing over them in a boat a stick thrust down
sometimes requires great force to drive it through, while in other spots it enters with little
resistance, proving a great irregularity in these crystalline strata. The lower or blue clay
stratum of large crystals consists of but one layer of variable thickness. Two experiments
alone have been made to ascertain the quantity in a given si)ace. Dr. Ayres sunk a coffer dam
three feet square at a point he supposedto be of medium richness, and extracted therefrom one
hundred and sixty-three pounds of crystals. I subseijuently put down a coffer of the same
dimensions at a point I supposed to be the poorest, as no crystals could be felt by thrusting down
a stick, and obtained one hundred and one j)ounds. Taking the mean between these as a datum
we should have 638,880 pounds as the proiluct of one acre. The large crystals form about ten
pel' cent of the whole.

Whether these crystals when remove<l would be replaced by others, so as to afford an annual
supply, is a question of great practiced importance. But as experiment alone can settle this,
we will 8upp<^>se, as the safer ground, that the crystals would not 1^ replaced. We will assume,
too, that the lake water is exhaustible and dependence must be placed on wells — is it likely a
sufficient suj>ply can be thus obtained? 1 think there is no hesitancy in answering this query
in the affirmative. The well already dug yields eight gallons per minute, equaling 4,204,800
gallons per annum. The water holds in solution 12,480 grains of solid matters to the gallon,
or two pounds and ninety-six grains. Assuming twenty per cent of the matters to be borax,
which I believe to be not above the truth, the yield would bo largely over a million and a half
of pounds i)er annum from this one well. A few such wells would supply borax enough for
the world.

To remove the borax from the complex solution, of whi<»h it forms the least soluble portion,
crystallization presents the easiest and most eff'ectual mode. To obtain this result, the excess of
water must be expelled. Graduation would be scarcely applicable to water concentrated as
this and boiling would have to be resorted to. The excess ol water would be about five pounds
to the gallon, thus leaving three jwunds of water to hold two pounds of matter in solution for
crystallizing. If it be required to o|)erate on a given quantity of water in a given time, say
one gallon ]yer minute, a boiling surface of ten square feet would be necessary. Five pounds of
water per minute would equal 7,200 pounds per twenty-four hours, rcipiiring the consumption
of 2,400 iN)nnds of oak wo(kI, or about throe quarters of a cord. The solid matter would equal
2,880 {x»unds held in solution by 540 gallons of water. A crystallizing tank eight by ten feet,
and one foot in depth, would be wanted to contain it. Should the borax equal only twenty
per cent of the other matters, we should have 575 pounds as the result of the evaporation of
on6 gallon per minute. Fuel is abundant an<l would cost two dollars and fifty cents per cord.
In this calculation we have the elements of cost of manufacturing borax. The entire expense
would probably not reach one cent per pound. The heaviest item of the whole would be the
land transiMrtation to the point of shipment — a distance of fifty-five miles. This would <'ost
about one and a half cents. We might, upon the whole, safely calculate three cents as covering
all expense upon the article laid down in the (Mty of San Francisco.

A very valuable collateral product, io<Iine — with the (;omjK)unds of which the water seems to be
exceedingly rich — could be made a source of revenue with but little additional expense. With
regard to the quantity of iodine, 1 cannot speak positively, not having isolated the product;
but from the brilliant reaction with the (lualitative tests, there can be no doubt of its being
great. Should this article l)e manufatrture<l largely, the sulj)huric acid required might be made
onthesjwt, from the products of the •* sulphur bank," one and a half miles distant. With
this, I leave Alkali Lake. I would stjite, that I locate<l this place in my own name for the
company.

There is yet another important borax locality in the same vicinity, resembling muc^h the
foregoing in its tnore j)rominent features. It consists of a pond of water of about twenty acres.
The bottom is covered with the same soap-like substance, but seems to contain no crystals.
The water contains less solid matt«;r in solution, but th«; percentage of l)orax is greater in pro-
portion to the other substances than in the Alkali Lake. The borax separates readily by
aj8ta)}imtion, and forms about thirty-three per cent ol t\\e \v\\o\e; \\\?i\X,^t. \aV.^ "Cw^i. 1wv^'^^>\\\'i.>
(Am pond has no outlet and no visible source of supply, ^et \\, \ft aaXvi Tvv>.Nftx \k>\^^ ^x^ ,^W\wvsj^a
the water is never mora thun three feet deep. It would, pftY\\a.^%, \i<i i^. X^xQ^IvVi^JciV. -jsnwcc^. ^
^nx,ifthnmnUonsof]}o\uuU the before described locaWUea a.Y^ c5vv«XAe; q'v. Y^<^\^\^^^.^'=''^

20 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.'

(*noiij{h to supply the demand. It is in the midst of a magnificent grove of pines and oaks.
Th(» phice WHS tak«»n up by Mr. Archibald Peachy for the borax cx)mpany, by the locatiou of a
320-sicrt* w^hool iiind warrant.

The borates an* nUo known to exist in other localities betwixt Clear Lake and Napa Citjr.
In Sie.glor VaUey there is m liot spring in the waters of which I detect^<i burate8 of strontia and
other borate salts. Near Xapa there is a bora tt^ spring, an<l one in Suisun Valley, near the
marble <iuarry. None of these places are imi>ortaut.

The foretjoing are the only bonix localities known in the northern part of this State, and I
feel j'oiitident there are no oCIkts in that quarter that can ever coini>et« with the inexhaustible
stores of "Alkali Lake" and the *' Hot Springs."

I had expected to TiikI something worthy t»f attention at or in the neigliborhood of the
(4oysei-s. Hut there was no trace of boi*ates in the hot waters of those springs, nor anywhere
in the surrounding di.strict. The geological features of the country were so ditferent from that
where I had heretofore found the lH>rates, that I was able to predict, as 9i>on as I saw it,that
n(»thiug of the kiu<l existed.

In a hasty roconnoissance of the great Tulare Valley, I found traces, but nothing more, of
these substances. I have reasons for doubting the existence of any large quantities in that
region. That pi^rtion of the valley bordering on the C-oaat Rnnge might be worth examining
further. It is there, if anywhere, valuable de|)osita may be looked for.

There are pr«>bably as many as three districts in the lower part of the State, presenting the
borates. One or more valuablv localities may probably be found among them. As I expect
s<K>n to visit that i>ortion of the State. I hojie to be. able at an early day to present to my
frieuils of the lM)rax c<»mpany any valuable information I may there gain touching their
interests.

Trulv and resj)ectfully vours,

JOHN A. VEATCH, M. D.

Borax was for a time successfully manufactured at the borax lakes
in Lake County, under the superintendence of Dr. William O.Ayers,
until the discovery of the vast fields of Nevada, followed by a spec-
ulative over-production, which, while it gave to the world an abun-
dance of that useful, but before rare and costly mineral product,
ruined nearly everv person or company engaged in its exploration,,
manufacture, or sale. The history of the California borax lakes has
been lately given to the world in an able article by Dr. Avers in the
Popular Science Monthly, a portion of which is quoted below:

BORAX IN AMERICA.
[By W. 0. Aykrs, M. D.]

Borax Lake and llachinhama [pronounced JTah'-chm-ha'-ma), both lie in the immediate
vicinity of (Jlear Lake. alx>ut eighty miles north of San Francisco.

Borax Lake isa shallow pool intensely of alkaline water, without inlet or outlet, and of coune
it^s ext^Mit deiHiuds on its reception of rain water. After an exceptionally wet season it hast
lengtli of perhaps a mile and a half, with a depth of 'eight or ten feet; after an ezoeptiooAllT
dry season, on the contrary, it shows sometimes no water, the muddy bottom being covcnsdwiu
saline incrustations. When it has a length of three fourths of a mile, with a depth of fourfeet»
l>oing perhaps its averai^^e condition, the water holds in solution 18.75 grains of solid matterto
the ounce — .039 of its own weight. This consists of salts of soda, in the following proportions:

Sodium carbonate . 61i

Sodium chloride 2liA

Sodium biborate _ 1T.8

lOM

But this alkaline water, exceedingly rich as it is in borax, constitutes only a trilling part of
the coniniercial value of the lake. In fact, it ha^j never been turned \o account at nil in the
manufacture of borax, though such use of it is entirely practicable, as the statements to be
presently made in relation to Hachinhama will show. The muddy bottom of the lake was
found, immediately on its discovery in 1850, to contain borax in crystals, in ([uantities most
astonishing.

These crystals, boinj^ tested by various workers in iron and steel, were pronounced equal to

the very best of refined borax. They are, in fact, pure biborate of soda, without any othei

impurities than the mud mechanically entangled with them in the process of crystallization.

T/joj^ corresixind to the native borax of other loeaWUca, de!ft'\^\\a.V.cid vva tincaZ, but yet are decid-

odJy distinct from it. In fact, no such crysUv\ft aa t\\oa^. o^ "^oTivx.\x^V.<i\\«ixCi eiNfe\\^^v5>vw\wvsAv<

nnj' other locality, and there arc several points in couwocUotv \\\V\\ V\\c\t vc\cv^^ci^Kv>xvcv^NA<iw>%s

fiven thoir very existence, which are by no means easy o^ com^ToXuMv^Xc^w, v\?.\n<> ^\v^\\^v>..

BORAX ORPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 21

Although the discovery was made, as already stated, in 1856, no jpractical development of the
lake was begun until 1864. From this time it was pressed vigorously until 1868, when it ceased,
not from failure of the supply, but simply from mismanagement of the work. The crystals
were certainly less abundant at the last tlian in the earlier workings, but the lake still held and
doubtless holds now an amount running to many millions of pounds, if it be not in truth prac-
tically inexhaustible/

Their abundance was such, and the yield was so great, that within the period specified the
lake had revolutionized the borax trade of the United States; in fact, it had accomplished that
work before the close of the year 1864. The annual importations since 1855, the earliest d£\,te
at which the Congressional reports enable us to trace them, had varied from $143,218 to $217,944.
In 1864 they were suddenly reduced to $8,984, a result due entirely to the working of Borax
Lake.

A statement of the manner in which the crude crystals were removed and utilized will bring
to our notice the strange peculiarities of their nature, origin, and mode of crystallization.

The mud which constitutes the bottom of the lake is a smooth, even, plastic clay, of unknown
depth. It has been bored through thirty feet without showing change in its structure. The
upper portion, for four and a half to five feet, holds unnumbered crystals; at that depth they
guddenly and abruptly cease. Abundant explorations demonstrated that none were to be found
any lower, and the daily working came to recognize the fact as established. The mud below
that was saturated with the salts of soda, such as held by the water of the lake, but no distinct
cryBtals existed.

The crystals of borax, in the upper portion, were removed by means of coffer dams. Each
dam consisted of a box, without top or bottom, four feet square and six feet deep, made of thin
boiler iron, suitably stiffened with surrounding bands of heavier iron. These dams, suspended
above the water, between large pontoons or floats, were allowed to drop suddenly, whereupon
.their force of descent drove the sharp lower edge down through the soft mud and into that
which was sufficiently firm and tenacious to resist the impact, and to render thus the iron walls
of each a true cofferdam, from which the entire contents could be easily removed.

The water was first pumped or bailed out, till it became too thick to flow easily, and the
remaining mud was lifted in tubs, in true mining style, and thrown into large troughs, where,
being subjected to constant agitation in streams of the lake water, it was washed away, the
borax being retained by its superior gravity.

. No crystals were found until from twelve to fifteen inches in depth of the most fluid mud
bad passed away. The mud then began to feel ** gritty," as the workmen expressed it, the
"grit" consisting of multitudes of most exquisitely perfect minute crystals of borax. These
erystals, like all those in the lake, were lying loose, detached from each other, attached to noth-
ing by the base, and consequently perfect at both ends. It is not meant by this that every
crystal was absolutely complete in every angle, but that they all had the tendency to the theo-
retical type, symmetrical at each end (a form which in artificial crystallization we scarcely ever
reach, except by accident), and that many of them showed the type in full perfection, such as
no model could excel or e(|ual.

With every descending inch through the mud their size increased; the "grit" soon became
"sand;" in a few inches farther crystals were very manifest to the eye, and shortly a " layer "
was reached. It is true that in some places no " layers" occurred, the crystals being scattered
at random through the mud. But in most instances when from twenty-four to thirty inches of
surface mud had been removed, and the crystals had attained a length of one fourth to one
half an inch, one or more " layers" would be found within the four feet square of the coffer
dam. In these " layers" the crystals were so closely packed as to have no mud intermingled
with them ; they were nearly as clean as though recently washed in clear water, lying closely
stowed and loose, like pebbles on a beach. A '* layer" might be one to four inches thick and
two feet, more or less/in length, surrounded on all sides by mud which held only scattered
eiystals, without any such richness as its developed pocket.

Going deeper, tlje crystals became constantly larger, though less numerous, as the mud grew
more dense, until a stratum was reached which was designated " blue clay." In the mud im-
mediately above the blue clay, crystals from one to two inches long were very common, though
many of the smaller ones were still intermingled. Here a change in the crystals showed itself,
full as well marked as the change in the bed in which they lay. The small crystals were not
■ present; they had never been formed as in the mud above. Instead of them lay imbedded
scattered crystals, few in number, but of great size, and having commonly a family look by
which they could be recognized. Few of them were as small as two inches in length, and not
nnfrequently those weighing a pound each were obtained, being j)erhaps five to seven inches
lone, by two to four inches wide.

They lay imbedded in the clay, which was so firm that they could be picked out singly, each
leaving the sharp mold which it had formed during its slow process of crystallization. They
were all within a little more than a foot of the surfa(;e of the blue clay, many explorations
showing that it was useless to seek for them at a greater depth.

Of the abundance of the crystals within the portion of the lake occupied by them, a space of
about forty acres, some idea may be formed from the fact that nine hundred pounds have been
gatiiered from one dam, four feet square. And this by no means represents their full amount,
as all the smaller crystals were washed back again into the lak^ \\\tKe proceaaof tKeir ttft\HaraUoik.
At (be same time it was remarkably true that the y\e\d viaa very wwevetv. \TvV4\iaX.^"isAV\\.w*i\N.
u "rich ground " barren spots constantly occurred, and o^ien aXmo^X. \Xifc fexvMvc^ ^\^^ ^\ ^ ^^^
awoe from one side or one corner, perhaps only a third ot a fev\TW\^aT\. o^ VJcv^fc W\ ^x«^.

9-V

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

The crystals* thus obtained had a decidedly green color. The figure introdu(»ed is given for
the purix)9e of conveying an idea of the size which the green crj'stals sometime? attained. It
is not an exaggeration. I have seen many which weighed individually as much as the one
here delineate*!. Their projK)rtions were very erratic, but always conforming to the one type.

They were entirely tree from the tenacious coating incident to the tincal of other localities:
were readily and i»erfectly soluble in hot water, andin the process of refining by solution and
rwrystallization yielded their full weight of transparent borax of the finest quality, less merely
the weight of the mud which had been mechanically entangled with them during their growth
in a muddy menstrum. The green color disappeared in the refining, not being found either in
the deixjrfited mud or the new crystals.

I'ig. 7 — Orj stal of Native Borax from Borax Lake. Natural size.

Jf'c are prepared now to look at the origin of these saWa as WU m «.o\mW ox \yv 5-^^^^"^)^
/brin. If, in a basin of water, more or less sliu\\o\v, coiilamm^ a \Aa^Uc ^^vx-mvx^ x^xxxfcV

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 23

t chloride and carbonate, deriving its carbonic acid from one source and its chlorine from
mother during its deposition, or, subsequently, fissures were opened in the subjacent strata,
illowing the escape of a limited amount of jets of boracic acid from beneath in vapor, we should
have all the conditions required to account for the formation of the borax in the midst of the
two more loosely combined salts.

Thus far our way is plain. But whence came the enormous deposition of the green crystals
of Borax Lake, their isolation and segregation in perfect crystallized integrity, and their con-
tinued preservation ; while at the same time, in a solution almost identical in chemical compo-
sition, as we shall see, at Hachinhama, and in which often the proportion of borax to a given
quantity of water becomes greater, no such crystals exist?

Inmost instances of salte crystallizing from a solution, the crystals attach themselves by a
base to whatever material is adjacent, and when numerous they form a crystalline mass, from
which the summits only of the crystals project — a crystal perfect at both extremities and
sides not being common. And in Borax Lake itself, whenever the water has evaporated to such
a degree in a dry season as to form a deposit from excess of strength, it has been an amorphous
crust of carbonate, chloride, and borate, with no perfect crystals of either.

But the green crystals are isolated, and in thousands of instances are absolutely perfect, ends
and sides. The large ones of the blue clay lie, as we have seen, each in its own mold. The
smaller ones above lie often in layers, inches in thickness, hundreds of crystals heaped together
as distinct from each other and as separate as pebbles on a beach.

Still, again, comes the strange fact that these crystals have been lying, how long we cannot
say, but almost certainly for very, very many years (for there is not the slightest evidence to
lead us to believe that they are of recent formation), in a solution which makes no approach to
saturation, and to whose influence as a solvent they seem totally indifferent.

The water of Borax Lake, when it has a depth in its main extent of five feet, which it often
has for very many mouths, and perhaps years in succession, holds in solution about half an
ounce of borax to the gallon. During this interval, for four or five months of the Summer
season, its temperature is at no time lower than 55° to 60° Fahr. But water at that tempera-
ture dissolves a little over eight ounces of borax to the gallon. How, then, can the green crystals
remain in such a liquid so long without being destroyed?

It may be supposed that the carbonate and chloride, in the complex mixture, render the hold
)f the borax so slight that, because of their presence, it is ready to separate. In reply to this
luggestion comes the statement of the fact that when the same water is concentrated by evap-
>ration to a specific gravity of 12° Beaume, in which state it holds in solution six ounces of
•orax to the gallon, no tendency is manifest to the formation of even a single crj'stal.

Again, it has been suggested that, lying in a muddy menstrum, the movement of particles
i so far arrested as to prevent diffusion, the stratum of water immediately surrounding each
rystal becoming saturated and remaining unchanged. But this does not in the least account
QT the commencement of crystallization, which so far as we can judge, must have been in an
xeeedingly weak solution. Nor does it perhaps seem possible that such complete seclusion
•om ascending and descending currents could in anyway be secured. The Winter rains pour in
uite fierce torrents of drainage water from all sides, often rendering the entire lake decidedly
urbid, and of course causing more or less of commotion in every part. And in addition to this
} the diffusion of particles, caused by the changes of temperature throughout the year.

In whatever light, therefore, the question is viewed, it is not free from difficulties. And yet
.tthe same time it is but right to recall the fact that these green crystals are in their nature
incal, though such tincal as has never been found elsewhere, and that the crystals of tincal are
)erhaps in other localities formed subject to the same conditions as here prevail.

We turn now to Hachinhama, the other locality mentioned. This is on the southern side of
31ear Lake, about four miles west of Borax Lake, which it closely resembles in its features,
though much smaller, being an oval lagoon about four hundred yards in length. We have, as
there, a sheet of clear alkaline water, with a bottom of soft, plastic mud. This mud has been
bored to about the same depth as in the explorations at Borax Lake, without its lower limit
being reached.

The evidences that the alkaline pool occupies the space of an extinct crater, are more mani-
fest here than at Borax Lake, as the inclosing walls still remain, though abraded on their north-
em extremity, while on the south they rise abruptly to the great mountain summit of Conoktai.

The water of Hachinhama holds in solution the salts of soda in the following proportions:

Sodium carbonate 75.4

Sodium chloride _.. 08.3

podium biborate _ 16.3

Total ___ - 100.0

The mud throughout its entire depth is richly stored with the same salts, but without any
development whatever of crystallization of any kind.

After the cessation of work at Borax Lake, in 1868, attention was turned to the resources of
Hachinhama. Of course, the style of working must be totally different, for here was no borax
ready formed, no green crystals needing simply solution and recrystallization. All that was
ara/Jable was a sheet of water, holding the sails above Tecord^^. 'YVv^ ^\t^i\<ya^.,"Ov^^^,^'^i^s>V^
epante in purity the borax— the only one of sufficient \a\\ie \.o\ife ^'OxV\\ V\v^ ^"ScycX.— ^^x^X^^'^'s^
e others.

24 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Borax being the least soluble of the three salts, and at the same time much more soluble in
hot water than in cold, it was argued that, were the water of Hachiuhama sufficiently concen-
trated by boiling and then allowed to cool slowly, the borax would crystallize out, leaving the
carbonate and chloride in solution.

This is correct in theory, and in laboratory practice the results were entirely satisfactory, bat
in working large quantities the ease was found very different. Ck>hccntrated to 20° B., a crop
of crystals was deposited which were pure borax, but they were scarcely more than fifty per
cent of the borax originally held by the lye thus formed. When, now, this mother liquor was
still further concentrate<l, no more pure borax separated, but a combined mass of borate and
carbonate.

And here was manifested another feature. The amount of borax available depended veiy
largely on the bulk of the solution in which it was allowed to cool. Very small quantities
were of course useless in practical working, though the crop from them was satisfactory. Pa-
tiently coniinued trials sfiowed that pans of two or three gallons-gave, economically, the best
results. But even here the borax clung so closely to the carbonate as to occasion much diflBculty,
until the plan was devised of crystallizing them together, and then washing away the carbon-
ate by means of its greater solubility.

This was the plan adopted, and by its use about eighty per cent of the borax originally con-
tained in the Hachinhama water, as pumped into the evaporating pans, was secured. The
extent of the works ma}' be estimated from the fact that about 4,000 of the pans mentioned
were in daily use.

But the unassisted lake water was not long used. Hachinhama, from its shallowness, be-
comes nearly or quite dry at the close of each Summer. As it dries away, the exposed mod is
thickly covered with the salts de}K)sited. These were carefully removed for use. The surface
thus cleared of its salts began at once to renew its coating, the deposit being speedily replaced
by capillary attraction from the stores beneath. In a week, or perhaps more, the surface was
ready for sweeping again. The second crop was abundant, it was replaced by a third, and by
others in succession, till the advent of the rains (never occurring in that climate till October, or
perhaps November) put a stop to their formation.

This process was rei>eated each year during the occupation of Hachinhama, and, when the
lake filled in turn with the Winter rains, the alkaline water bore the same degree of strength
consecutively, showing that the stores of supply in the mud beneath gave no evidence of
exhaustion.

The salts thus gathered were used by lixiviation to strengthen the lake water in the evapo-
rating pans, and thus increase the yield of l)orax.

The work of refining the borax thus obtained differed in nothing from that employed with
the green crystals of Borax Lake — hot solution and crystallization in lead-lined tanks. Hachin-
hama borax, as placed in the market, was of a grade of excellence never surpassed.

The works were conducted in this manner until the Spring of 1872, when a change was
introduced in consequence of the discovery that immense deposits of borates existed in Nevada.
It was determined to utilize the borate of lime, in the form of ulexite, for the conversion into
borax of the carbonate of soda held in the water of Hachinhama.

The ulexite was brought by carloads from the deserts east of the Sierra Nevada to San Fran-
cisco, and thence to Clear Lake, and a great increase in the borax yield of Hachinhama was
the result. The process adopted was to saturate, with the ulexite, the boiling lye from the
lixiviating tanks, before it had acquired sufficient strength to crystallize on cooling. A double
decomposition was thus accomplished, resulting in a thick, milky-looking mixture which was
an intensified solution of borax, rendered turbid by the insoluble carbonate of lime, this latter
speedily settling and leaving the clear borax liquor for concentration and crystallization.

Practically, however, this solution was never pure, for here came in again the same fact
which had been demonstrated in the first workings at Hachinhama, that the bulk of the liquid
in which the action took place had much to do with the chemical union accomplished. In
laboratory experiments the work was perfect, and a boiling heat of only a few minutes formed
the full theoretical amount of borax demanded; yet, when dealing with large quantities, this
proved impracticable. Although violent boiling was long con tinned, even for hours, analysis of
the lye showed that a certain proportion of the carbonate of soda still remained untouched by
the boracic acid, and that, too, when the ulexite employed was in excess of the amount which
careful analysis showed was sufficient to saturate the carbonate of soda present. And this
excess was a necessity, and the daily working came to recognize it and to act accordingly, for,
when the even theoretical quantity only was used, a much larger portion of soda remained
untouched.

The operations at Hachinhama continued vigorously till 1874, by which time the enormous
supply of borax brought into the market from Nevada had reduced the price to so low a point
that further production became impossible. Hachinhama supplied all the American borax
made from the cessation of work at Borax Lake in 1868 till 1873, and the two localities afforded,
between 1864 and 1874, all that was ever made in California. The yield of Hachinhama,
during the last two years of its running, was something over five thousand cases of one
hundred and twelve pounds each. * * *

These lakes now lie idle for the xeasovi \)eloT^ 'eX.-aXfe^, Tv5d.\x\<bVs , w<»t
production and s, glutted market, and to axv mxAgxXmw^X.^ xtt\^s^
which was made in 1868, when the voVxmve oi^atjet ^^\^\^

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 25

increased by the flow of an artesian well, sunk for experimental pur-
poses, which could not be controlled. This made it unprofitable to
evaporate the waters of the lake, and crystals were -partly, if not
wholly redissolved. This property will keep, and the day will prob-
ably come, when with cheaper labor and more favorable conditions,
it will again yield its valuable products to the world. The waters will
then, probably, be concentrated by the graduation process so exten-
sively employed in the manufacture of salt from dilute solutions. In
November, 1866, J. Arthur Phillips, of London, made a report to the
company, in which he estimates the borax in the lake at twenty-seven
thousand one hundred and twenty tons. These figures are based
somewhat on conjecture, and may be in excess of reality ; but Pro-
fessor Phillips is not a man to be easily misled, or to any great extent
mistaken. The calculation was made as stated in the following quo-
tation from the above mentioned report:

The total extent of the muddy deposit considerably exceeds three hundred acres, and if we
assume that, of this area, only one hundred acres, or that portion now worked for borax ciys-
tals, is alone suflBciently rich to pay the expenses of treatment, we shall arrive at the following
figures :

One hundred acres are equivalent to 484,000 square yards, and if the mud be worked to the
depth of only three and one half feet, this represents about 565,000 cubic yards j or, allowing a
cubic yard to weigh a ton of 2,240 pounds, which is a very low estimate, the total weight of one
hundred acres of mud, in its wet state, will be 565,000 tons. If we now assume that the mud
extracted from the lake contains sixty per cent of water, this will correspond to 226,000 tons of
dry mud, containing, according to the mean of the analyses of Professor Oxland and Mr.
Moore, 18.29 per cent of borax ; but if, in practice, only twelve per cent of borax be obtained,
this will represent 27,120 tons of crystallized salt.

If the estimates of Prof. Phillips seem large, what must be thought
of the calculations of the company, who assume the available borax
on the property to be 684,800 tons, or more than twenty-seven times
the entire yield of the Pacific Coast since tlie discovery of borax in
1856. The estimate of Prof. Phillips is based on the assay of a single
sample of the average mud taken from an artesian well at the depth
of sixty feet, and the additional amount outside the central 100
acres, also on the result of a single assay of mud. The grand total
is made up as below copied from the report of the company pub-
lished in San Francisco in 1866. It might be considered out of place
were I to express my opinion of such estimates, and specially so as I
have never made a personal examination of the locality.

It is one thing to calculate the quantity present upon such shallow
data, but quite another to prove the estimate correct. There can be
no doubt, however, as to there being a large quantity oE workable
borax in these lakes, which will in future be extracted to the advan-
tage of the owners and the State.

ESTIMATES BY THK COMPANY.

In the central 30O acres, above the level of five and one half feet 107,800 tons.

In the outer 200 acres, above the same level 119,600 tons.

In the central 100 acres, below five and one half feet _.- 228,600 tons.

In the outer 200 acres, below five and one half feet 228,800 tons.

An aggregate of prismatic borax of 684,800 tons.

Now, it must not be forgotten that each analysis was of mud taken from many different
points in the lake, and not from one point only, nor from the central 100 acres of ground
prmowflj/ worked (n^er by the company; that the mean of these analyses, calculated for
snhydrouB mud=^22.86 per cent, but estimated at eighittn per ceut c^xAN. ^ot N\\fe wsXsst 'l^^
teres gave 12.85 per cent, but estimated at ten per cent on\^—akTv^V\v^«fec»\<i\A^^^Acsv^^^x^^^
oa the BuppoaitioD that the deposit near the shore reptCiSenVs Wvft a.NftT«.^^ Tv<iVii'5fi& c/l Siw&-«\sj^^i
427

2G REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

which we know to be othorwiso, for that taken from within 800 feet of the shore gave 32.63
percent, instead of ten per rent; the mean of the two j^ives 22.74 }>er cent, and, estimated at
these figures, would have given 2fi0,000 tone, ins*tead of 119,600. So that, had we taken as the
basis of our estimates the /»// ra/}<€ of the analvses and other tests, we should have bad an
aggregate of 964.(500 tons of bonix, instead of 684.800 tons. In these estimates, no account
has been taken of the htrge amount of l>or«x hehl in solutirm in the water of the lake, norof
the 200 acre:*, or more, extending to the eastward, and onci» forming a i>art of the lake itself.

•

Such exaggerated statements reappear in statistical works and re-
ports to the discredit of the Stat^, as, for example, in the fourth
volume of tlie United States Reports of the International Exhibition
at Philadelphia, folio 176, it will be found stated that the earth in
and around the well known borax lake of California yields from
twenty to forty per cent of this salt, " and the material exposed to
view is estimated to contain ten viillions of tons of borax.^^

The borax produced at the California borax lakes was remarkably
pure, and free from those vexatious substances mentioned elsewhere,
which interfere with the crystallization. The following analysis is
given to verify this statement. I have, also, had considerable per-
sonal experience with the products of these lakes at the time they
were being worked:

analysis of califobxia rkfinkl) bobax, fkom 8amplk8 forwarded by thaykr and wakklek^op

sax francisco, to hkxry krndal and sons, london.

Analytical Laboratory, Surgeon's Hall, •

Edinburgh, October 4, 1865. i
Rejfined Borax.

Bi borate of soila, i)iire and dry 64.39

Water of crj'stallization 45.55

Insoluble matter traoeB

Sulphate of soda, dry ..1 0.06

Chloride of sodium traces

100.00
The above refined borax is of iirst class quality, and is commercially pure.

There are a number of other localities in California at which borax
is being produced at the present time. San Bernardino and Inyo
Counties are rich in this mineral. A number of extensive fields are
known.

In 1874, one hundred and fifty quarter sections of borax lands were
entered in the United States Land Office at Independence, Inyo
County, California. Many of them were soon abandoned, as they were
not found rich enougli to work with profit.

The property of tlie San Bernardino Borax Mining Company is the
most extensively worked, and has already yielded largely. This
property lies in township 30 south, range 38 east. Mount Diablo base
and meridian. It is in San Bernardino County, near the line of Inyo.
The discovery was made February 14, 1873, by Dennis Searles and E.
M. Skillings. In April, 1874, J. VV. Searles and J. D. Creieh. as com-
pany representatives, made application to the same Land Office for
four United States patents covering 160 acres of the borax lands.
The company was not incorporated until January 1, 1878.

There arc tliree modes of obtaining borax at tliis locality: the first
by evaporating water charged with borax; second, by lixiviation of
crude material, mostly sand; and by working quite extensive deposits
of tinea].
Crude borax is found on the suiiaee milled \n'\V\\ ^^\i^\\\v\\sj^
granular form. No ulexite has been ob^exxed. aX. \\v\^\oq.?o:\\?s' . Yi?.^^

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 27

rience has shown that it requires thirteen tons of crude material to
produce one ton of borax. This is equal to 7.69 pet cent. Tincal
ma very pure state in crystalline masses is found under the surface
of the ground at the depth of from three inches to a foot, mixed with
salt and thenardite, so pure that it is called ice, which it certainly
resembles. The deposit is not regular, but is described as being
"spotted."

The production of borax commenced in 1874. The product readily
brings one cent per pound more in the market than Nevada borax.
There are no difficulties in the crystallization, and it is equal in
excellence to the best borax of Lake County.

The excessive heat and dryness of the climate cause the crystals to
)art with a portion of water. In Summer 100 parts are equivalent
,o 105 parts of theoretical borax when they reach London. The
)orax is hauled in wagons to Mohave station, over a dreary and sterile
«ndy desert, so devoid of water that a supply must be hauled in other
jvagons to supply the animals and men with drink. The time con-
mmed in the trip and return is ten days.

The borax is obtained from the crude material in the following
oaanner: There are five steam boiling tanks, each with a capacity
of 7,000 gallons; the impure, natural borax is shoveled into the
boiling tanks, and the soluolc matter dissolved by heat communicated
through a wet steam coil, of one and a quarter inch iron pipe.
The boiling tanks are made of three-inch Oregon cedar, seven
feet deep, and ten and a half feet square on the bottom. They are
not lined. When the solutions are brought to the proper strength
(16° to 30° Beaumo, according to the character of the material), they
are drawn oflF, while still hot, into crystallizing vats lined with gal-
vanized iron. There are thirty of these vats, which are cylindrical.
The borax taken from the crystallizers, after the first operation, is
called ^^concentrated j^^ and is not wholly pure. While the solutions
are cooling, the mud is sluiced out of the boiling tanks, after which
they are again filled, and the operation goes on continuously.

In due time the crystals are taken from the crystallizers and returned
to the boiling tanks, a portion of which are kept for this special work.
Clean water is pumped in and the steam turned on. When solution
is effected, and the liquor has the density of 18°, the liquors are run
into square crystallizers, which are also lined with galvanized iron,
and the solution made to cool slowly, although the climate is so warm
that outside protection is unnecessary. Every precaution is observed
that there may be no disturbance during crystallization. The
result is "refined horax'^ of a very superior quality.

The mother liquors are returned to the boiling tanks, and used
a^in and again for tlie first solutions, until they become so foul as to
yield crystals of foreign salts, when tliey are allowed to go to waste.
Of the square crystallizers there are nine, six of which are forty-eight
feet long, and three, thirty feet long. All of them are four feet deep
and four and a half feet wide.

All liquors are returned to the boiling tanks by a steam syphon
pump. Water is brought seven and a half miles in inch and a quarter
iron pipes for the steam boilers and for drinking; but water for the
solutions is derived from fourteen wells, each of which is fifty-five
ieetdeep. These wells are artesian, tlic walei Ymx\^\X\t^^A&<^\"^<^^^
J^Ae surface. The entire steam power \ft d^TiN^di i^c^Ki o^^ ^Kfc'jvxsv
oojJer, 42 inches in diameter, with 32 ftwes. Oon^t^ \.o \>£v^ X^^S^Cxxs??

28 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

tanks are made of Oregon pine. There is a rough wooden building
over the boiliiig tanks, but none over any other of the works. The
solutions are drawn off by means of an iron pipe, which passes up
through the bottom of tlie tank, and is connected with a shorter
length, to which it is joined by a common elbow, loose enough to turn
easily. The jointed pipe is lowered gradually at the proper time,
drawing the hot solution from the surface. This is a simple and
convenient appliance, the use of which greatly facilitates the opera-
tion. It is very much like one to be described in the mention of
Teel's Marsh works in Nevada.*

A large evaporating trough of wood has lately been added to the
plant, which is lined with galvanized iron, and is used in connection
with open cuts or trenches in the ground, to concentrate by the sun's
heat the foul mother liquors. This trough or tank has a capacity of
10,000 gallons. In it the last portion of borax crystallizes out.

Fifty men and thirty-tive animals are employed at these works.
All the fuel is obtained from the marsh, being wholly sage brush and
grease wood, which grow near by in great abundance. This fuel is
gathered in wagons and thrown into the furnace under the boiler
with pitchforks. In this work fourteen mules are continually
employed.

Ihe lake bed from which the borax is obtained has an area twelve
miles long by eight miles wide. An English company, under the
management of Mr. T. Dodge, commenced operations near the same
locality in May, 1870.

Borates have been found elsewhere in San Bernardino County,
although but little is known as to their extent and character. The
following newspaper notices are given, as containing about all that is
known regarding the new discoveries:

BORAX MARSHES.

[Calico Print.]

B<'si<k's the larg«5 borax lields <)\vuo<l by the Searles Brotliers aud William T. Coleman A Co.,
in Death Valley, there are also other localities in this county that have been taken up by other
parties. AlM)nt eight miles southeast of Ilawley's Station, at Coyote Holes, there is a marsh of
two or three huiidre«l acres surrounded with an immense deposit of borax. The marsh |3 chiefly
a larg<^ deposit of carbonate of soda. The borax is of a fine quality, and known as eotton-bjul
l)orax. It is necessary, in onler to reduce it to a (irystallized form, to mix with it carbonate of
soda, whieli nature has, it seems, placed there for that purpose. The best part of this marrfi
has been located by Williiun Curry^ K. J. Miller, and 0. H. Baker. The property has been
bonded by the James Brothers for $12,000. Borax is worth thirteen cents a pound in San
Francisco, and it is not very expensive tr) reduce the borax, so that the parties interested are
likely to make some money out of the enter])rise. Daggett fitati<^n is the nearest shipping point,
which, fortunately, is not as far from this borax deposit as it is from othej*s.

BORAX PATCH.

[Sun Bernardino Times.]

A l,2()0-acre borax ])ateh has bticn located near Black's ranch, on the line of the Southern
Pacific Railroad to the north of us, by a number of prominent gentlemen. The borax is said
to be found there from three inches to two feet in thickness, and in almost unlimited quanti-
ties. This industry promises to be one of more than ordinary importance to our county.

Mr. S. Heydenfeldt, Jr., lately made a visit to Calico District on

business. He sent a sample of a white chalky substance to the State

Mining Bureau, for examination, which proved to be "priceite/'

Identical with that found at tlie OTig,ma\ XocoXWr^ oi \)tvaX> mvwst^'^

Chetco, Curry County, Oregon, and descT\\i^d ^\^e^N\\^T^. ^cy^vi ^

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NKVADA. 29

the Calico Print published the following notice, which is at present
the extent of our knowledge on the subject. The specimens may be
seen in the State Museum:

BORAX MINES.

Tbere is considerable excitement in Calico District over recCnt discoveries of borax deposits
within a couple of miles of the town of Calico. The principal deposits are in the eastern part
of the district and comprise an area of four or five miles square. Several sales were made last
week of borax claims, amounting to $4,250, and since then, lands hitherto supposed to be worth-
less have been located in twenty acre claims as borax deposits. Several claims located for silver,
but considered poor, have been prospected for borax, and in some places with favorable results.
It is claimed by some that there are large deposits of borax in the district, some of it of fine
qnarlity. In one place there is a small mountain of it; and if all the deposits located are in
reality borax of a marketable quality, the immense quantity of it cannot fail to be a source of
great wealth to this district.

Mr. Robertson, one of the firm of Wm. T. Coleman <fe Co., has purchased the borax deposits
mentioned above, and will soon set men to work on the property.

KERN COUNTY.

Borate of lime (ulexite) was discovered at Desert Springs, called
also Cane Springs, in Kern County, February 15, 1873, from whence
considerable quantity has been extracted. The dry lake in which the
borates are found is situated in T. 30 south, R. 38 east, Mt. Diablo
base and meridian. The following is an extract from the Los Angeles
Express, published about the time of the discovery :

^THE BORAX DISCOVERY IN KERN COUNTY.

As already noted in the Express a very extensive borate deposit has been discovered in Kern
County, at a distance of about 120 miles from this city. Specimens of the borate have been on
exhibition in this oflBce, and are seen to be of a pure and valuable quality.

The deposits discovered by H. J. Lent lie about 120 miles from this city, about three miles off
the Owens River road, near Harry Ball's station, at Desert Springs. They were found about
four weeks ago. They extend from Ball's house to the end of the marsh, about nine miles long
and three wide. The borate is found in spots of two, three, or four acres, more or less. Messrs.
Lent, Ball & Chapman's claims contain probably 500,000 tons of borate of lime; of course,
they are the best deposits that could be found at the time. Mr. Lent, however, has no doubt
^at other deposits, equally valuable, though not so great in extent, will be taken up.

Mr. Lent has been in charge of the borax works at Columbus, Nevada, which, with those at
Fish Lake, in the same locality, are the only borax deposits hitherto known on this coast,
excepting those of Lake County. He thinks that these new discoveries contain a much larger
percentage of boracic acid than the deposits at Columbus. He believes that there is room for
the employment of a thousand men in these fields and those at Slate Range, sixty miles dis-
tant. He has refined some of the borate, and has made an excellent quality of borax, a speci-
men of which we have. He is having made at Harper & Dalton's some vats and other rude
contrivances for the reduction of the borate, which he intends to put upon the ground, and,
after reducing the borate there, ship borax to this city, for transhipment. He also thinks of
putting up works there for refining, though he believes it would perhaps be cheaper and better
to have a refinery here. ^

We learn that borate deposits have also been found at Slate Range, about sixty miles distant
from the original discovery. A considerable number of locators are moving to the borax fields
from Inyo and Kern Counties, and several parties have gone from Los Angeles County. Messrs.
Austin and Baker, of this city, are by this time upon the ground, and will undoubtedly secure
valuable lo9aiions.

INYO COUNTY.

Borax was discovered in Death Valley, Inyo County, in 1873, but
owing to climatic peculiarities of the region, distance from railroad
communication, pre-occupation, and over-production at other more
accessible localities, no active operations were attempted until the
present year.

Relocation was stimulated by the neat appi:oa.e\i oi ^Jcifc^'^Ts>^\^.'i^yx^^
Golorado Railroad, which is now fimsYied to ^^\yC^\V<^"^^^^^^^^^

I _

']0 REPORT OF THE STATE MINBUALOUIST.

River, will soon be extended to the Colorado River, and will pass
within a few miles of the borax deposits, although the final route is ;
still uncertain. .

Death Valley, in which tliese deposits lie, is one of the most j
remarkable geographical localities oji the face of the earth. The fol- i
lowing is compiled from notes furnished by Dr. S. G. George, who I
visited the vallev in 18(>0, William T. ITejiderson, 1860, Hugh McOor- '
mack, ISOl, R. R. Hawkins, 1882, I. Daunet, 1883, and others. The
subject is one of such i)eculiar interest that somewhat lengthy
<lescrij)tions will not l)e deemed irrelevant.

DEATH VALLEY

Takes its name from the circumstance of a company of emigrants
entering it on their way from Salt Lake to California in the year 1850.
\"ery little was known then of the passes through the mountains, and
this party made the fatal mistake of attempting a more direct pass
than tlie well known emigrant road. They little knew the dreadful
exi)erience they were destined to make, or the sufferings they were to
endure. The valley was to them a cuf fir mc, a region wholly unex-
plored. While seeking an outlet, they experienced dangers and
<lifficulties wholly unexpected, and almost insurmountable. Fiiidinc
it impossible to take their wagons over the mountains, they abajidoned
them, and while some of the party climbed the rugged and road- ,
less j)asses, others, seeking water, miserably i)erisltea. Those who
escaped, in relating the horrors of the journej^ told romantic stories
of mines, of gold and silver, all generally exaggerated, but which
have induced others to visit the locality in search of the mythical
mines described. Benn^'tt, one of the emigrants, drank at a running
stream of clear water, on the pe])bly bottom of which he said he saw
lumj)s of glittering gold ; an unlikely story, for gold is seldom if ever
seen under such circumstances. Another said he fouml a piece of
white metal which he took with him, not knowing its nature or value
until months after, while at Los Angeles, he required a new gun-
sight, and delivering the metal to the gunsmith with an order, was
informed that it was pure silver.

This story, more absurd, if possible, than the first, has caused a
number of i)arties to visit and explore Death Valley in search of the
** gunsight lead," which has never been foujid. While these expedi-
tions have generally ended in disai)pointment, they have led tea
knowledge of the country, the discovery of mines of antimony, silver,
and gold, of unknown value, and now of no^. less important borax •
fields. The discovery of (-oso, Slate llange, Owen's Valley, Pana-
raint, Argus, Telescope, Calico, and other mining districts, are the
results of these expeditions, as will be seen by the notes of i)rosj)ectors
quoted in this paper.

Death Valley proper lies within the an^a bounded bv the meridians
11G° 80' and 11^ west longitude, and i)arallels 35^ 45' aiid ;J(;^ 80' north
latitude. Its direction is nearly north and south, length from Fur-
nace Creek south, 40 miles; average width, S miles. At tlie south
end, branch v^alleys extend southeastwardly and south west wardly;
the former is known as "Amargosa \'allcy,'' " Bed of Amargosa River,"
or '^Aimirgosa Wash." It extends 15 wiiVe^ oy \i\o\!^\ Tlve latter is
*'Long Valley/' oxtcjuling 12 nii\es, awd oa\<\\\\^\\\ vj. viv\\\ci\\.
One portion of Death Valley sinks UAow \XwVn^vA ^>i\\\v^^^-v\. '"^V

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 31

ine of greatest depression lies aloug the eastern side of the valley,
ind extends about 15 miles, north and south. The lowest sink is a
little east of south from Furnace Creek, and distant 19 miles. It is
110 feet below the sea level. It lies 5 miles eastwardly from Bennett's
Wells, and 4 miles due east from the Eagle Borax Mining Company's
yround, which is itself 69 feet below the surface level of the ocean.
Telescope Peak, only 15 miles west, rises 10,937 feet above sea level,
md 11,047 feet above the lowest depression in Death Valley. Its
lummit is seldom free from snow.

To the eastward rise the Funeral range of mountains, the highest
ummits of which are '6,754 feet in altitude, and to the west, the
^anamint range, of which Telescope is the highest peak. The moun-
ain summits are about 30 miles apart. Beyond the Panamint range
ies Panamint Valley, 45 miles long and 10 wide, having a direction
learl^'^ parallel with I)eath Valley, but more elevated; the average
Ititude being about 1,400 feet. The town of Panamint, in Surprise
3anon, has an altitude of 6,600 feet.

The formation about Death Valley seems, by descriptions given, to
)e generally stratified, sedimentary rocks, sandstones, and limestones
jontaining fossils. There arc in the State Museum, specimens of
)lue limestone weathered and worn by drifting sands, in which there
ire undetermined fossil corals.

Very little is known of the geology of this region. The portion
below the sea level has but a small area as compared with the im-
mense inclined planes which dip toward it from all directions. If
water was abundant, there would be a lake at this point, but the
great heat, dry atmosphere, and the loose nature of the soil combine
to prevent any accumulation of water.

The Amargosa River heads in Nevada and some of its branches in
the Amargosa Mountains. It flows southerly 100 miles or more,
when sweeping in a great curve around the base or southern ends of
the mountain chains, it returns northerly to Death Valley, which is
called also "the sink of the Amargosa." While there are channels
produced by floods of great extent, and a canon cut by the river at
some former period, never within the knowledge of man has any
water been known to flow into Death' Valley through the old river
bed, known as the Amargosa Wash. At what period these deep
channels were cut is unknown.

Mr. McCormack thinks that the sink of the Mohave, at a certain
time not very remote, has overflowed and emptied an excess of
water into Death Valley. The Mohave River heads- in San Bernar-
dino County.

Near Bennett's Wells Mr. McCormack observed a hill of stratitied
rocks, yellow and blue, in such strong contrast as to suggest the name
* OwntniH ButteJ^ and near bv he found flexible sandstone — Itacol-

Furnace Creek was discovered and named by Dr. French's party
in 1860. Its mouth is fifty-six miles due east from the eastern shore
of Oweu's Great Lake. It was so named from the discovery by the
party of ruined lead furnaces, in which the Mormons had extracted
lead from galena to make bullets to be used against the United
States troops in 1857. Water flows all the year round, the average
quantity being one hundred miners' inches. The water is gpod for
mnking, but is always warm. It has b^en s\.ai^^ \Xv^\. ^o^xvw^'^f^^^'^
^ons the temperature of the water is I'iO^. '\:\\e'?X?cvb^'«\-^w;^\'^^

8*2 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

a few miles from the mouth of the canon, and sinks in the sand,
be seen no more. The altitude at tlie ejitrance of the caiioa is 2,8
feet. Quite a settlement in the interest of the borax company h
sprung up, which has been named Greenland. Garden vegetabh
melons, alfalfa, and other ])lants have been successfully cultivate
by dint of almost constant irrigation.

The climate of Death Valley is most distressing to the huma
body. While in Winter it is quite pleasant, in Summer it is almo
unbearable. The dryness of the air is so excessive that moisture
withdrawn from the body faster than it can be supplied through th
system. From this cause frequent cases of death have occurreawhe
water was plenty, but which could not be drank fast enough to suj
ply the drain caused by the desiccative power of the dry hot air.

The atmosphere presents many peculiar features, among other
causing a feeling of lassitude and weariness and an intense .thin
upon very slight exertion. Many of those who have been for
month or more residents of the valley complain of an aflFection (
the eyes, which become sore and weak. A very short walk will cauj
great thirst, and at times even the raising of the canteen to the mout
seems an exertion. Mr. Hawkins, who furnishes this informatioi
says: "It has been stated that birds, attempting to fly across th
valley, drop dead. While the writer cannot ver3y this by occula
proof, he has picked up, at different times, two little birds, a milec
so from water, whose bodies were still quite warm, having evidentl
but just dropped dead. But little or no vegetation can be found
short distance from water, excepting sage brush. Near the creek
only grass, wallow, and mesquit Dushes grow." During the visit c
Mr. Hawkins, in May and June, 1882, almost every afternoon a burc
ing wind, fierce and powerful, sprang up, blowing articles of consid
erable weight some distance, and hurling the coarse, hot sand witl
such force as to lacerate the face when exposed, the men being fre
quently obliged to wear veils and goggles.

The heat was severe, the thermometer averaging from 96° to 100
Fahrenheit in the shade; and in July the average was 100® and ovei
being often above 120° in the shade. The stones and cement becam
so hot by ten o'clock a. m. that work was suspended until late in th
afternoon, and at night the men frequently rolled themselves inthoi
oughly wet blankets in their endeavors to keep cool.

Each year the bodies of one or more men and their animals hav
been found, who have perished from want of water or from climati
effects; a few months before Mr. Hawkins' visit the bodies of two me:
were found who had attempted to cross the valley; they had food an
water still remaining. The climate, in this case, was the cause. Sli.
later, the body of a man was found in Furnace Creek Cation, only
mile from water. Two men have died this Fall from the effects (
the heat; in fact, all who live there are obliged to leave every fe'
months to recuperate.

The following from the Inyo Independent, of recent date, is of th
same general tenor:

DKATH VALLEY.

Tho country around Death Valley, and lying in the triansjle formed by the eastern line

Inyo and the northern line of San Bernardino Counties, is j)erhai)3 the least explored region

t}ie Unitoii Stnte.'i. The. intrepid prospector, though suayectiug; the presence of^reat miner

ivenlth Hiid over ongor to open new districts, \\os\Uvte8 to \>eweitTV3kX.<b\Va eOiWVhT^^oT owcfcV>'^\.N»'*S&

its e/n brace, without wafer, the poirtc of the mind swerved by ?fevev,\>\v^\\'wsa>' \\Tv?«a5CvciNf,x««

hewildtiretl, he wnmlers without aim; hisUazmg eye YseYvoVdm?, \\etvvewm \X\^^\ic>^n w

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 33

of the distant Sierras, in the flame of the desert he falls to die! Thus, many in these desolate
ranges have lain them down in despair, forever, uncoffined and unknown. It is not a rare
event for prospectors to find the bleaching skeletons of those who in early years dared these
treacherous solitudes. The whitened bones of the dead seem a natural part of these land-
scapes — dead men lying on the slopes of dead mountains. Such a skeleton was lately discovered
in the Coso range, where it had, by the evidence of papers also found, lain undisturbed for ten
long years. What a picture for the imagination is that of the dead lying in these solitudes at
the blast of the last trumpet starting again to life — alone !

The experience of Mr. I. Daunet has been still more remarkable.
On one occasion he was driven to the necessity of killing his animals
and drinking their blood as a substitute for water. Two of his party
died from the effect of the heat and want of water. He has just
returned from the works of the Eagle Borax Company, of which he
is President, finding it impossible to endure the heat.

The terrors of Death Valley seem to arise from three causes: the

great heat, which is owing to the physical characteristics described;

excessive dryness of the atmosphere ; and scarcity of water. From

the fact that the valley is surrounded by mountains upon which

snow lies nearly all the year, and is the sink of two rivers, and from

the experience of the explorers quoted, it is fair to assume, that

the valley is underlaid by a substratum in which there is plenty of

water. By a system of shallow artesian wells, an ample supply could

without doubt be obtained, which could be pumped by windmills

or would rise in the pipes to an altitude sufficient to cause the water

to flow through hose for irrigation. The excessive heat could be

modified by putting cloths over the open windows of the houses and

keeping them wet with water — a plan adopted in India, where the

heat is also very great. Such a plan, with plenty of water, would

render life endurable. But Death valley will scarcely be selected

as a desirable place of residence.

It has been shown that water can be found in abundance by sink-
ing wells in almost any part of the valley. Good water was obtained
at Greenland at a depth of eighteen feet, and Mr. McCormack found
it at McCormack's W ells four feet below the surface.

Dr. George discovered an unmistakable Indian sign. At the
mouth of each canon leading from the valley, in which there is water,
he observed a white stone lying on some conspicuous rock, and on look-
ing up the cafion other stones were seen similarly placed, which lead
to water if followed. It is useless to look for natural springs else-
where. Travelers in the desert will do well to look for this sign.

HISTORY.

The emigrant party has been mentioned before, and the reputed
discovery of rich mines of gold and silver by them.

After the discovery of the Comstock silver mine in 1858, these old
forgotten stories were revived, and in the hope of finding valuable
mines, exploring parties were organized to thoroughly prospect the
country.

In May, 1860, a party of fifteen men, headed by Dr. Darwin French,
left Butte County in search for the Gunsight lead, said to have been
found by the emigrants.

They iourneyed via Visalia, South Fork of Kern River, Walker's
Pass, Inaian Wells, and Little Owens Lake; thence, eastwardly, to Hot
Mud Springs (which will be described heTeait^\V\.Q> C.\^^^V^'^$txcss|^^
Gmnite Springs, Darwin Caiion, and acxosa \)c^^ \ifc^^ Q'l^i£vx\ass^\5^.

34 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Valley, thence by a rocky pass to a camp in Death Valley, where the
emigrants left their wagons, twenty-five miles a little west of north
from Furnace Creek. They discovered and named Furnace Creek,
as before stated. The party returned by the way they came, without
success as to the discovery they hoped to make. They became satis-
fied that a pass they came through was the same by which Towne
and the saved of the emigrant party made their escape, which led
them to name it "Townees Pass. Among the party were Dr. Darwin
French, James Kitchens, N. H. Farley^ Dr. W. B. Lilley, Captain
Robert Bailey, and J. Lilliard. Darwin, and Darwin Canon, were
named after Dr. French.

October 1, 1860, Dr. S. G. George, Dr. W. B. Lilley, T. J. Henderson,

Stephen Gregg, Thayer, ana J. R. Bill, organized to search for

the Gunsight lead. They followed the same general route of the
French party, remained at the Emigrant Camp for some time, pros-
pecting the hills in every direction. At a locality two miles distant
from tlie camp, named " Hunter's Point," they found water by dig-
ging a few feet, and twelve miles distant a fine spring of good water.
Although ten years had passed, the tracks of men, women, and chil-
dren were distinctly seen, as fresh as if newly made ; the irons
of the wagons were where they had been left. The remains of ox-
yokes were seen, which had been laid out for use on the following
day, with the chains extended on the ground in front of each wagon,
showing the number of oxen to each, and traces of the old camp fires
were plainly seen. Plenty of ducks, small birds, and jack-rabbits
were observed. While prospecting the hills. Dr. George and Mr.
Thayer found the bones of white men within 300 yards of a spring (rf
good water, believed to be of the emigrant party. The returning
party followed an Indian trail to Hunter's Point, and through a
mountain pass to Wild Rose Spring, which they named, and at
which they camped for two weeks, while prospecting in Panamint
Valley. On Christmas day they discovered a mine of antimony,
three miles from Wild Rose, which they named the "Christinas
Gift." Near this mine they noticed hieroglyphics on the rocks, of a
very interesting character.

In March, 1861, eight or ten Mexican miners arrived at the Amar-
gosa mines and commenced active operations. Soon after the Indians
made a raid upon them, taking nearly all their provisions. This had
occurred several times in the history of the mines. A mill was after-
wards built, but was left in charge of two men after an unsuccessful
trial of the ores. The Indians killed the men and burned the mill.
These mines lie southeasterly from Death Valley, in township 19
north, range 5 east, San Bernardino meridian. They were dis-
covered in 1856, and relocated in 1863. The veins are narrow, but
rich in gold. The lowest estimate by C. A. Luckhardt is from eighteen
to twenty dollars per ton, with much ore in sight. The gold is found
in pockets, from one of which $11,000 was taken.

Mr. McCormack describes them as lying in a belt of diorite, twenty
to thirty feet thick, within a country rock of micaceous granite. The
quartz is chalcedonic and thin. The whole country is covered with
an incrustation of salt. There are springs near by, the water of which
is as salt as the ocean.

Nine miles from the mines are the Warm Springs or Saratoga
Springs, The water is not only waTiii, \i\3L\. \iT^e^5!\^,^x:A \^Tta&
small lake of about an acre in area.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 35

In March, 1861, Mr. Hugh McCormack visited Death Valley. He
discovered and named McCormack's Wells, which may be found on
some of the old maps. Six miles south of these wells he met with a
spring which emitted sulphuretted hydrogen gas. Here the old
wagons of the emigrants were found. At Mesquit Springs he saw the
shsillow grave of a person supposed to be one of the emigrants, prob-
ably a woman, as a portion of a calico dress was found with the bones,
left exposed by the drifting of the desert sands. Some of the relics
from the emigrants' camp have been gathered and placed in the State
Museum, where they may be seen by those interested. Efforts will
be made to obtain others. Bennett, mentioned before, wandered off
in search of water. " Bennett's Wells" were named after him. He
walked a day and a half, and found water, and he said, plenty of gold.
At one time since, while piloting a prospecting party, he brought a
blacksmith's outfit. Anvil Canon, on the west side of the valley, is
supposed to have obtained its name from this, or a similar circum-
stance. Mr. Hawkins went into the valley by the northern route,
which he describes as follows :

Taking the overland train from San Francisco in the afternoon, Reno, Nevada, is reached the
following morning, where the Virginia road is taken to the Mound House, and we change cars
to the Carson and Colorado Narrow Gauge. After a long day's ride through a comparatively
uninteresting country, we reach Candelaria, Esmeralda County, at eight in the evening. From
thence the stage can be taken to Columbus, thence via Silver Peak to Gold Mountain, which
is our last stopping place before cutting loose from civilization. In the present case the writer
found it more convenient to take a team from Columbus, and, after laying in a complete camp
outfit, two twenty-gallon kegs for water and provisions sufficient for two men for a week, started.
From Columbus our route lay due south to Fish Lake Valley, a charmingly well watered sec-
tion in comparison to the hot arid desert we were soon to encounter. Through this valley we
proceeded to " Piper's," and from there easterly over two mountain ranges, on an excellent toll
road, to Gold Mountain, arriving there on the night of our fourth day from San Francisco.

Gold Mountain is the "jumping off place," so to speak, before we enter upon what was but
a few years since a terra incognita, and here we made our final preparations, and filled our kegs
witk water.

Our first day's trip was laborious in the extreme. We had an exceedingly steep mountain to
cross, and owing to our "buckboard" being heavily laden, were obliged to walk to the summit.
The course was southeast from Gold Mountain, and our objective point waa some springs called
"Coyote Holes," about twenty-five miles distant, which we reached late in the afternoon,
md there camped. Early next morning we started, and for twelve miles followed a great salt
marsh running east and west. Its crust (being the dry season) was hard and smooth, and
glistened in the sun like alabaster. A subsequent examination of this marsh revealed the
presence of soda and lime; also, of borax, but not in paying quantities.

At the eastern extremity is another spring called " Poison Springs," the water of which we
used for cooking breakfast, but could with difficulty prevail upon our animals to partake of,
owing to its brackish taste. From Poison Springs we traveled south through heavy sand until
we reached Eutes* ranch, at a place called " Oasis Springs." Here we camped over night and
filled our kegs with excellent water.

We were now abreast of the Amargosa, or Grapevine Range, one of the eastern barriers to
Death Valley, and I examined these mountains with considerable interest. Owing to their*
inaccessibility, lack of water, and distance from supplies, these mountains have been but little
prospected, although I was shown fine specimens of argentiferous galena and copper, and blende
ores from them. Along the crest of the range is a heavy cap of compact lava, extending west-
ward some ten miles, terminating in a bold steep overlooking the wide, rocky desert that sur-
rounds Oasis Springs. From here, eastward, to the " Belted Mountains,'" some thirty miles,
this lava extends westward twenty-five miles to the edge of Death Valley ; and northward to
ttie distance of about twenty miles the entire country is covered by lava. The principal
eenters of eruption are indicated by broad, low-angled cones. The Amargosa, or Grapevine
Bange, shows altered sedimentary rocks, limestone, schists, and quartzite. The strata are
greauy disturbed and dislocated, and, so far as the writer examined, only imperfect fossils were
loand. The Panamint range on the west side of Death Valley appears to be similarly consti-
tated. These ranges are essentially mountains of upheaval, but wherever examined the lavas
were present as subsidiary features.

The Oasis Springs are the head of the Amargosa " River," which here is a creek about two
, feet wide, and which runs down to the desert, a distance of twelve miles, and is then lost in
' Qtemnd, We journeyed aouth, following the dry "wasYi" oi VJ[ift kTcvw%Q«8., ^Tv^\s!k»i^^ ^ ^:t^
emp in the center of the desert The next day we reacVie^ Ka^i 'MLfea/^o^^,^^^^^ ^^ ^•a.xsv^'^^
and on the following morning proceeded southwest, taVim^ a. \>\m^ Vx^aY 1w ^\afe ^vsgcvVyso.

36 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

miles, when we turned abruptly a point of the Amargosa range, and struck northeast over tb
pass into Death Vallej proper, between the junction of the Funeral and Amargosa rango
that night we made a dry camp on the west side of the summit, and the next day arrive
early at Furnace Creek, the principal place in Death Valley, and one of the very few wher
running water can be found. The trip was wearisome in the extreme, owing to the heavy eand
large rocks, and the daily blowing of violent sand storms.

It might seem strange that any one endowed with ordinary intelligence should wish to maki
a home in this barren, desolate region; yet such is the case. The auri sacra fames has induoa
prospectors to enter this death dealing valley and explore it, they being amply rewarded, booh
three years since, by the discovery of a large and valuable tract of borax near Furnace Creek
This passed, by purchase, into the hands of Wm. T. Ck>leman and Frank M. Smith, of San
Francisco.

Telescope Mountain and district were discovered and named by
W. T. Henderson, in April, 1861, from the view he obtained from
the summit. The country seemed to be spread out like a map— the
Mohave Desert to the south, Death Valley to the east, Panamint to
the west, and a vast area of distant mountain tops in every direction.
The hot mud springs near Coso District, mentioned in connection
with the expedition of Dr. George's party, called also " HelVs Half-
Acre/' are thus described by that gentleman :

There are hundreds of these springs; some in constant motion, boiling and bubbling mud.
There is one oblong basin, one hundred and fifty feet long by seventy-five feet wide, filled with
clear alum water, which ebbs and flows every few minutes. It gradually rises from four to
five feet, and as slowly sinks again. A white rook thrown into the spring can be seen to sink
for a minute or more. The ground around about is hot. Half a mile west lie extensive banks
of sulphur. From crevices steam issues, and on the rocks sulphur in beautiful crystals
sublimes. The general character of the surroundings is similar to the mud volcanoes in tibe
Colorado Desert, San Diego County. Four miles distant are low hills of obsidian, sevetsl
extinct volcanic craters, and walls of lava and pumice stone, all showing that volcanic agencies
were once very active at this locality.

Southeast from Furnace Creek, in Death Valley, a tract of singa-
larly pure borax has been discovered, situated high up on the hifls;
also, in the southern portion of the valley, borax has been found.
One of the greatest difficulties experienced in winning borax in
Death Valley is the trouble of bringing in supplies. To each supply
wagon an equally large one must follow filled with barrels of water
for the animals, and it takes some twenty days to make the trip from
San Bernardino. This difficulty will be greatly lessened when the
railroad is completed.

Borate of lime in apparently large quantities has lately been found,
which adds greatly to the importance of the locality; for when the
available borax is exhausted, the borate of lime will be utilized.

The Greenland Salt and Borax Mining Company have located
their grounds and settlement at the mouth of Furnace Creek, where
that stream leaves the canon through which it flows. The Eagle
Borax Company have located at Bennett's Wells, twenty-two miles
south from Furnace Creek, and ninety miles north of Daggett Station.

Borate of lime exists at these localities as ulexite, and also as
" colemanite^^ (which is a variety of priceite) in beautiful crystals, and
pandermite, which is also an amorphous variety of priceite. These
minerals have been fully described elsewhere under the head of the
mineralogy of borax.

Messrs. Coleman & Smith have not as yet produced borax in Death
Valley, but are engaged in putting up works on a ridge quite elevated,
at which point they have sunk artesian wells.

The Eagle Borax Company tiave ^IVi ac,T^^ol\iOT^is.\^\:As»^l\m
which they expect to extract a laxge c\\xa\i\.\\.^ oi\iCi^^^. ^^jfei>S^

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 37

l)orax there is an abundance of thenardite and salt with some trona —
Uesqui'Carbonate of soda). At the present time J. M. McDonald, M.
Harmon, C. C. Blanch, and I. Daunet form the company.

The works consist of an iron pan twenty-two by five feet and three
i feet deep. The fuel used is mesquet wood, of which there is an abun-
^ dant supply for the present. Fires are built under the pan in which
the solutions are made. There are twelve one thousand-gallon tanks
of No. 16 galvanized sheet iron, circular in form, with wider bottoms,
into which the solutions are run to crystallize. The crystals, of which
the specimen No. 4669 in the State Museum catalogue is a type, are
taken out every ten days. The crude material (No. 4668) dissolves
in the pan with water without leaving much residue.

The borax is hauled to Calico Station via Panamint Valley, Willow,
and Granite Springs, Black's Ranch, and Grapevine. The produc-
tion to the present time has been about 260,000 pounds. The borax
is of good quality, and has been sold at ten cents per pound by the
carload, and for fifteen cents in smaller quantities.

The first shipment was of the crude natural material, thirty-seven
tons, which realized eight cents per pound. This company has made
the experience that it is next to impossible to manufacture borax
during the hottest season, as the solutions will not cool down to a
temperature at which crystallization takes place. A recent attempt
resulted in failure for this reason. It is now believed that the work
.can only be conducted during the Winter, but this will not be a greater
hardship than results from the extreme cold of eastern Winters,
which, in some cases, is an eff^ectual check to certain manufactures.
The Ainargosa borax fields are near Resting Springs, also in Inyo
County. The exact locality is township 21 north, range 8 east, San
Bernardino meridian. The capacity of the works is eighty crystal-
lizing tanks of 2,800 gallons each. This company will no doubt soon
' bmn to produce borax. William T. Coleman & Co. are the agents.
Soon after the discovery of borax in Nevada several refineries were
established in San Francisco, but the market price of the manufac-
tured article was continually falling off^, caused by the producers in
their efforts to take advantage of the market, and selling the crude
material to realize at once. This course produced the very effect
they sought to avoid. In the meantime, many costly experiments
were made, and when the supply ceased, the works were useless for
any other purpose. The first price for refining in San Francisco was
forty dollars per ton.

The same difficulties which annoyed the early refiners of crude
natural borax, have been met with in California from the date of the
first discovery of borax in Nevada. The crude borax from Borax
Lake only needed solution and crystallization to yield a product as
pure as that obtained from Italian Doracic acid by the English manu-
mcturer. But the Nevada crude borax will not part with its mechan-
ical impurities by any simple or inexpensive operation.

Pure borax should dissolve in water to a perfectly transparent
solution. No natural borax does this. The so called concentrated
borax of Nevada becomes milky in solution; some transparent crys-
tals form when the solutions cool, but for the most part they are
opaaue, and on being again dissolved, the milkiness reappears, tech-
nically called by the refiners " the enemy." Wli^n^UfeY^itV^ft. ^Y^%taAs.
Are pure, but if the clear mother liquors axe (iOTvQ.eYv\iT^\fc^\r3 ^ev^^c^^^-^'i^.
^on, the enemy again makes its appeaiaxie^. \\. V's. X^^<^ ^o?^^^ '^^x^

38 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

inconvenient to filter large hot solutions, and at the present pr
borax cannot be afforded.

The secret of refining, therefore, seems to be to get rid of the ei
in the first operation, and by some inexpensive operation. Atte
to solve this problem have cost much money and caused greai
appointment, while the results have been only partially sncce
Long boiling of the solutions, and standing twelve hours or mc
the r)oiling tank, while kept hot by means of a dry steam
has given the best results ; but this operation is expensive, bo
time and fuel.

I am informed that the New York refiners adopt the folio
plan : The crude borax is dissolved in a tank of boiler iron
capacity of 3,000 gallons, around the sides of which a dry stean
is placed. The contents of the boiler are stirred by machinery,
plan is somewhat that of the separator of a silver mill, and is di
m the same manner, by gear. The steam coil being on the t
the bottom is clear, and there is nothing to interfere with the a
of the mechanical stirring apparatus. When the proper charge
solution, three or four pounds of common glue are dissolved in i
buckets of hot water, and gradually stirred in. Steam enou^
passed through the coils during the night to keep the solution
and the whole suspended matter falls to the bottom, leaving the
tion clear, which is drawn oflFin the morning, still hot, into the
tallizing vats, which are allowed to cool slowly in the usual mai

I have tried this on a small scale in the laboratory with goo<
suits, but cannot vouch for its success in the large way.

I lately made the following experiment on a sample of crude r
rial from Death Valley, Inyo County : Solution was made and the
filtered oflF, the clear liquid was slowly evaporated in a porcelain
a precipitate soon began to form, which was filtered oflf when the
tion had attained a specific gravity of 1.020. The solution was 2
evaporated. Evaporation and filtration were repeated until a pe
formed, when the dish with its contents was set aside to crysta
the crystals were clear, and the mother liquor also; the precif
was the "enemy," and no doubt the buttermilk, grease^ etc., of th<
refiners. It was analyzed by Mr. Edward Booth, and appears ii
second report of the State Mineralogist, folio 12, to whicn the r(
is referrea.

Many attempts have been made in California and Nevada to
duce borax from borate of lime, but up to the present time with
partial success. As the exhaustion of the deposits of natural t
IS only a question of time, and as extensive deposits of the bo
of lime have lately been found, this subject is one of great imporl
to the State.

Ulexite was used at Lake Hachinhama, in Lake County, and
what success may be learned by referring to the paper by Dr. A
Boiling for hours in a solution of carbonate of soda failed to efl
complete decomposition, but the then high prices of borax and <
circumstances made the operation, defective as it was, one of pr<

The following experiments were made to test the accuracy (

assertion made by Mr. I. Daunet, to. the efifect that he had w]

decomposed borate of lime from Death Valley by boiling

natural crude carbonate of soda. Tla.e saxapV^ ^^^ ^\mxi\v.T!Q of c

dalk, sheet cotton, and sand. The distmcl\o\i\><5A.v^e;^Ti \X\^^^ ^^^

is explained elsewhere.

BOKAX DEPOSITS OP CA*LIFOKNIA AND NEVADA. 39

When mixed with much water and thoroughly agitated, the ulexite
(a) remained for some time suspended, and was readily drawn off
with the water, leaving the sand (6) in the vessel. On standing for
some time undisturbed, it wholly settled, leaving above it a light
amber colored liquid iq). The purified ulexite was very retentive of
water. When dried over a water bath it was white and silky, but the
long fibers were broken; yet under the microscope it was seen to be a
felted mass, entirely free from mechanical impurities. This result
verified my experiments made in 1871, and described under the head
of ulexite. The sand (6) was dried and weighed 0.188 per cent. Ex-
amined microscopicallv it was found to be ordinary desert sand. The
amber-colored liquid (c) was evaporated to dryness, leaving a white
residue id) 3 per cent.

During the evaporation a powdery precipitate separated. This was
examined microscopically, and found to be in scales like boracic acid.
Another portion of the same precipitate was wet with alcohol and
inflamed; the flame had a distinct green color, and showed with the
spectroscope the characteristic green bands of boracic acid. This
reaction was intensified by repeating the experiment with the addition
of sulphuric acid. When again treated with water, a portion of the
residue (d) remained insoluble, but wholly dissolved in nitric acid,
without effervescence.

From the liquid (c) obtained in larger quantity by a second opera-
tion, octahedral and prismatic borax crystallized out. The crystals
were perfectly transparent and hard.

A portion of the original substance was treated with alcohol and
inflamed. A strong reaction for boracic acid was obtained, both by
the eye and by the spectroscope, proving that free boracic acid was
present.

The purified ulexite (a) was dried on a water bath, and weighed
48,0 per cent. A portion of the original substance was dried on a
water bath; the loss was 47.5 per cent (water).

RESULTS.

«-Dry ulexite - - 48.000

6-Sand 0.188

<i--Borax and boracic acid 3.000

Water 47.500

98.688

One hundred parts of the dry purified ulexite (a) was mixed with one
ifikundred parts of Nevada crude carbonate of soda. The mixture was
boiled one hour, during which the volume of liquid was maintained
by adding water. The insoluble matter became more and more gran-
ular and heavy, no longer floating, but settling to the bottom, leaving
a clear solution. In pouring this liquid off, the carbonate of lime
separated perfectly, which was dried and examined. It weighed
28.00 per cent. Seen under the microscope, it had lost its silky appear-
ance, and had become white and amorphous. It dissolved in dilute
hydrochloric acid with violent effervescence, leaving a residue of
mud — 9.685 per cent. This residue was fine desert sand from the crude
soda. The solution was evaporated to crystallization, yielding borax,
31.6 per cent, which is equivalent to 11.56 per cent of boracic acid.
By theory the yield of boracic acid should be 49.5 per cent. These
results show the loss of boracic acid to be ST .^4 ^ex q.^\A. \».x5sxv^^^'^^'V
^/ working, which coincides with opexatiow^ oxv ^ \^x^^^ 'SRs^Sfe., "vc^
'Aich loss has always been admitted.

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Fig. 8.

The method of decomposing borate of lime in England, where
muriatic acid is a bi-product in the manufacture of soda from com-
mon salt, is as follows : The borate of lime is digested with two
thirds its weight of common muriatic acid at a boiling heat until it
is wholly decomposed ; water is then added to restore that lost by evap-
oration during the operation. The clear solution is decanted from
the insoluble part, and allowed to cool; boracic acid crystallizes oui
leaving chloride of sodium, chloride of calcium^ and the excess ot
muriatic acid in the mother liquor. The boracic acid is separate
and drained, or pressed, to remove excess of water, and dried.

The Elsworth Borax Company of San Francisco treated borate of
lime for several months in 1880 and 1881, but as I learn, with onlj

Sartial success. They worked a ton of ulexite at a charge, which th^
ecomposed by boiling with concentrated solution of Nevada cnide
carbonate of soda.

Many tons of ulexite were shipped to Liverpool. From 1873 to
1875, two hundred and thirty-seven tons were taken from Rhodes^
marsh in Nevada, and the balance from the Mohave deposit at Desert
Springs, in Kern County, California. Works were put up at Colum-
bus, where considerable quantities were treated by the Formhals
process. The Mohave deposit was afterwards sold for $6,000.

The following description of the Formhals process is furnished by
Mr. H. S. Durden, who has had much practical experience, both in
Nevada and California :

MANUFACTURE OF BORACIC ACID FROM BORATE OF LIME.

Several attempts have been made, from time to time, to utilize the borate of lime found in
several localities in Nevada and Southern California, for the production of boracic acid. None,
however, proved successful, until the invention of Mr. Formhals, of San Francisco, to whom
occurred the happy idea of using sulphurous acid; rendering the process simple, cheap, and
easily applicable m any locality. This process has been successfully applied, on a pradical
scale, at two establisliraents in San Francisco. First, in the works of the American Borade
Acid Company, on Main Street, where between four and five tons were produced from hon^
brought from Eem County ; and subsequently at the Borax Refinery at North Beach, from
borate of very low grade from the same locality, and some of superior qualify from the Colum-
bus District, Nevada; about Ihe same amount being manufactured as in the former instanoe.
From a chemical point of view, this process is a very elegant one.

A quantity of the crude borate is placed in a wooden tank, and mixed with about three timet
its weight of water. The mass is then heated by the injection of steam to a temperature of 180*
to 200° Fahrenheit. Sulphurous acid gas is then forced in, either by an air pump, or a con-
trivance known as the Archimedean screw, until the decomposition is complete, which is ascer-
tained in the usual way by means of litmus paper. The whole charge is then run ofif intoa
settling tank, where the sulphite of lime subsides to the bottom, leaving the boracic acid in
solution in the supernatant clear liquid. This, while still hot, is run off into shallow lead-lined
crystallizers, and on cooling affords an abundant crop of very pure boracic acid, seldom con-
taining over four per cent of impurities, consisting chiefly of chloride and sulphate of soda. The
apparatus is shown in figure 8: (^) Sulphur oven, (-B) air pump, ( (7) decomposing tank,
{Ij) settling tank, (E) crystallizer.

Theoretical reactions in Formhals' process: (2Ca 0, Na 0, 5 BO^, 10 HO) -f (4 SO^) = 2 (CaO
SO,J -l~ (Na SO 3) + (HS) +(9. HO) -j- 5 BO ^

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 41

The following is an extract from the San Francisco Mining and
cientific Press of April 7, 1883, relating to a new process for the
xtraction of boracic acid from ulexite. This process has not as yet
•een tried on a large scale, to test its practical value:

Wm. B. Robertson, Jr., of this city, has just patented, through the Mining and Scientific
'reas Patent Agency, a simple and inexpensive means of forming nascent gases directly and
pen the spot; and, also, a process for treating the borates with them. The process is such as
3 avoid expense ; and one advantage is that the waste is avoided attending the employment of
he sulphuric acid of commerce when poured directly into the borate solution.

The object of the process is twofold, namely: to set free the boracic acid more rapidly and
iffectively, by the employment of a strong reagent, and to cheapen the cost of operation by
nroviding a means for making this reagent directly and in close connection with the substance
o be act^ upon, whereby the necessity of two operations, to wit : the separate and expensive
nanufacture of the sulphuric acid, and its transportation as such to the field of operation, is
iToided. The process consists in a means of forming nitrous and sulphurous vapors, and
jtdmittine air thereto, and in a means for forcing said vapors into a tank containing a suspen-
sion or solution of the borate.

A tank is provided for the solution, and an ordinary furnace is used for containing sulphur to
undereo combustion. In this furnace is a pot containing any suitable nitrate. The furnace
has a front aperture with a sliding door, so as to admit more or less air. A pipe connects the
ftunaoe with the tank, said pipe extending down in the tank nearly to its bottom. A steam
lioiler is provided, from which is a pipe extending into the other pipe, which connects the fur-
nace and tank so that pressure of steam will act as an injector, and carry the furnace vapors into
the borate solution in the tank.

The process is as follows : In the tank is placed water, and the borate introduced. If borate
of soda, a solution is formed ; if borate of lime, or magnesia, they are held in suspension. In
the furnace is placed sulphur, and it is ignited. The pot rests over the sulphur and contains any
saitable nitrate — such as nitrate of soda — which is commonly used in the manufacture of sul-
pharic acid. In order to start and assist the operation, Mr. Robertson places in the pot with the
nitrate a small quantity of hydrated sulphuric acid. In this furnace are formed, as is well
known, the nascent gases of sulphuric acid, namely, the nitrous and sulphuric vapors, which,
together with the air drawn in through the front of the aperture, contrive to produce the result.
The steam from the boiler passing through the pipe acts as an injector, and forces or carries
with it these vapors through the furnace pipe into the borate solution or suspension in the tank.

The efiect of this is that sulphuric acid is formed and introduced directly to the solution. It
takes up the soda, lime, magnesia, or whatever may be the base of the borate, and precipitates
it as a sulphate. The boracic acid is set free, and the solution may be drawn ofi^, where it crys-
tallizes in a free state in the proper crystallizing pans. The efiect of the acid in the borate
Bololtion is the same, whether this latter be cold or hot ; that is, the reaction takes place, and the
boraAic acid is liberated, so that at the beginning of the operation, when the solution is cold, the
operation is taking place -, but before the process is complete the solution warms up under the
steam, so that when ready to be drawn on it is hot enough to provide for the proper crystalliza-
tion of the boracic acid. Thus no time is lost, and the means will conduce to the end. This
treatment with sulphuric acid formed directlpr and in connection with the borate solution, the
inventor deems preferable to the treatment with sulphurous acid gas, because he attains a stronger
and more efiective reagent with a little trouble. The great advantage possessed by the process
over that in which the hydrated sulphuric acid of commerce is used is that it h more econom-
ical, both in trouble and expense. Of course Mr. Robertson is aware that heretofore borates in
solution have been treated with sulphurous acid, and does not broadly claim this, but confines
himself to the details described.

The Gutzkow patent process has not, as I believe, had sufficient
practical test to prove its value, or otherwise. The following detailed
description is quoted entire from the Proceedings of the California
Academy of Sciences, April 7, 1873:

A NEW PROCESS FOR THE EXTRACTION OF BORACIC ACID.

[By F. Gutzkow.]

I beg to bring to the notice of the Academy a process for the working of borate of lime, which,
besides that I consider it to have some claims as to practicability, presents, also, some scientific
points which may be sufficiently interesting to some of the members as to warrant me in draw-
ing their attention thereto.

The Academy has already been made aware of the fact, that in the State of Nevada lately,
large masses of borate of lime have been discovered in different places in Churchill, Esmeralda,
and other counties. It is interesting, because boracic acid is by no means very profusely dis-
tributed on the earth's surface, and borate of lime in particular, has, until now, only been found

42 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

near the celebrated nitrate of soda deposits of Iqui(|ue, in South America. The mineral found
in Nevada is the same as the South American. It is not the true borate of lime, but the boro-
natrocalcite, a combination of the borate of soda with the borate of lime. An analysis made
by myself, gave, in round numbers —

Boracic acid :. 42

Lime 13

Soda — 8

Water 37

100

There appears to be some difference in the impurities found with i^. In Nevada they appear
to be principally clay, while in South America, gypsum is always, more or less, found inter-
mixed.

Owing to these impurities, there have been experienced some difficulties in working the
mineral in England and France; but still more has the expectation that the South American
borate of lime would give a prolific source of borax been reauced by the circumstance, that the
shipments from Iquique turned out to be of very une(^ual nature as to quality, which, with the
dimculty of ascertaining the true proportion of boracic acid by an easy assay, rather demoral-
ized the market for the substance in question.

In this country, the process used for working it consists in a kind of concentrating operation,
by which, with an enormous loss in substance, the borate of lime is freed from impurities.
Then it is boiled with a solution of carbonate of soda, and the solutions obtained worked for a
crude borax, to be refined afterwards by recrystallization. This process has several important
drawbacks. In the first place, the high price of soda on this coast interferes seriously. Although
the State of Nevada possesses large deiK>sits of crude soda, it becomes so dear by the high c^
of transportation, that in this city it is about as advantageous to employ the English sal-soda,
which is, besides, a much purer article. Furthermore, the decomposition of the borate of lime
is not complete by soda, and the residue will always contain some undecomposed mineral,
unless a very large quantity of water is used. As the borate of lime is not insoluble in water, it
is possible to extract by water alone, all traces of the mineral ; but on the large scale, this is, of
course, not feasible. In the third place, the clay mixed with the mineral, aiid the carbonate of
lime formed by the soda, make the residue extremely bulky. It takes a long time to make it
settle into a pulp of some reasonable thickness; therefore several washings are required to wash
the absorbed borax solution out, thus yielding weak solutions, which have to be worked up
and concentrated.

In view of these facts, I thought it advisable to devise a better process than the one described.
My process is based upon the volatilization of boracic acid by water vapors; a fact which nature
itseli proves, by furnishing in that way all the boracic acid manufactured in Tuscany. But by
my own experiments I discovered that volatilization can be made complete; that is, that a given
quantity of boracic acid can be completely volatilized by steam alone.

The plainest experiment which laid the foundation to my process is this: To melt in a plati-
num crucible some boracic acid into a glass, weigh the crucible with contents, and conduct steam
by a brass tube into the crucible while the latter is heated to redness. By weighing from time
to time the process of volatilization may be observed. After two hours continuing the experi-
ment, more or less, the crucible will be found entirely empty. Other experiments b^ which I
suspended a weighed platinum wire, on to which a pearl of boracic acid was molten, m an iron
gas pipe, and conducted steam of different temperature through that apparatus, showed that the
speed of the vofatilization is entirely depending upon the temperature of the steam. Steun of
212° Fahrenheit is not capable of removing more than traces unless the reaction is allowed to
continue for a very long time. If the gas pipe surrounding the boracic acid pearl is, however,
heated to redness, the volatilization is most rapid.

The rather surprising fact that the steam of 212° Fahrenheit has so little power for the pur-
pose caused me to experiment on some statements made by Henry Rose, the celebrated chemist
to whom we are mostly indebted for our knowledge of the element Boron and its combinatiooB*
Rose states that it is not possible to concentrate a solution containing free boracic acid without
loss of substance. I found this correct when the solution is evaporated in an open dish, but
not so when the concentration takes place in a glass flask. On concentrating a quite concen-
trated solution of boracic acid in a glass flask, over a moderate fire, I never could condense more
boracic acid than tlie mechanical carrying off by the vapors would account for — that is, a trace.
In an open dish, however, in the progress of concentration, a ring of boracic acid separated on
the dish, which boracic acid is heated much more than the solution, and is exposed to the action
of the steam rising from the liquid. In that case a volatilization takes place.

Having found out that superheated steam is much more powerful in carrying pff boracic acid
than steam of 212° Fah., it was easy to conclude that the condensation of the volatilized boracic
acid could not present great difficulties. The boracic acid volatilized in the apparatus described
before, that is, in a heated iron pipe. By regulating the length and temperature of the pijw
the fact resulted that the steam could be deprived nearly entirely of its percentage in boracic
aejd, i

From these facts the following process of woTking borate ol \\me> «vx%^«9Xfc^\\»^i\
The borate of lime can be used as found on the borax maxabfta, ot moxei ox \«9a v^"^*^^^^ ."^
lias to be transported acme distance. It is placed in a le^ad-Wiied. aVaWo^ ^^oi., ^^«t^^^^s

BORAX DKPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 43

df the weight of water, and allowed to stand for a day, or longer, in order to allow the lumps

dissolve. Then from one quarter to one half the weight of sulphuric acid is added, and the
hole well stirred into a stiff pulp, which is taken out and thrown in a heap. After some days
le mass has become hard, as the gypsum commences to set. With this first operation the mass

ready for the second operation — ^the distilling with steam. It is done in an iron retort with
1 arrangement for heatmg it. An ordinary gas pipe, twelve feet by one and ahalfleet, would
iswer very well. It ought to stand in an upright position, in order to facilitate the charging
id discharging, as also to cause an equal action of the steam. When the pipe is sufficiently
eated that no condensation of steam can take place, steam is admitted. It becomes superheated
ithin the retort, and carries along the boracic acid, leaving a porous mass of gypsum, etc.,
hich, when the operation is continued sufficiently long, will be found entirely free from boracic
:id. It has been mentioned before that the rapidity of the action depends only on the heat
oaployed. If the temperature of the retort is near the red heat, from one to two hours will
imce to finish the operation in the lower part of the retort. At a temperature only, say 400°
'ah., which is very easily reached within the retort, about four hours will be required.

The details of the apparatus which allows a continuous working, and by withdrawing only
alf the contents every few hours, allows the mass to be exposed twice as long, that is eight
lOurs, to the action of the steam, I will omit here.

The steam which leaves the retort is highly charged with boracic acid. It can be made to
bsorb not less than the fourth part of its weight of the hyd rated boracic acid. From the retort
t passes into a brick or lead-lined wooden chamber, where most of the hydrate of boracic acid
7ill deposit. Thence it passes into another chamber, or better, a long flue provided with some
netal grating, before it escapes into the atmosphere. Also, a worm condenser can be used, and
irith it a strong solution of boracic acid will result. It may also pass through a coil of lead or
)ther metal, which utilizes the waste heat. There are numerous devices to remove, by partial
x)ndensing, the last traces of boracic acid, if desired.

Most of the boracic acid is, however, found in the first chamber as hydrate, BOs+SHO, and
jan be from time to time removed. It can be easily melted into a glass, taking care to condense
Jie fumes during melting, and is then absolutely pure< In the state as found in the chamber
it may contain a little sulphuric acid, but by admixture of some coke and charcoal with the
top layer in the retort, the sulphuric acid can be entirely converted into sulphurous gas,
«enich escapes, unc(>ndensed, from the chambers. There is no other substance present to inter-
fere with the purity of the product obtained. In a mechanical way nothing can go over, as the
mass within tne retort gets all glazed over by boracic acid.

The advantages of the process are, that with very little labor in one single and short opera-
tion, the mineral can be exhausted. There are no rich residues left to be worked over, nor
liquor to be concentrated, which makes the lixiviation process so complicated. Besides, the
boracic acid, and particularly the boracic acid glass, can bear the high co^t of transportation
from the borax marshes much better than the borax or the borate of lime. To bring one pound
Bf borax from the. marshes to the market, that is New York or European ports, costs now from
six to seven cents. To transport the molten boracic acid which gives three pounds of borax
Dearly, would reduce the cost for one pound of borax by two thirds.

BORAX IN NEVADA.

What is known as the great basin is a peculiar geographical feature
of the Pacific Coast States. It is a depression between ranges of
mountains, from which there is no outlet to the watershed. Streams,
generally small, which head in the snowy mountains, if they dio not
sink in the sandy desert soil, or wholly evaporate, give birth to
alkaline lakes, of which Mono, Owens, Walker, Carson, and Humboldt
are the most important. There are a multitude of lesser ''sinks" as
they are called, which are subject to great vicissitudes. During a
season of unusual rainfall, or a phenomenal winter accumulation of
snow on the mountains, great sheets of water are formed in natural
depressions on the alkaline plains, which, when the conditions vary,
appear as extensive fields of dry, white, eftiorescent salts, consisting
wholly of soluble matters gathered by the water in its passage from
the melting snows, which it left in a state of almost absolute
puritv. The soil is generallv sterile, excep)t in certain valleys, and is
largely composed of the debris of volcanic rocks and lavas, rich in
Joda feldspar, which readily parts with its alkali. Immense flows of
i peculiar yellowish semi-crystalline lava have covered the countrY
or many square miles. They seem, to \iaNe W^ ^'evt w^'gvxv ^ ^^
3sr the circular basin in which Mono Tuak^ \\^'s>,^\A*^^'^ ^3.\k^^

rert
In

h
h

44 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

quite to the base of the great White Mountain range which forms the / 1
northern part of the Inyo Mountains. f^^'

Owens Iliver cuts through this formation in its passage to the val- rJ}
ley, having excavated a canon hundreds of feet in depth. The same In,
formation crops out at Adobe Meadows, at Benton, Whisky Flat, and "
elsewhere.

The waters of Mono and Owens Lakes are of the same general
character, although more than one hundred miles apart, and they
both contain boracic acid in solution. They have other features and
peculiarities in common. Both cover nearly the same area. Both
are subject to rise and fall, according to season. Both deposit the
rock or mineral called ^^thinolite," which forms when the waters
become supersaturated. The waters are very heavy. When shaken
in a glass bottle they appear like thin oil. When thrown on a flat 1^"^
surface a voluminous white incrustation is left as the water evapo- l|^
rates. At the margin of the lakes a peculiar disagreeable smell is "^"^
observed like that of an adjacent soap factory. The waters possess
great detersive properties. When mixed with oil and shaken in a
bottle, an emulsion is formed, which is an imperfect soap, and the
oil cannot be made to separate even by long standing. If boiled, .
the saponification becomes perfect. The specific gravity of a sample 1 ?J
of the waters of Mono Lake in the State Museum is 1.038. It acts \^
immediately on animal matter. If placed on the skin, that smooth-
ness caused by caustic potash, well known to chemists, is soon
observed.

If to the water hydrochloric acid is added, a brisk eflfervescence is
the result. Boiled in a silver dish to one half, only a small precipi-
tate falls, but the dish becomes blackened from hydrosulphuric acid
present. A litre of the water contains 41.8 grains of solid salts, coil—
sisting largely of chloride of sodium, sulphate of soda and carbonate'
soda, with borax or boracic acid, as before mentioned, in very muc
smaller proportion, and probably other valuable substances. N
complete analysis has yet been made, but samples have been obtaine<3
from the most important lakes of the State for that purpose. TM
have before predicted, and now repeat the opinion, that these lak^s
will eventually be utilized, and the salts they contain extracted witii
profit to those who may engage in the business, and to the generate!
advantage of the State.

It is not easy to account for the boracic acid in these waters; thiL«
theorist is at a loss to decide from his limited knowledge whether
borax, ulexite. priceite, pandermite, etc., are derived from the decom.-

Eosition of otner borax minerals, such as tourmaline, datolite, dax^-
urite^ and axinite, which may exist in the crystalline rocks in greator
quantities than is generally supposed, from volcanic or soSataric
agency, like the Italian deposits, ooracic acid being given off in stea.ni
jets, and combining with the soda of the carbonate known to exist in
the waters of these or similar lakes of a former period to form
borax, and with soluble lime salts, to produce ulexite, or, if tlie
rivers have brought down soluble borates gathered from the soil
which may have derived its boracic acid from the volcanic rocks
before mentioned. Whatever theory or theories may be advanced, the
fact remains, that fields of borates in very large quantities at some
localities, and in spots and patches at o\3aei:S), 8^t^ kvio^\i to extend
from Oregon to Arizona, and over a ^aat aeop^ oi eoxmX.-rj ,

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 45

The history of the discovery of borax and borates in Nevada, which
followed that of Borax Lake in California, already mentioned, may
be summed up as follows:

The first borax mineral found was ulexite, in the form of cotton
balls, as they are called, thus named from the silky felted or inter-
laced crystals which the globular masses show when broken. They
were from the size of peas up to twelve inches in diameter.

In 1860 Dr. Veatch met Mr. William Troop in Virginia Citv, and
told him that he had tested water from Mono Lake, and had seen
indications of borax in it, and also in some minerals from the same
locality, and thought borax would eventually be found in Nevada.

In 1864 Columbus Marsh was located by Smith & Eaton as a salt
bed. Some borate of lime was then found, but no notice was taken
of it until a specimen came into the hands of Dr. Partz, then engaged
in metallurgical operations at Blind Springs, Mono Countv, California.
He recognized the mineral, but did not attach any special importance
to the discovery. Specimens were sent to the Eastern States, which
were noticed in Dana's Mineralogy, and found a place in the cabinets
of mineralogists.

In the latter part of 1869, a teamster, as he drove along the road to
Wadsworth, walking beside his slowly moving wagon, picked up a
cotton ball, which he broke open, and noticing and admiring the
silky crystals, brought it with him as a curiosity. It found its way
eventually to San Francisco, where it came to the notice of certain
well known capitalists, who sent out a prospecting party to search for
fche locality. After a fruitless hunt the party was about to return to
San Francisco disappointed, when Mr. W. H. Burgess, an old resident
:>t Nevada, and keeper of the well known Burgess Station, directed
them to Virginia Marsh. While they were gone, he discovered
the place where the teamster found the cotton ball specimen. On
bhe discoverjr becoming known, a systematic search for borax com-
cnenced, which has continued with intermittent activity to the pres-
ent day. In 1871, Mr. Troop discovered borax (cotton balls) three
CQiles from Columbus, Esmeralda County. About the same time he
found a deposit forty-nve miles southeast of Ragtown, near Salt Wells,
at which spot he located the property afterwards owned by the
American Borax Company. He Drought a sample to Ragtown,
obtained a wash boiler from Mrs. Kenyon, and carbonate of soda
from Ragtown Lake, which he boiled with the cotton balls and water,
obtaining the first borax ever made in Nevada. Flushed with the
success of the first operation, he brought 1,700 pounds of ulexite from
near Columbus, which was made into borax in San Francisco by
Mosheimer & Stevenot, at North Beach. The first yield was sold to
Isaac S. Van Winkle, iron merchant, of San Francisco.

In April, 1872, Dr. Degroot wrote to the San Francisco Evening
Bulletin as follows:

At Sand Springs, fifty miles east of Wadsworth, there is a large area covered with borate of
lime, and there are works capable of manufacturing a ton of borax per day running with profit
and success. On an alkali flat, twenty miles southwest of Wadsworth, borax salts are found ; also,
Ett Hot Springs, nineteen miles northeast of Wadsworth.

A few hundred yards northeast of Ragtown Lake there is a small lake about one and a half
miles in circuit, the waters of which are supersaturated with salts, including borax. The lake
has no outlet. A few years ago a San Francisco company attempted to work it for borax, by
pumping the water and conveying it to an alkaline flat, where it was supposed to evaporate by
the Bun*8 heat The operation was not a success, and was aVjandoii^.

46 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

TEEL MARSH BORAX FIELDS.

Teel Marsh, or TeePs Marsh, Esmeralda County, Nevada, lies about
sixteen miles northwest from Columbus, and about the same distance
west of Virginia Marsh. As far as I can learn, it takes its name
from quantities of ducks which were found there when first discov-
ered. This is, and has been, the most productive borax field yet
found on the Pacific Coast. The following account of its discovery
is from the Scientific American of October, 1877, and approved by
the gentleman named as being substantially correct :

This remarkable discovery was made in Esmeralda County, Nevada, October 12, 1873, by a
young man who was prospecting for mines of gold and silver. While thus engaged, wander-
ing over mountains, canons, and valleys, he discovered in a valley known as TeePs Marsh
which appeared (in the distance) to be a vast bed of white sand, resembling dry sea foam.
Upon arriving at the place, he found it to be the bed of a dry lagoon, with the appearance of
having been dry for centuries. He found the surface to be soft and clayey, orten sinking
ankle-deep. After an examination of the curious deposit, he put several handfuls into his
pockets and returned across the mountains to Columbus, a distance of twenty miles. There an
assayer pronounced it the richest sample of crude borax he had ever seen. It soon proved to
be an enormous deposit of crude borax, two and one half miles wide and five or six in length.
It was more than one man could manage, so a brother was sent for, and the two (now widely
known as the Smith Brothers of Nevada) worked with a will, sparing neither time nor money
until the whole deposit was their property. They at once obtained boilers, tanks, crystallizers,
etc., from Chicago, and began operations. The result is, that in the course of three or fear
years the brothers have perfected an immense establishment, and are producing an enormous
quantity of a chemically pure article of borax, which stands first, and is in demand in every
household, to whom it is supplied by grocers and druggists throughout the country.

•

It will be seen, by referring to the statistics relating to the produc-
tion of borax on the Pacific Coast, that a large quantity has been
obtained at this locality, and there is reason to believe that much
more will be extracted.

The method employed by Smith Brothers for the production of
borax from the crude material is by solution, separation of mechan-
ical impurities by settling, and crystallization. The result is concen-
trated borax. When this is recrystallized, it is known as refined borax.
The deposit is known as crude borax, specimens of which may be seen in
the State Museum, numbered 3380 and 3381. It occurs as a superficial
stratum, varying from half an inch to eighteen inches in thickness.
This is raked into windrows, shoveled into wagons^nd hauled to the
borax works, situated on a small hill near by. The heat required
for solution is obtained from two twenty-four-inch steam boilers,
which are supplied with water by a Cameron & Douglas steam pump.
There are nine boiling tanks, of boiler iron, eight feet in diaineter
and seven feet deep. From the boilers the steam is conducted to the
boiling tanks through two-inch iron pipes to a wet coil of a peculiar
form — shown in figure 9 — ^a vertical pipe, carrying the steam to the
center of the coil (if this is a proper term), which is pierced full of
small holes, through which the steam escapes into the solution.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

Fig. 9.

The operation is commenced by filling the boiling tanks one third
to one half full of water, according to the quality of the crude mate-
rial, as learned by experience. When the water is boiling hot, the
crude borax is shoveled in until the solution has a density equal to
20° to 30° Beaum^'s hydrometer. The hot solution is allowed to stand
over night, the steam being turned off. In the morning the solution,
now free from sand and other mechanical impurity, is run off into
crystallizers of No. 14 galvanized sheet iron. These vessels are square,
seven feet at the bottom and six feet at the top. They are provided with
covers of No. 16 galvanized sheet iron. As the solution cools, crystals
of borax form in these crystallizers in crusts varying from half an
inch to four inches in thickness. As soon as the boiling tanks are
discharged, the mud is sluiced out; they are then pumped partly full
af water for the next operation. When crystals cease to form in the
crystallizers the mother liquor is drawn off, and the crystals removed
from the sides and bottom, and returned to the clean boiling tanks
in which they are redissolved and allowed to stand for a time undis-
turbed, as in the first operation, when the solutions are drawn again
into the crystallizers. The result is concentrated borax. The mother
liquors from both operations are run off into shallow pans of wood,
covering half an acre, in which solar evaporation takes place, salts
containing some borax crystallize out, after which the very impure
mother liquor is allowed to go to waste. The plan of calcining to
remove organic matter has never been practiced, although it should
be.

The hot liquors are drawn from the surface in the boiling tanks by

an ingenious device, which consists of a goose-neck of three-inch iron
pipe, connected witn a common flexible hose of the same diameter.
The joints are common elbows and nipples. A three-inch pipe passes
up through the bottom of each boiling tank near one side. The boil-
ing tanks are set in a row, fifteen feet above the crystallizers; the pipe
rises a few inches above the bottom, to allow for the settling mud.
On the end of this pipe a common elbow is loosely screwed; in this
s screwed a nipple, another elbow, and a \eiTk.^\Jci cd "^^"^^ Tvfejec^ "^^
yng as the bottom of the tank. TMs long p\^e X^rtxv^ ix<^^^ , ^^^ ^^>^

48 REPORT OF THR STATE MINERALOGIST.

be elevated or depressed at pleasure, and extends obliquely to the
surface of the fluid. The elbows are all loose, being only screwed
hand tight. When it is required to draw off the liquors, the end of
the pipe is depressed, until the opening is just below the surface.
The solution flows down through the pipe without disturbing ^e
sediment. By means of the hose, the liquors are conveyed to either
of the crystal I izers at pleasure.
Figure 10 shows the boiling tank and goose-neck in section.

RHODES MARSH.

The following description is condensed from a report by J. R,
Scupham, C. E.:

Rhodes' M&rsh, EsiDeratda County, StaM ot Nevada, occupies the western poition at tt vtllaf
about twelve mileB in diameter, aurrounded by rangea of hiUa and iaolftled mountainB. Prom >
height the bo called "marsh" resembles a froien lake covered with dirty anow. The lino of tin
Caraon and Colorado Railroad is seen croasing ita western edge, wtth the depot and borax worki
upon this portion, and long lines of spur traclis from the railroad radiating out on its eurfaa.

The most concentrated portion of the marsh contains about two thousand three hundred ud
fittj'-seven acres. But borate of lime and other borax compounds are found over ■ aurftuaof
four thousand aerea, all of which land is the property of toe " Nevada Salt and Borax Coin-
pan v."

Though termed a mareh, there is no ,

there wet a small patch, or send out rills which soon sink beneath the surface.

On close inspection the whole surface of the marsh is found to be ineruated with various
wbile here and there are palebea covered with snow-like eiBoreacence.

A close inapection ahows also some ditference in the character of portions of the d
Beginning at a point near the center of the western margin and following north in a
varying in width, and also along the whole northern and northeastern portion, is a belt of tbt
marsh, containing, under a brownish, salt^ crust, disseminated through six or eight feet of dif,
masses and beds of snowball-like concretions of borate of lime, called here "eotlon b«ll!"iit
ulexite. This portion of the marsh containe about six hundred acres. The cotton balls can )»
easily gathered from the mud matrix, especially where they lie in thick beds, as they do in
patches acres in extent.

These "cotton balls" look like a dirty snowball when fitst taken fmm the mud. When
broken open they are found of a wavy, fibrous texture, white, with a silky or pearly IubIsi.
They vary in size from that of a pea to four inches in diameter.

These balla of borate of lime are also found occasionally through other portions of the minlii
sometimes even in the solid beds of salt.

The lowest portion of the marsh has a slightly undulating surface, and a thick, hard crnflt,
containing, with chloride of sodium, a lai^ amount of biborate of sodium and borate of lims-
Underthiscruat isaeolid bed ofpuresalt (chloride of sodium) eight to twelve feet thick. Long
trenches are opened in this salt four to five feet deep, twelve feet in width, and as longM
desired. The old salt removed is shoveled on to cara and sold for use in the quarts millsatiiiDB
dollars pet too. The bottom of the trench,, when the oli saU ia tenioiwi, fills la^idly with*
elear, eparkliag water, intensely salt. In this water ciyirta.\s ol a».\'.\iQmei:\aS/J.^ te^iiXjaVsTO
aoit an to the bottom in a Hnow-white deposit. In tt" '' — ~ --~^' •.—■—. — *"»■

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 49

drill have formed. It is then shoveled on to ears and taken to the works to be j^i'ound up
for fine table salt. This is purer than the best Liverpool salt, and the production costs, besides
the sacking, not more than eighty cents per ton delivered at the railroad. There are abput four
hundred acres of this salt ground.

South of the salt beds, lying in a zone about one and a half miles long, in the center of the
oiarsh, is a tract of about four hundred and eighty acres, containing tincal (native borax crys-
tals). This is the richest and by far the most interesting portion of the marsh. For three or
four feet in depth the material is a stiff gray mud, through which are thickly disseminated the
translucent gray crystals of tincal. These crystals are from the size of a grain of wheat to two
inches in length by one inch in diameter.

Underneath this tincal mud is a solid surface exactly like ice and called by that name here.
It is sulphate of soda with some borax. This solid " ice," so far as I know, has never yet been
cut through. At one place I saw it cut into six feet, all the way showing like solid dusky ice.

That portion of the marsh lying west, south, and east of the tincal deposit, containing in all
about two thousand acres, is covered with a crust from two to six inches deep, containing bibo-
rate of soda in a powdered state, mixed with hard clay.

As it only requires the simplest treatment to produce borax from this for the market, the com-
pany is confining its attention entirely to this section at present, and it will be years before any
other source need be touched.

The amount of sulphate of soda underlying all these borax beds is well worthy of considera-
tion, as caustic soda and carbonate of soda can be made from it sufficient to supplpr the Ameri-
can market. And as the uses of these chemicals is greatly on the increase, their production
might become a source of great revenue to the company. At present these soda salts are largely
manufactured from cryolite, imported from Greenland.

The work of producing borax out of such excellent material is very simple. Indeed, the
borax is already there and only requires dissolving from the adulterating mud and recrystal-
lizing.

At the railroad station, on the western portion of the marsh, the company has its works, con-
sisting of a warehouse, an engine and boiler-house, four boiler- tanks (7x8), twenty-four crystal-
lizing tanks, waste tanks, etc.

The company has also a salt mill in the warehouse for grinding table ssilt.

The attention of the company will be confined, for a decade at least, to the manufacture of
borax from the native borate of soda. To do this, the top crust to the depth of six inches is
shoveled into cars, taken to the works, and dumped into the boiling tanks, which are partly
filled with water from a well strongly impregnated with borax. The tanks are then boiled by
steam from the boilers until the borate of soda is all dissolved, when it is allowed to settle. The
water containing the solution is then decanted into the crystallizing tanks, which are of gal-
vanized iron, with sheets of the same material suspended in them. Here the borax crystals
form on the sides and on the plates to the depth of about two inches. The water is then run
off into the waste reservoir and saved, for it still contains some borax. The borax crystals are
knocked off and shoveled up. *This constitutes the " crude borax " of commerce, really worth
more than the ** refined," because it contains an excess of boracic acid. This is now redissolved
and mixed with carbonate of soda, to reduce it to the standard. At 18° Beaum^ it is again
decanted into crystallizing tanks, where " refined borax " is finally formed.

The capacitv of these is calculated for fifty tons per month and for some time they have been
producing at luUy that rate.

What has been shipped has proved to be the very best in the market.

With these works running smoothly, borax can be produced at ten dollars per ton.

As I have before stated, the amount of the product is dependent on the will of the company.
The raw material in the marsh is practically unlimited and the capacity of the present works
can be increased four or five times, simply by adding tanks and boilers.

It costs $12 60 per ton to freight borax from Rhodes' Marsh to San Francisco.

The "Nevada Salt and Borax Company" is incorporated under the laws of California, with
100,000 shares of stock, at a par value of $10 per share. Besides this, bonds were issued for
$100,000, and the money used to purchase and equip the property. These bonds run fifteen
years, and bear interest at seven per cent. United States patents are issued for all the lands of
the company, consisting of 4,160 acres.

The following are the analyses of the samples taken from different locations, which were made
by A. A. Hebberling, chemist. United States Mint, Carson City, Nevada, March, 1882:

No. 1, Borax — From the southeast part of the marsh, about a mile and a half from the house
of Messrs. Rhodes and Wason — is the crude borate of soda. The material covers the surface to
the depth of from one to five inches, and embraces an area of about forty acres.

ANALYSIS.

Borate of sodium _ 40.0«

Borate of calcium _ _ l.ltf

Sulphate of sodium- _ _ 16.00

Carbonate of sodium 6.00

Chloride of sodium..^ _ — - ^^SsfV

Organic matter. Band and iron IJ^TCV

727

50 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

No. 2, Borax — Taken directly north of place mentioned above. It covers about one hun-
dred acres of ground to the depth of from two to eight inches, and will furnish a splendid
material for manufacturing borax. Mr. Wason supposed this material to contain free '^boracic
acid/' but it does not, as is shown by the presence of free carbonate of soda.

ANALYSIS.

Borate of sodium 57.20

Borate of calcium 5.80

Sulphate of sodium 10.70

Chloride of sodium 9.00

Organic matter and sand 17.30

lOO.OO
No. 3, Salt Crust — A small deposit around Rabbit Springs, and hardly worth mentioning.

ANALYSIS.

Carbonate of soda 19.6

Sulphateof soda 8.7

Borate of sodium 10.0

Sand and insoluble matter 61.7

100.0
No. 4 — Sittings from cotton balls. Very rich in borate of lime.

No. 5 — Sample from ground running southwest to northeast, around east side of marsh.
This is a very important part of the marsh, as it covers a large area of ground, and is capped
by a crust of salt, containing a large per cent of borax. The cotton balls are found under
ground, from half a foot to six feet deep.

No. 6, Soda — Crust from top overlying borate of lime, about one and a half miles north of
house. It covers considerable ground, with a fine deposit of borate of lime underneath.

No. 7, Salt Crust — ^Thickness from two to si:t inches, overlying a fine and large deposit of
borate of lime. It is two miles from the house, a little west of north.

ANALYSIS.

Carbonate of soda 8.07

Chloride of soda.. 15.90

Sulphate of soda _ •_ _ 20.10

Borate of soda 15.06

Sand - - 40.88

100.00
No. 8 — Sulphate of soda and lime.

No. 9 — Sample from the vicinity of salt beds.

ANALYSIS.

Borate of sodium 14.6

Sulphate of sodium 30.5

Chloride of sodium 26.8

Carbonate of sodium trace

Sand and clay 38.3

100.0
Nos. 10, 11, 12 — Contain sulphate of sodium, with but trace of borax.

No. 13, Brown Crust — One and a half miles west of house. The center of a very extensive
deposit of natural crystals of borax, called " tincal," extending from the surface of the ground
to a depth of three or tour feet. Even the brown crust overlying the clay containing the
crystals is very rich in borax.

ANALYSIS.

Borate of sodium 36.5

Sulphate of sodium 16.5

Carbonate of sodium 6.8

Chloride of sodium 1 15.0

Eartbjr particles 26.2

The sample of water near *' Borax Spring" yields Vl^ poMTida ol >oot^x V^ VXx^^ Vixi.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 61

Rhodes Marsh lies in Sections 14, 15, 16, 21, and 22, township 5
north, range 35 east. Mount Diablo base and meridian.

The following letter from Professor Joseph LeConte is given here
by his permission :

Bkbkelet, Cal., Noyember 1, 1882.
Mr. J. E. ScuPHAM :

Dear Sir: At your request I hereby give you a brief sketch of my observations at Rhodes'
Salt Marsh. I wish you, however, to understand that the object of my visit was purely scien-
tific, and therefore I made no attempt to form an accurate estimate, based on personal observa-
tion, of the actual quantity of valuable salts in the marsh.

The marsh is nearly circular in form, and, as near as I can judge, about two and one half to
three miles in diameter, and contains about five or six square miles. The central part (perhaps
one square mile or more) is covered with pure salt — chloride of sodium. Around this, to the
margin, the nature of the deposit differs in difierent parts. In some parts borax in the form of
crust; in some, borax in the form of tincal; in some, ulexite (a soaa-lime borate); in some,
sulphate of soda, and in some, carbonate of soda. Common salt is found nearly everywhere,
more or less mingled with the other salts, but in a pure condition only in the central portion of
the marsh. I wmI take up these successively :

1. Common Salt This exists in practically unlimited quantity, and can be gathered in a
chemically pure state, with apparentlv no more trouble or expense than would be necessary to
gather so much earth. This is so obvious to every observer that nothing more need be said.

2. Borax. Borates exist here in three forms, (o) It occurs as a borax crust from one to three
inches thick, more or less mingled with earth, the borax being perhaps fifty per cent of the
weight. It is easily gathered with a shovel. I do not know the exact area of this crust, but it
is evidently very large. I observed, also, places where the crust had been removed a year or two
ago, and on which it had been re-formed, although not yet so thickly as before removal. The
most extensive crust area is on the southern portion of the marsh, not far from the works. Sev-
eral springs containing borax in this vicinity suggest the mode in which the crust was formed.

(b) Borax occurs also as tincal. In many parts of the marsh, notably on the west, southwest,
and southeast of the central salt area, if the loose surface earth be removed until stiff, moist,
blue clay is reached, and then a spadeful of this blue clay be turned up, it is found to be full of
transparent crystals from a half inch to one inch in diameter, looking like fragments of ice.
These crystals are pure borate of soda, or borax, in the form called tincal. Some spadesful thus
turned up, I think contain fifty per cent of tincal. Of course I only turned up the soil here and
there to examine the mode of occurrence. I am sure, however, that this form of borax occurs
over a very wide area, but whether universally, or equally distributed, I cannot say. My chief
interest was the question of the formation of these crystals. This point is still obscure, but they
must have crystallized from a saturated solution, and therefore, m addition to the crystals, a
considerable amount of borax crust exists in solution in the water which saturates the clay.

(c) Borate occurs also, and probably in very large quantities, as ulexite, or soda-lime-borate, or
^'cotton balls.'' These curious balls occur in a semicircular area surrounding the central salt area
on the north, northwest, and northeast. They are imbedded in a wet, stifi^clav, like the tincal, *
and are gathered in the same way. When the loose earth is removed to the depth of a foot or
so, until the stifi^clay is reached, then a spadeful of clay is seen to contain irregular elipsoidal white
balls, much the shape and size of potatoes, and may, in fact, be duic like potatoes. On breaking
one of these, the beautiful, radiated, silky fibers characteristic of ulexite are seen. This sul^
stance occurs in large quantities in the places examined by me. The area over which it is found

is also large. It is not unlikely that the largest quantity of borax is in this form. Of this,
however, I cannot speak with confidence, having dug into the soil only in isolated spots.

As ulexite is a soaa-lime-borate, it was probably formed by the reaction of solutions of borate
of soda and bicarbonate of lime.

3. Sulphate of Soda, or Glauber Salt. The area occupied by this material is close about the
sc^t area, and almost surrounding it except on the west. It is reached by removing the surface
earth and then the clay to a certain depth. It is then seen as a solid, transparent mass, like a
subterranean ice cake. In some places it was so thick that we were unable to cut through it.
This sulphate, of course, can be used in the manufacture of carbonate of soda, as in the well
known Le Blanc process.

4. Carbonate of Soda. In one place only did I find carbonate of soda in condition suffi-
ciently pure to be utilized. This was near the road leading from the salt vats to Mr. Rhodes'
house. It was in the form of soft crust two or three inches thick, but how extensive the
deposit is is not known. Carbonate of soda, whether native, or made from sulphate of soda,
could, of course, be used in changing ulexite into borax. On the next page I have drawn a
rough sketch (Fig. 11) of the marsh and of the areas of the various salts spoken of above. I
hope you will understand, however, that this makes no pretensions to accuracy. It is intended
only to make clear what I have written.

I know not if you desire my views as to the mode of formation of these several salts. In

fact I have no very decided views. If the marsh is a simple dried up lake, the waters of

which contained all these Balis, then it would be impossWAe U> fliCCO\iii\. ^ox \>afc\f>ca\J>3ucx\A«r(v<a^*v^

rtw/ous kinds. The former lake, therefore, must have beei^ «v\\>v^\ft^ «\«o \«c^<!\l Vj «\gt\w^^

coming up in the lake bottom, and these springs brouttYil up -vorVovi^ V\tA^ «A «aJ^A, ^\sNfe ^^^

kmd and some another. After the lake dried up,t\ieae Bpxm^^ %\:\\\ <»\iX^^^^V£i^L'^ ^^\.^^^i^

REPORT OP THE STATE MINEBALOQIST.

aX'ioa of most of the ki
e most abundant iDgredi
but Bubsequently^naa lead
tl part. 0^ the maDner h
Ihiak tbeir rinuore built up by ws
.ust accumulating there bectiase wc

-oducU. Thin thej are at
nds of salta. In addition t

thed out, and accumulated ii

doing. TbuB I accoitnt for Ibe
this, I think the oommon mix,
probably left everynhero u i
i very pure form in the lovest or

aing up Lhrough fisguresand wetting these puta,

fours, reBpectfully,

JOBEPH LkCONTE.

The following is the result of an examination of a sample of crude ■
borax (tincal) from Rhodes' Marsh, made by me. The sample was :
furnished by J. R. Scupham, May, 1883. This material is an a^lom- j
eration of obscure crystals of anhydrous sulphate of soda (thenardite) i
in which are imbedded distinct and perfect crystals of borax ; the
whole covered with au efflorescence of a dirty white color, and inter-
mixed with sand and fine gravel. j
It has much the appearance ot ftie iiTM46\iCi'm.-x. tco-m China, de- |
scribed by FourCTOy and quoted in ftiia pa-^ex. "^Vea. -^aR^ "^
neater it softens, the Dorax crystals in a ?.Tfea\, meawwe ^ss^msA^-cA
i^ay be picked out by hand. In expexiTnents\ 'tnaAe.A^** «.\a%^

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 53

to separate very nearly all the borax, which amounted to about nine
per cent of the whole. These crystals ranged in size from half an
inch to one tenth of an inch in length, and even less. They were
nearly all perfect, with sharp angles and edges, and all prismatic,
proving that they had crystallized from dilute solutions. Some con-
tained mechanical impurities inclosed, while the larger portion were
perfectly pure and transparent. After the borax crystals were picked
out by hand, the remainder was dissolved in water by application of
heat, and the sand filtered off. This was dried, weighed, and found to
be seven per cent of the whole. The clear solution was returned to the
clean dish, and evaporated to a pellicle, during which no insoluble
precipitate formed. The dish was then set aside to crvstallize. The
result was a large quantity of very beautiful crystals of hydrated
sulphate of soda, in which no crystals of borax could be seen. To
make sure^ the mother liquor was poured off, and the crystals dissolved
in successive portions of cold water. No borax remained, which
proved that the mechanical operation of picking out had been com-
plete.

These experiments show that this form of crude borax material
can be refined without diflftculty, and that it contains about ten per
cent of borax.

At the same locality, in the blue mud of the lake, large isolated
crystals of borax have oeen found, exactly resembling those at Borax
Lake, in California. Some of these were several inches in length,
and all contain impurities included within the crvstal. I dissolved
one of these crystals and weighed the impurity, wnich was found to
be eight per cent, and was fine desert sand.

COLUMBUS BORAX MARSH, ESMERALDA COUNTY,

Lies about one hundred and fifty miles southeast from Carson, and
ibout the same distance from Wadsworth. It is an irregular oval in
torm. ten miles long by seven miles wide. It is the same locality at
yhicn Mr. Troop obtained the cotton balls from which he made the
irst borax. At one time there were four companies at work — the
Pacific Borax Company, Hearn's Steam Works, and the others. I
tm not informed as to what is being done at the present time.

PISH LAKE, ESMERALDA COUNTY,

Is a small basin situated about twenty-five miles south of Columbus.
I believe the only company now in possession is the Saline Valley
Borax Company, W. D. Linton, Superintendent, who intended to
prepare a description of the lake and the borax works, but his report
was not received in time for publication. At one time Fish Lake
Valley was the scene of great activity. In May, 1873, Mr. Nadeau
projected large works. Mott & Piper were producing two tons of con-
centrated borax daily. Mr. Nadeau did a large business hauling the
product to a market.

The Pacific Borax Company, incorporated under the laws of Cali-
fornia, had works and locations at Columbus and Fish Lake. The
first Trustees were Justinian Cairo, Robert Morrow, M. M. Tompkins,
and I. Lawrence Pool. Michael Kane was President. The company
located 15,200 acres of supposed borax land^. ^\\^vt ^\\\j^'5sv>^"^^<5i^^
vere situated five miles from Columbxis. Ixi ^xjlTi^, Y^'^, *v^^^ ^^cv-
loyed eighteen men.

64 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

PYRAMID LAKE.

The waters of this lake were examined by Mr. F. R. Waggoner and
found to contain boracic acid. The following slip from a Nevada
paper is given as an illustration of the extravagant construction
some newspapers put upon a simple statement like the above. Simi-
lar publications nave been made from time to time, which tend
greatly to mislead the public and to impair confidence in legitimate
enterprise.

BORAX FOR THE WORLD.

HOW A COMPANY OF CAPITALISTS PROPOSE TO MAKE LARGE PROFITS FROM THE WATERS OF

PYRAMID LAKE.

Pyramid Lake contains one quarter of one per cent borax and one per cent carbonate of soda,
or one pound of borax and four pounds of soda to every 400 pounds of water. Dr. F. R. Wag-
goner has had his eye on the lake for several months, and at last the object of his frequent
visits to its shores have leaked out. How the doctor will like to have his pet scheme exposed
we do not know, but having found out what he intends to do, the public gets the l>enefitof a
reporter's inquisitiveness, and if anybody has any objection to Waggoner's project let them be
recorded at an early day. Dr. Waggoner, it is said, has organized a company of capitalists to
erect works and carry on the manufacture of borax on a very extensive scale. The company
will be known as the '* Pyramid Lake Borax and Desert Land Company,'' and it is their inten-
tion to apply to the Secretary of the Interior for the privilege of turning the course of the
Truckee River into Mud Lake, thereby shutting off the source of fresh water supply from Pyramid
Lake. There is already an open channel from the river at a point one or two miles m)m its
mouth to Mud Lake, and about one third of the water empties into that lake now. After the
river is turned the company proposes to evaporate the waters of Pyramid by solar evapora-
tion. They calculate that in ten years the lake will evaporate 300 feet, or one inch every
twenty-four hours. At the expiration of that time large Dorax works will be erected at the
lake, and the water will be pumped into large zinc vats, and by artificial evaporation they will
be enabled to supply the world with borax. It is the intention of the company to devote their
time and a large amount of money to the reclamation of desert land made valuable by cbane-
ing the course of the river, while waiting the process of evaporation. Hundreds of tnousands
of acres of desert land can be made into magnificent farms by this means. The proposition
may seem a gigantic undertaking, and perhaps a little visionary, but nevertheless it is possible,
and time and money is all that is required to carry it out.

LOCATION OF BORAX LANDS.

Deposits of borax may be located under the provisions of Title
XXaII, Chapter 6, of the Revised Statutes of the United States,
regulating the location of placer ground.

No one location made by an individual can exceed twenty acres,
and no one location made by an association of individuals can exceed
one hundred and sixty acres; which location of one hundred and
sixty acres cannot be made by a less number than eight bona fide
locators, and no local laws or mining regulations can restrict a placer
location to less than twenty acres, although the locator is not com-
pelled to take so much.

Where placer claims are upon surveyed public lands, the locations
must be made to conform to legal subdivisions thereof as near as
practicable.

The price to be paid for placer ground is five dollars per acre.

The following recent letter from the Secretary of the Interior to
the Commissioner of the General Land OjBBcb, will be of interest to
locators of borax deposits :

SECRETARY TELLER TO COMMISSIONER McFARLAND, JANUARY 30, 1883.

My attention is called to the fact that these deposits, although valuable, are not of sufficient
value to permit their being entered under the mining laws. They ask whether the recent cir-
cu]ar, approved by me September 22, 1882, and its amendmftiii o^ Dccfetabftt 9,1882^18 applicable
io entries of lands containing borax and other simWar -vaYvxaXAft d.e^%\\a.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 55

It was early determined by the Department that the Act of May 10, 1882, which describes
i^rtain lands containing valuable mineral deposits, was applicable to land containing deposits
of borax, carbonate and nitrate of soda, sulphur, alum, and asphalt; and I believe that from
the passage of that law until the present time, the definition of the term, ''valuable mineral
deposits,'' has been such as to include the minerals and alkaline substances named. I under-
stand that entries of borate lands have been allowed under the provisions of the Act of 1872,
and the regulations made in accordance therewith.

It is the desire of persons interested, that the regulatious which were. in existence having
special reference to the applications for patents for placer claims, namely, the circular of October
31,1881, should be continued in force, so far as they relate to deposits of borax, etc., as mentioned
above. Believing that practical effect should be given to the mining laws of the United States,

1 am of the opinion that to apply the new regulations to such entries would result in excluding
such lands from sale, and depriving the people of the benefit of the use of these natural depos-
its, I therefore direct jrou to permit the entry of public lands containing valuable deposits of
!)orax, carbonate and nitrate of soda, sulphur, alum, and asphalt, in the States of California and
Jfevada and the Territories of Arizona and Wyoming, in which section of the country I am
nformed these deposits are present, under the regulations of October 31, 1881. In aadition,
lowever, an applicant for a patent for public lands containing deposits of borax, etc., as above,
Qust affirmatively show that the lands entered are not valuable for any other purpose than the
ne for which the application is made. It will therefore follow that the circulars of September

2 and December 9, 1882, are not applicable to entries of the lands thus described and excepted.
Copp's Land Owner j Vol. 9, No. 11, February, 1883, page 210.]

CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA BORAX COMPANIES.

San Bernardino Borax Mining Company, S. Riddell, President.

Inyo Borax Company, of Inyo County, California; Greenland Salt
ind Borax Company, California; Amargosa Borax Mining Company,
California, William T. Coleman & Co., Agents.

Teel's Marsh Borax Company, of Esmeralda County, Nevada,
3mith Bros.

Pacific Borax Company, of Columbus, Nevada, F. M. Smith.

Nevada Salt and Borax Company, C. Van Dyck Hubbard, Secre-
tary.

Saline Valley Borax Company, Fish Lake, Esmeralda County,
**Tevada, W. D. Linton, Superintendent.

Eagle Borax Company, Inyo County, I. Daunet, President.

BORACIC ACID.

Boric acid (English); acide borique (French)- borsaure (Ger-
aan): acidum boracis, sal seditivum Hombergii, sal narcoticum vit-
ioli (Latin).

Names given to boracic acid by the old chemists: Flores boracis,
al volatile vitrioli, flores vitrioli philosophici, sal volatile narcoti-
Lum, sal album alchymistarum.

Boracic acid was discovered in 1702, by Romberg, a Dutch chemist,
irhich he produced by subliming a mixture of sulphate of iron and
►orax.

Chaptal (Elements of Chemistry. London, 1808) describes Homberg's
aethod of producing boracic acid, or the acid of borax, as follows:

When it is proposed to obtain it by sublimation, three or four pounds of calcined sulphate of
•on and two ounces of borate of soda are dissolved in three pounds of wat^r; the solution is
Itered and evaporated to a pellicle, after which the sublimation as performed in a cucurbit of
lass with its head. The acid of borax attaches itself to the internal surface of the head, from
hich it may be swept with a feather.

That the old chemists knew but little concerning the nature of
oracic acid may be inferred from the following quotations:

56 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

FROM THE CHEMICAL WORKS OF CASPER NEUMAN, VOL. I, LONDON, 1773.

The mineral alkali appears from experiment to be a principal ingredient of borax. On treat-
ing borax with acids, about one fourth its weight of a peculiar saline substance (called sedatiTt
salt) is separated, and the residuum proves a combination of the alkali with the acid employed;
thus, when the marine acid is used, a genuine sea salt remains; when the nitrous, a quadran-
gular nitre; and when the vitriolic, a sal mirabile. The substance separated joined to the min-
eral alkali, to the basis of sea salt, or to the salt of kali, recomposes borax again.

The properties of this substance so far as they are known, are these : It is of a bright, snow^
whiteness, extremely light, composed of fine plates or scales, and as it were unctuous to the
touch, of no smell, of a bitterish taste, accompanied with a slight impression of coldness.

It dissolves difficultly in boiling water, and on the liquor's cooling, crystallizes on its sarfim
into thin plates, which uniting and becoming larger, fall to the bottom. It likewise dissolTee,
by the assistance of heat, in rectified spirits of wine; the solution set on fire bums with a green
flame.

Moistened and exposed to a considerable heat, it in part sublimes; by repeated humectations
the whole may be elevated. Whilst dry, it proves perfectly fixed; it melts, emits aqueooi
vapors, and runs into a vitreous substance, dissoluble again as at first; neither the glass or the
salt itself are affected by the air. It makes no change in the color of blue flowers. It unites
with the common alkaline salts, in some degree neutralizes, and renders them capable of crys-
tallization. It is said to expel from alkalies every acid except the vitriolic, though expelled
itself by every acid, from the alkaline basis of the borax.
* * * ^ * ««««

The principal preparation of borax is a white volatile saline concrete, called Floi*es boracu,
aal volatile vitrioti, Flores vitrioli philofophici, sal volatile Tiarcotinum, and by some »U album
cUchymiatarum. This is made sometimes with the (xiput mortuum of vitriol, and sometimes
oil of vitriol. Three pounds of the caput mortuum or colcothar of green vitriol are elixated with
six or seven quarts of boiling water, and the filtered liquor mixed with a solution of two
ounces of borax in a quart of boiling water. The mixture suffered to settle for tw'elve houn,
and poured off clear from the sediment, is evaporated to two pounds, or a quart, then put into
a glass body and treated with a gradual fire; a fine sparkling sublimate arises, which, after the
vessels have erown cold, is to be swept out with a feather. If the phlegm which comes over be
returned on the residuum, a little more sublimate may be obtained, and thus repeatedly for a
second and third time. The method of preparing the salt with oil of vitriol is, to dissolve two
ounces of borax in a quart of water, ^raduaUy drop into' the solution one ounce of oil of vitriol,
evaporate about one third of the mixture, and then distill and cohobate as before. This salt ^
was first discovered b^ Mr. Homberg, and is used by French physicians in fevers and ebullitions
of the blood, in delina, convulsions, hypochondriacal and hysterical affections. Its particular
nature is as yet unknown; it has no volatile smell or pungent taste and appears to he of the
neutral kind. I have prepared this salt by a more commodious method than that of Homberg,
without sublimation or distillation. A solution of borax being mixed to saturation with a
solution of alum the earth of the alum precipitates; the remaining liquor evaporated to a certain
pitch and set to shoot, yields first fine crystals, the same with the sublimed flowers. If the
process be continued, the crystals which shoot afterwards are found to be of a different kind.

FROM ELEMENTS OF NATURAL HISTORY AND CHEMISTRY, BY Mi FOURCROY, 1790.

A diversity of opinion prevails concerning the nature and the formation of the boracic acid. -
A number of chemists have believed it to be an intimate combination of the sulphuric acid aad
a vitrificable earth with a fat matter. Messrs. Boudelin and Cadet think it to be formed by tt».^
muriatic acid. The latter of these two gentlemen thinks that it must contain a small quantit^^
of earth of copper, because it has the same property with the oxides of copper, of communs-"
eating a green color to the flame of combustible bodies. Cartheuser assures us, that on dryin ^^
and calcining by the action of a slow fire, a quantity of the boracic acid in a state of grefln-^^
purity, he observed it to emit vapors of muriatic acid, and on dissolving this salt thus dried, an^
nltenng the solution, he found a gray earth remaining after the filtration ; and, lastly, that ]r^
many repetitions of this calcination and solution, he at length accomplished the entire decoofe^ ^
position of the boracic acid, and found it to be a modification of the muriatic rendered fixed b^
an earth. This experiment has been repeated by Messrs. Maeguer and Poulletier de la Salle'
They observed an odorous vapor to be disengaged during the calcination of this salt, but thej.
were not able to distinguish irom its smell that it was muriatic a6id. By repeated desiccation :
and solutions they obtained a small portion of gray earth ; but this earth when united with thi
muriatic acid, did not form sedative salt, as Cartheuser had given out, and of consequence thii
chemist's opinion appears to be no better supported than the rest. Model thought this salt t<
be a combination of a peculiar alkali with the sulphuric acid, which is used in disengaging it-— ■
But this opinion cannot be admitted, for the boracic acid is always the same, whatever be the^^
acid to precipitate it. M. Baume says that he found means to produce the boracic acid bv leav-
ing a mixture of grease and clay to macerate for eighteen months. At the end of that time h€
obtained from it by lixiviation a salt in small scales, with all the properties of sedative salt -^
From this he concludes the boracic acid to be a combination of the acid of grease with a ver^a^
fue earth, which it is impossible to separate entirely from. \t. "ELq ^da, t\i«.t the same salt maf^

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 57

>e prodnced nith vegelable oils, but more slowlj-. M. Wiegleb repeated M. Baum^'s ezperi-

ChoEuUta at present thick this to be a peculiar acid, diETering frorn all others, and ptrasedeitig
Mrtain oharatieriatics of its own. Its elective attrantiona with ftlkaline baaea are arranged by
Bergman in the following order: lime, barjtes, nisguesia, pot«eh, eoda, Bmraaniae. As they
diSbr greatly from those of other arida above examined, thev affurd an additional proof of the
pMuliarity of the nature of thia acid, ffhoee compound principles remain still unknown. The
Dseof the boracic acid in medicine was first introduced by Homberg, who ascribed to it tjuieting
narcotic qualities, and gave it the name of sedative salt or volatile narcotic salt of vitno!; be-
nuae he bad obtained it b<r eubliming nitre and vitriol. But experience has since shown the
medical virtues of this salt io be but very moderate; at leaat it mual be^iven in a much stronger
dose tlian Hombei^ has directed, in order to produce the effects he ascribed to it ; and it is very
properly rejected, as ve have many other medicines of the same class whose effects are much
nwie certain.

The method of setting boracic acid free by sublimation and the
use of Bulphuric acid has been described. It is more conveniently
obtained By dissolving borax in two and a half parts of boiling water
and adding hydrochloric acid until the solution reacts strongly acid
to test paper. Common salt is formed, and the boracic acid set tree
crystallizes out in thin shining plates, which retain water with con-
siderable tenacity. The acid being but sparingly soluble in cold water
may be purified Dy washing in that fluid, drying and recrystallizing
from boiling water. When dried oh clean bibulous paper, it becomes
a beautifully white scaly powder, which, under the microscope, is
seen to be in hexagonal scales, and in rouleaux of crystals, like blood
corpuscles, or piles of coin.

When carefully prepared it is a most beautiful microscopic object,
best seen on. a dark field and lighted with a parabola. It may be
recognized under all circumstances when its appearance has become
fitmUiar to the observer.

u iMn nndvr the mlcKkcofw nufnifltd T

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Boracieacid itA

Water «.l

loo.*

CHKHIOAL EqCITALKKT.

Boracio acid Si.W

Water !7.»

tin

Boracic acid is soluble in 27 times its weight of water at 60° and in
2,96parts of water at212°. The hydrated acid dissolves in alcohoi.which
bums with a characteristic green flame, seen even in the presence of
soda salts, which impart a yellow color to the i^ame. But if soda is
largely in excess, the green color is masked, and can only be observed
when the alcohol is nearly consumed, and the distinguishing color Is
more marked if the expiring flame is gently agitated by_ breathing
upon it, but under these circumstances a good eye is required to dis-
tinguish the color. By far the best color test is made by the use of
the direct vision spectroscope, which shows three distinct pale green
bands in the green part of the spectrum. I have used the beautiful
little instrument made by Browning, of London, and which is shown
in figure 13 :

The use of this instrument is simple, and once eeeo is easily under-
stood and practiced. The substance supposed to contain boracic acid I
is placed in an evaporating dish, and a few drops of sulphuric acid
added. A brisk effervescence generallv takes place. The contents of
the dish must be stirred, which may oe done with a small stick, or
anything convenient at hand. Alcohol is then poured in, in small
quantity, and ignited. All that is then required to determine the
presence of borax or boracic acid is to look at the flame through the
spectroscope. Three distinct and beautifully green bands will be
seen if boracic acid is present.

If free boracic acid is contained in the sample, the green bands
may be produced without the introduction of sulphuric acid. It is
best, however, always to use the acid, which decomposes the salt con-
taining the weaker boracic acid, and to make a secondary test to
prove the boracic acid to be free or otherwise.

The experiment should be made in a dark room. The bands are
best seen when the slit is so far closed as to show the sodium band,
alway;s present, as a very narrow line. Figure 14 shows the bands oi
boracic acid as seen in the spectroscope.

rig. H—9pactrma of U

jt\\m teauooUamtenftKV

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 69

With the spectroscope, a bottle of strong sulphuric acid, one of
alcohol, and a small evaporating dish, the prospector, although un-
ji^illed in chemical handicraft, may detect with unerring certainty
the presence or otherwise of boracic acid or any of its salts in the
ieposits he may find.

When boracic acid is suspected in steam issuing from hot springs,
t is only necessary to condense a portion of the steam. The result-
ng water is evaporated nearly to dryness at a very gentle heat; alcohol
s then added and the flame examined as before. This test shows the
presence of boracic acid in the waters of Mono Lake, and in the erup-
tive mud from the mud volcanoes of the Colorado Desert, San Diego
County.

The only weak point in this deterinination lies in its extreme
delicacy. In inexperienced hands it might lead to the hope that the
sample was rich wnen boracic acid was present only in small quanti-
ties; but a little experience will correct, this^ for it will be seen that
when the quantity is small the bands are faint, and come and go in
an intermittent manner; while, if the quantity is large, they are
distinct and well defined, and the color a clear green. As with
the sodium band, the intensity of the color is an index to quantity —
all of which may be learned Dy experience. In making this deter-
mination all bands of other substances present, as lithium, potassium,
etc., must be disregarded.

In prospecting the deserts, there are no facilities for chemical
operations, and the prospector, generally poor, can but ill afford
to send his samples to San Francisco, or pay the cost of chem-
ical analysis. These considerations have no doubt retarded the
development of the borax interests of the State.

It is sometimes inconvenient to use alcohol in the manner
described. The experiment can be made with equal facility in the
flame of a Bunsen gas burner, or spirit lamp.

The substance to be examined is supported in a loop of platinum
wire. The wire may be held in the hand when the color is to be
observed by the unassisted eye, but when the spectroscope is used it
must be supported. A convenient support may be improvised in the
following manner : A small glass funnel is placed on the table with
the tube part upwards. A glass rod or wire small enough to pass
easily into the tuoe, is cut to a convenient length, wrapped with paper,
and pushed into the tube of the funnel. The paper acts as packing,
and when arranged the rod may be raised or depressed by pushing up
or down in the tube. A common cork, of medium size, is pierced
with a cork borer diametrically, and placed on the rod. A wire is
thrust through the cork at right angles with the vertical rod. This
wire may be three or four inches in length.

A small glass tube may then be selected and cut to the length of an
inch and a naif . One end is closed in the blowpipe flame, and a short
piece of platinum wire inserted while the glass is still hot; when cold
the wire will be firmly set in the closed end of the tube; the other
is open. In the end of the platinum wire a small loop is made;
when all is ready the substance is ground in an agate mortar with a
small excess of a mixture of equal parts of bisulpnate of potash and
fluorspar. The platinum wire is first held in the flame for a moment
to see that it is clean and gives no color. The flame is examined to
be sure that no color is imparted by any uncleanness of the burner.
If the flame is blue, and perfectly non-luminous, it may be observed

60 SBPOKT OF THE BTATE MINERALOQI3T.

through the spectroscope, and if no color is seen except the brigh
yellow sodium band the apparatus is ready for use. To make th'
experiment, the Bunsen burner is lighted, and a full head of ^
turned on, making tlie flame five or six inches long. The glass tub
with its platinum wire and loop is slipped off from the horizonta
wire, and the loop dipped into a small vessel of distilled water, am
then into the mixture in the agate mortar. The tube is then replaca
on the wire, and the whole stand pushed near the flame with the loo|
and the assay about half an inch above the top of the burner. Th'
spectroscope is then held to the eye in the left nand, while the stain
is gently pushed with the right until the substance to be examine)
touches the flame. The green bands will instantly appear if boracii
acid ispresent. This description will befullyunderstood byaglano
at the following engraving:

ng. 16— Appustui

Bisulphate of potash is prepared by placing a convenient quanti
<?/ powdered sulphate of potashinapoiceYa.mca.vso^^^'^i-w^^^wiit

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 61

irith concentrated sulphuric acid. The mixture must be heated until
BO more white fumes are given off^ and a small portion taken out on
ft glass rod cools into a hard coating. The heat employed must be
fifufl&ciently great to keep the mixture in a state of fusion until the
excess of acid is driven off. When cold, the mass must be pulverized
and kept in a glass-stoppered bottle for use.

NATIVE BORACIC ACID

Is known to the mineralogist as Sassolite, or Sassoline, named from
Sasso, in Italy, where it was first found in a solid state by Mascagni.
It occurs also abundantly in the extinct crater of a volcano in one of
the Lapary Islands, near Sicily, as mentioned elsewhere, at which
locality it was discovered in 1813 by Dr. Holland. It is found, also,
in crevices and fissures in the craters of active volcanoes. During
the eruption of Vesuvius, in 1851 , this mineral was found in fissures
in Torre Del Greco. It has been obtained, also, from the crater of
Stromboli, an active volcano on an island of the same name, one of
the Lapari Group. It exists, also, in solution in mineral waters of
Germany and elsewhere, notably Wiesbaden, Aachen, and Kranken-
heil.

Boracic acidy free or combined, is of common occurrence on the
Pacific Coast. It has been found in the waters of the ocean along the
shores of California and Oregon. Common salt, made by evaporating
the sea water, contains more than traces of boracic acid. According
to Professor W. P. Blake, it occurs in a free state in the water of Clear
Lake. The discovery of this acid in mineral water in Tehama
County led to the examination of other springs then known, which
resulted in the finding of boracic acid in nearly all of them. It was
discovered at the mua volcanoes in San Diego County by Dr. Veatch,
which was verified by my own observation. An account of this
interesting locality will be found in the second annual report of the
3ltate Mineralogist, folio 227.

Sassolite f of the books, is said to crystallize, in the triclinic system,
)ut all the specimens I have seen show under the microscope a con-
usion of broken scales without any well defined crystals. When
nagnified it has almost exactly the appearance of selenite, with the
;ame apparent cleavage and pearly luster. When closely examined,
)bscure nexagonal plates, imbedded in the pearly mass, may some-
times be distinguished.

Sassolite fuses easily, coloring the blowpipe flame at the same time
transiently green; gives water in a closed glass tube; color, white-
yellowish, and sometimes a dirty brown ; hardness, 1 to 1.48 ; chem-
ical formula, B0a+3H0.

PERCBNTAGB COMPOSITION.

Boracic acid _ 56.45

Water.. 43.55

100.00

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

SOLUBILITY OF CRYSTALLIZED BORACIC ACID IN WATER.

Temperature.

Solution in parts
of water.

One hundred parts
of water dissolves —

Saturated aqneomi Kdn.

tioa contains perent

Centigrade.

Fahrenheit.

BOi +3H0.

18.7

65.7

25.66

3.9 parts

3.75

25.0

77.0

14.88

6.8 parts

6.27

37.5

99.5

12.66

7.8 parts

7.32

50.0

122.0

10.16

9.8 parts

8.96

62.5

144.5

6.12

16.0 parts

14.04

75.0

167.0

4.73

21.0 parts

17.44

87.5

189.5

3.55

28.0 parts

21.95

100.0

212.0

2.97

34.0 parts

25.17

Boracic acid was discovered in a natural state in Italy in 1777, by
Hcefifer, chemist to the Grand Duke of Tuscany.

The following extracts from the works on the geology and mineral
resources of Central Italy, by W. P. Jervis, Conservator of the Royal
Museum of Turin, Italy, may be accepted as full and reliable. Sot
only a history is given, but also the details of the manufacture:

:.:

lb.:

.lit

jsi:

Tsae

.»j^- -

f&ai. J
F«i

jtSe'r:
man

Iren
•jflt i

In 1742, Targioni Tozzetti, a scientific Tuscan traveler, visited the salt works of Volterrain
his rambles through the Maremme, and proceeded southward through Pomarance to Monte
Gerboli, in order to examine the curious phenomenon of hot vapors which abounded in the
neighborhood. He relates how he took a stroll through the valley which stretches southeast
from Monte Oerboli, and reached the little torrent Possera. All around him was a scene of
desolation, well fitted to strike dismay on the ignorant, but eminently suited to the contem-
plative mind of the naturalist, to whom the most dreary plains and barren rocks yield ample
subject for useful and agreeable study. His attention, however, was soon attracted to the
scene around him. He stood close to a yawning gulf, from which issued rumbling noises and
disagreeable odors. He wished to look down and peep into the mysterious chasm to learn
something of its nature, but his temerity was rewarded oy a surly growl from within, and his
guide tola him that the noise sometimes resembled a hundred bellows, as if Vulcan himself
were at work, while flames issued forth at night after very hot days. Though he saw no fire,
the vapors served as a warning to keep him at a considerable distance ; but before long he
came upon more vapor vents, sqfioni, and the little lagoni, or ponds of muddy bluoi water,
boiling vehemently, the imprisoned gas producing bubbles, increasing in size till sufficient! jr
large U> cause them to burst. Dense white vapors, smelling strongly of rotten eggs, rose frooci.
the lagoni and ascended to a considerable height into the atmosphere. The ground on whicla.
he stood was soft and crumbled under his feet ; the decomposed rocks, and some of the efflor^
escent minerals, were new to him, and the subject of many curious speculations. The whol^
of the valley was apparently studded with such lagoons, an attempt to define the number o^
which was futile, connected, as they were in many places, by cross fissures and superficiaB*i%
cracks. Not a tree was visible throughout the whole extent of the valley. The opening c^ ^
a new fissure was the signal for the destruction of all neighboring shrubs, scorched by the su
terranean heat. Occasionally, he was told, the lagoni would be overcharged by the rain, aji
their contents flow into the Possera, where the ^eat would kill all the fish for a considerabl-
distance down its course, the density of the atmosphere in cloudy weather pressing on th. •
columns of vapor, causing them to he more close to the ground and spread themselves hon
zontally, while the grumbling sounds in the bowels of the earth redoubled in fury. Passin
on toward Oastelnuovo, the same lagoons were abundant, but of smaller dimensions, an
according to tradition, they were on the increase ; on the other hand, old lagoons dried u
only emitting steam at intervals.

A farmhouse near Castelnuovo, built 200 years before, had been suddenly undermined,
fumacchio, or incipient lagoon, having unceremoniously made its appearance in the kitchei
rapidly assuming the dimensions of a true lagoon. The inhabitants were utterly defensel
and bade adieu to their ancestral tenement, the stone walls of which were soon attacked by tfai_
corroding influence of the vapors, and speedily destined, as our traveler truly predicted,
crumble to pieces. Within certain limits fertile fields were subject to be laid waste, and poiso
ous gases escaped, which had on several occasions proved fatal. Thus he relates how a swin
herd in charge of forty pigs had been overtaken by the noxious gases; all the poor anima
were killed but one. Another man, who was working in an alabaster pit, was suddenly ove
powered by the escape of mephitic gas through the marls, and cried loudly for help to his fella
at the mouth of the shaft. While he was being hauled up he was stifled by oppression of ti
lungs, and fell lifeless to the bottom. Should any luckUas w\^ht a^^roach the lagoon

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 63

closely, he would stand the chance of sinking into a quagmire or losing a leg. Sheep occa-
sionally fell victims when rushing too carelessly along, and after remaining a short time in the
"water, nothing but a bleached skeleton remained. Though this picture is perhaps rather over-
drawn, the temperature being very considerably above the boiling point of pure water, very
serious and generally fatal accidents must have resulted. It would be untrue to say that the
mffioni were utterly useless. The skilled peasants would cleverly manage to roast their chest-
nuts in sacks placed over these vapor vents ,- no small convenience in a country where this
article is a substitute for bread. Birds, game, and cattle make the lagoni their winter resort, in
order to escape from the cold, snowy ground. The latter, indeed, occasionally frequented the
neighborhood to rid themselves of gadflies and mosquitoes.

Our traveler traced the vapors principally along the course of the rivulet, where they found
their way out from beneath huge masses of rock. In their vicinity a hole made with a stick
would frequently originate a little pool, or IcLgoncello^ from whence sulphurous vapors poured
forth. As to the noxious vapors, which are nothing but carbonic acid gas, he was told that the
introduction of a copious supply of water into the vents destroyed their power. * * *

In 1777, Hoeffer, the chemist of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, found boracic acid at Monte
Rotondo and Castelnuovo; a fact confirmed two years subsequently at Monte Rotondo by Pro-
fessor Mascagni, well known for his researches on the lymphatic system.

Gazzeri made some attempts to utilize the boracic acid in these waters in 1808, and again in
1816. Hoeffer and Mascagni proposed to make borax from them — the latter in 1812. Mascagni,
however, was too much engaged in his scientific labors to carry out this idea, for which he even
obtained a patent during Napoleon's rule in Italy. He therefore ceded his right to Fossi, to
whom he communicated his proposition for placing cauldrons of the solution of the acid in the
lagoons, as in a water bath, in order to concentrate it.

Fossi was the first to obtain boracic acid in any quantity from Monte Rotondo, and I find
from the Atti del Georgo Jili, tome xvii, Firenze, 1839, that he exhibited white glass in Flor-
ence as early as 1818, prepared from borax made from the lagoons.

Messrs. Gazzeri and Brouzet worked the lagoons of Monte Rotondo from 1815 to 1818, em-
ploying as their engineer Signer Ciaschi, who made further improvements by constructing
artificial lagoons around the dry sqffkmi, to utilize the hitherto waste vapors. The poor fellow
was one day superintending an operation of this nature, in 1816, when he fell into a fissure.
He was dragged out half dead, and only lingered for a few days, during which time he suffered
the most excruciating torture from violent spasms and frightful burns.

Gazzeri and Brouzet, with great difficulty, managed to export to France three tons and five and
a half cwt. of very impure crude boracic acid in the nine and a half months ending April 1, 1818.
* * * Thus, for forty years, little or nothing was done, when in 1818, M. Fran9ois Lardarel,
a French gentleman then staying in Tuscany, resolved on the formation of a small establish-
ment for the collection and extraction of the boracic acid. For many years his labors were
attended with small success ; the sale of the acid was steady, but the profits were inconsiderable.
He was thus induced to study a more economical means of evaporation ; the expense of fire-
jvood for that purpose, up to 1827, having swallowed up the greater part of his proceeds, the
nore so, as it was particularly scarce in that neighborhcnod, where not a blade of grass was to
>e seen, and road communication for bringing it had all to be made by the proprietor of the
^orks.

After much thought, the brilliant idea struck M. Lardarel, that by some method he might
itlce advantage of the natural steam jets or soffioniy arising so plentifully from the soil, and at
kxe period I have mentioned he devised the means of imprisoning them and turning them to
ooount, which I shall describe. The process was a triumph for those days, when, let us
^member, steam was little known as an element in manufacturing industry. From that
foment, the produce of the works rapidly increased, and the uses to which the boracic acid was
pplied became equally numerous.

At the present time there are no less than nine separate establishments belonging to Count
aardarel, all situated within a few miles of Castelnuovo (Leghorn), a little town between
^olterra and Massa Marittima, viz. : Lustignano, Lardarello, Lago, Saso, Monte Rotondo,
•«rrazzano, San Federigo, San Edoardo, and Castelnuovo.

M. Duval has one establishment at the Lake of Monte Rotondo, and a new company has
fceen established at Travale, near Volterra. All these places are in close proximity to eruptions
ftf Qahbro or Miocene Serpentine.

The works are so similar that it will only be necessary to describe in detail that of Lardarello,
jvhich is highly interesting. This thriving little colony is entirely the creation of Count Lar-
iarel, and is situated on the torrent Possera, below the village of Monte Cerboli, three miles
From Serrazzano and six from Pomarance. A group of half a dozen or more lagoni are seen on
the slope of the hill about half a mile from the main road, from which they are completely
hidden by rising ground. Some of these lagoni are those described by Targioni Tozzetti, but
the vapor vents — ^the aoffioni of which he speaks — no longer exist, as they have been artificially
converted into lagoni.

Singularly enough boracic acid has never been found in the solid state at any depth to which
search has been made, with the exception of such places in which it has sublimed. It is prob-
ably either the result of double decomposition of water and a volatile salt of boron; according
to Dumas' theory sulphide of boron and water producing boracic acid and sulphuretted hydro-
gen, thus: Bo Sg + 2 HO = Bo 0^ -{-2 HS, or simply a chloride of boron ana water producing

64 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERAt^OGIST.

boracic and hydrochloric acids, thus: Bo CI2 -|- ^ HO = Bo O3 -j- 2 H CI. In support of whiA
supposition we only find the boracic acid appear when there is water present, or it maybt
caused by the reaction of sulphuric acid on borates, such as tourmaline, the granite found
not very far off being so rich in this mineral as to bear the name tourmaliniferous granite.
The theory I advance is tenable, provided we assume the heat to be very great. Though sul-
phuric acid is one of the most powerful and boracic acid the weakest, next to carbonic add, it
ordinary temperatures, they exhibit the reverse phenomena at very elevated' temperatures; in
fact, boracic acid, under such circumstances, will actually decompose sulphates formed by the
action of sulphuric acid on borates. Before water is introduced into the nasures they are ma%
saffioni. Borates of the several bases are probably abundant at great depth and are uninjured
by the continual passage of sulphurous vapors, and even sulphuric acid, on their way to the
surface, whence the latter escape, but boracic acid is not to be detected. Water being now
introduced lowers the temperature and the balance of affinities is altered, the powerfully oonod-
ing influence of the sulphuric acid on the borates is set in operation, whence the boracic acid is
lil^rated and ascends in solution with the ejected water and steam.
The following is the analysis of the gases issuing from a soffioni, examined bj Payen :

Carbonic acid 57.30

Nitrogen 34.81

Oxygen 6.57

Sulpnuretted hydrogen U2

100.00

Respecting the temperature of the fissures, none have satisfactorily treated the question,
thougn it has attracted much attention from Pilla, Murchison, Lardarel, etc

I think that some light is thrown on the subject by the presence of an instmctive mineral
round the lagoons, viz., anhydrite (CaO, SO 3), evidently formed at a temperature at which water
could not combine with the sulphate of lime to produce ordinary gypsum. When gypsum
(CaO, 80«-{-2HO) is heated to 260^ Fah. it loses its water of crystallization, and becomes plaster
of Paris, but on cooling it absorbs the original quantity of water. When it is heated to redness
this does not take place, but the mass melts into an enamel, which, according to Regnault, is
identical with anhydrite. The heat on the other hand could not have been much above redness,
provided my theory of borates is correct.

The first care of the manufacturer is the removal of a certain quantity of the clay and the
formation of a lagonCf or basin of more or less circular form, the sides of which have to be
strengthened by rough stones to prevent them from falling in, the tenacity of the day soffidi^
for the bottom. The usual depth of a lagone is from four to six feet, more rarely as many yuds.
The capacity and depth have to be regulated with the utmost care, according to the force of the*
vapor m that particular vent. During the period that the workmen are employed in dicing a
lagone the steam is conveyed away into the atmosphere above their heads by means <raa tall
chimney, which protects them from being scalded.

A stream of water has been brought to the uppermost lagoon at Lardarello, from near the
Bagno del Morbo, not a quarter of a mile off. This lagoon is about fifteen or twenty yardtin
diameter, with a jet of steam in the center, forcing its way through the fissure hj its sptfciile
gravity; the water comes in contact with the highly heated gases and rocks, and is immeaiatd?
converted into steam, which, from its elasticity and enormous increase in volume, is ejected
with great force, but is condensed as soon as it reaches the surface of the basin by the colder
water around. This incessant vaporization of the water, and its subsequent lique&ction, pro-
duces a great commotion in the lagoon, a turbulent little fountain rising to the height of a foot,
causing a succession of concentric ripples; all this time there is a copious discharge of sulphu-
retted hydrogen, which in one case I distinctly perceived in the nignt time full a quarter of a
mile from a lagoon and before I knew of its existence there.

Having remained twenty- four hours subject to continual agitation, the water, whidi has
become of a slate-blue color, is let out of the lagoon and passes into a canal, through which it is
conducted into a second basin at a lower level ; thence it passes through several more, each
lower than the last, though of similar construction.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

□ t.he fiaeure», and briiii^ it up mechau-
: appears to be attained b; making all the nater pan
ibtam boracic acid of uaiform density, though Dumu
I that probftbly by soiae iceenious deTiee, it might be
leea iwr cent— a irreat desideratum. The temperature
rB,por« rise for maoy y arde above the

IB manoer the water di!

lixed with it. No other obje

I the chain of lagoni, than to

'A to Count Lardarel the opini'

. (o a saturation of fifteen to bixkbu pec i

iquid ia con eiderabiy above 212° Pahr., ai
Beating the air bo much ae lo render it unpleaaant to rBm«.m mug near luem. x-murer

nerals and decomposed rock ejected by the el«nni, lie scattered all round, the healed

of the ground, along with Bulphur incrustation 9, and many sulphates, such aa gypsum-

nd Bulphate of ammonia, besides iron pyrites in minute veinB in the fragments of rocks.

water pa^seg at stated intervals intu the vasco {A. Fig. IT), a lank sixty feet square,

is covered by a tiled roof supported at the aides with slight brick pillars. Here the
part of the mechanical impurities, cl^, and the more insoluble sulpbalea, einli to the
and the water regains its limpidity. The next operation is to concentrate the solutian

which ia effected lu the adjoining buiidin gcontaining the evaporating pans {B, Fig. 17).

' shallow

to merit partieuiar consideration. Connt
given them the name of .JiiWanSiajjffroiorj. Three parallel
leaden divisions, called Scanelli, are placed in a line, each being a thiiii of an
:e before it, from which it is only separated by a leaden partition half an
deep. The scanetli are placed transversely, and are stx feet lung by twenty-
They are arranged under a roof to keep off the raJn, and the evaporation is
mpeded, since the sides are open, and only a few brick pillars of the lightest
imployed to support the roof. The length of the building is often several

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

the bottom of the building it paaaea along the second row of divisiona, and finttll7 back throngh
the last series into the diagonal comer, where there is a deep reservoir, called the Caldaja a ir'
(A, Fig. 18). Id its progress the water gradually evaporates, as meutioDed before. It only co
taiaed one and a, half t« two per cent of boracic acid when it entered the building, but afl
having passed through fifty or siity divisions, it assumes a decidedly yellow tinge, increasing
in intensity until it becouiea a bright golden yellow fluid, having a characteristic odor.

The interior arrangements of the evaporators, though they may appear simple enough, went
the result of much thought. The leaden pans are supported by beams over a low vaulW
steam pasaage, lined with hydraulic cement, to protect the alonework and to keep in the hoL
For this purpose a sqffione is vaulted over with a stone dome about ten feet high, firmly bomd
with wrought iron bars (C, Pig. 17). Water is admitted, and the imprisoned high pressure Bteam,
thereby produced, ajy^tiires immense power, and thumping loudly against the dome, the jets of
water seem ready at every moment to undermine the structure. The steam now poasea throngk
the vaulted paSSB^ into the lower chamber of the evaporators, and having traversed it mill
end to end, finds its way out into the open air through a chimney at the opposite end.

What formerly took sixty-two hours to evaporate is performed by this beautiful oontrivaiwt
in twelve, the expense being also proportionably diminished.

>r three and a half

BOEAX DBP03IT3 OF CALIFORNIA AND NBVADA.

When it is deeired to lill them, all th&t is nec«B9ar}r ta be done la lo remove a. plug placed
over the center of each barrel, which runs round the building. The liquor remains four deys
in the barrels, during which time it has cryBtalllzed at the aides and bottom lo the thickness of

geveral inches. The liquid portion is then with^ "- ' - ' • - •■.

olon^ a longitudinal drain, by which meana it is

admire these beautiful processes, whose eharscte .. .^„. .^^j ^„ „„. „^,.^„,„v^ „„j-

thing being lost.

The tKiracic acid cryaCallizes in hexagonal plates, about the size and thiclmess of a wafer.

The brick floor is heated lilte the evaporators, by at
chamber. The boracic aj^id being spread out in thin layers on the floor, ii

'' I with a wooden rake, and the crystals, while losing their sharp angles, separate in a great
sure from each other. When dry, nothing remains lo be done but to shovel up the mass of
crystals acd to remove tbeni to tbe warehouse, where the produce of all the eatabltsbments is
mixed, to insure its being all of uniform quality. It is then put In large barrets, containing
1,000 Tuscan pounds, or thirteen and a halfcwt., and conveyed lo Leghorn, whence the greater
portion is exported to England. • • • •

The first impression pr^uced on my mind after having gone through the whole cstablieh-
ratnt, was the marvelous simplicity of IJie successive processes. Almost everything being
porformed by Nature, little has to be eifected by human agency but to convey the water lo the
lagmi, and to regulate the su))ply in the various operations ; to empty the barrels and spread
the crystals on the floor to dry. Such is the worb allotted to tbe forty men who are employed
ttlwdarello on ordinary occasions. They commence at4 i, h. in Summer, and at sunrise in
Winter, and work on an average only four or five hours daily ; thus I arrived at 10 a. m., but
Uwy had finished for the day. The art of producing boracic acid is, however, verv barraasing.
Soraetimea the sides of a li^^n break in, or there Is not sufficient water; perhaps through care-
IwDAH on the part of the men the steam supply diminishes at a particular spot, as is liable t«
OHartmlessthev regulate the quantity of water accordingly. The inevitable consequence is
that the la^joon becoraei useless, and the steam seeks an easier vent for itself elsewhere. In
■Une cuea it forms a new sq^ne a hundred yards olf, or else, unable to force an immediate -
puaage to the surface, it is needful to have recourse to boring, and a perfectly new lagoon is
anu^isted. This operation is by no means an enviable task. The ground feels so hot near
flanres which do not quite reach the surface, but from which the steam issues in minute jets,
that I had my feet scorched through a very thick pair of shoes, and one is warned to retreat,
rincea fewstepaf^irtheron would probably cause one to sink into a hidden cauldron or steam
btth. Around this place are fragments of albereie limestone, the gradual metamorphoses of
'hioh <tr* very visible. First, the rock, which has a dirty brown discoloration, is shivered and
noJered Mable; and in other places actually converted inlji jj'^'im,aa\n*\««'i(iMcc^<«Si.Vi

68 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Savi and Menegbini. Besides these, there are clays and marls of the Eocene, Miocene, and
Pliocene formations.' The boracic acid works of Lardarello are figured in the frontispiece.

The boracic acid crystals are far from being pure, containing a small quantity of numeroDg
sulphates mechanically mixed. In 1842 Wittstein published the following analysis:

Crystallized boracic acid ■. 76.494

Sulphate of iron 0.3(IS

Sulphate of alumina 0.320

Sulphate of lime i. 1.018

Sulphate of magnesia 2.632

Sulphate of ammonia 8.508

Sulphate of soda 0.917

Sulphate of potash 0.369

Chloride of ammonium 0.298

Water of crystallization 6.557

Silicic acid — _ __ 1.200

Sulphuric acid mixed with boracic acid 1.322

Organic matter and sulphate of iron traces.

100.000

The amount of foreign salts has considerably diminished since the lagoni were first made use
of. In order to purify the crude product, which is not done in Tuscany, nothing further is
necessary but to crystallize it once or twice.

The following letter from W. P. Jervis was received by the State
Mineralogist in answer to one of inquiry. While it contains some
repetitions of the foregoing quotation, it at the same time makes some
corrections. It is given entire, for the reason that the connection
would be broken if any portion was omitted:

Turin, June 24, 1882.
Mr. Hrnrt G. Hanks, State Mineralogist of Galifomiat San Franciso) :

Dear Sir : I have received your letter of May fourth. Only these last two or three days I
returned from Rome. Now I inclose you the translation of the principal remarks I made on
the geological origin of the boracic acid in the lagoons of central Italy, as contained in
my great work "I Tesori Sotterranei Dell Italia," Vol. 2. You will perceive that since
writing the *' Mineral Resources of Central Italy" I have altered my opinion most funda-
mentally regarding the theories formerly held universally about the volcanic origin of these
lagoons. I therefore re(][uest you, in perusing the volume in English alluded to, to bear in
mind these new deductions. It is of material consequence, in order not to continue to regard
these localities as connected with volcanic phenomena of which there is not only no proof, but
direct evidence to the contrary.

As to the technological part, that is quite accurately described in the Mineral Resources, and
the drawings and sections may be said to be just what I would now repeat.

In my book, the "Guida alle acque minerali d'ltalia," a general view of the boracic acid
lagoons of Lardarello and Pomerance is given with the domes, canals, etc.*

Please not to misunderstand me. Boracic acid also exists in Italy in quiescent (not extinct)^
volcanoes at Vulcano in the -^Jolian Islands. (See "Tesori Sotteranei," volume 3, page 199.) It
is quite a different thing from what is found in Tuscany, much as I thought originally it was
all due to one cause. True, the association of minerals in both places is very remarkably similar.
Probably the boracic acid of California has more analogy with that of Lipari (Vulcano) than with
that of Pomerance and the neighborhood.

Boracic acid is produced in Central Italy on a vast scale in the territories of four attigaous
communes, Pomerance, Castelnuevo di Val di Cecina, Massa Marittima, and Montieri. It is
not extracted in the solid state, but, as is generally known, is brought io the surface through
innumerable crevices, probably faults in the cretaceous and eocene rocks, being mechanicaUj
mixed with vapor of water at a high temperature and under great pressure, and artificially
imprisoned by the condensation of the steam by means of cold water, whence it is brought into
certain reservoirs of a more or less circular form, very shallow, lined with masonry consisting
of fragments of limestone and coated with hydraulic lime, so as to resist, as well as possible, the |
corroding action of the acidulous liquid with which the stone comes in contact in these lagoms.

The first operation is to make bore holes in localities where the natural heat leads to the hope
of finding the vapors.

Where the water penetrates into the internal fissures of the rock, a certain portion of boraci-
ferous mineral is dissolved, the exact nature of which is not yet precisely ascertained, in spite
of the splendid studies of Payen, Dumas, Bechi, Sainte-Claire-Daville, Leblanc, Fouqii^, etc
Bechi considers that the boracic acid is due to the decomposition of some borate existing i^ the
strata at great depths, by the agency of vapor. At first he suggested that it might be a nitride
of boron, then a oorate^ probably a borate of lime. After the water of the boraciferous lagoonB

*8ee fronUepiece,

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

htM been for some time in contact with the steam into which it is converted, it is forced out of
the fissures in the rock at the boiling point by its own pressure; this operation is repeated
seyeral times without any human agency, and when sufficiently enriched, the boiling contents
of the lagoon are conducted to the shallow evaporating pans, made of sheet lead, termed
Adrian evaporatorSj where the boracic acid is gradually concentrated to the point of saturation,
when it crystallizes by a series of manipulations as simple in their application as they are
elegant. The process will be found detailed in the author's Guida alle acque minerali delVItaliaj
Provincia Centrale, vol. I, p. 116, Torino, 1868, to which the reader is referred, as well as to the
author's Testyri Soitorrainei dell'Italia, vol. II, pp. 427 to 432, and pp. 454 and 455, and to his
MinercU Resources of Central Italy, published in English in 1868, and now getting rare.

Professors FouquI and Gorceix give the composition of the gases emanating from the boracic
acid lagoons, as follows :

Nature of the Gases in 100 parts.

Vapor Emanations of-

Lardarello.

Serrazzano.

Sasso.

Carbonic acid gas

Hydrosulphurous acid gas

Marsh gas

Nitrogen

Hydrogen

Oxygen

90.47
4.20
2.00

. 1.90
1.43

87.90
6.10
0.97
2.93
2.10

88.33
5.43
2.55
1.55
2.01
0.13

Professor. Schmidt, of Dorpat, found the muddy deposit of the lagoons to contain gypsum
(sulphate of lime), sulphate of ammonia, sulphate of magnesia, hyposulphate of amtnonia,
and small quantities of sulphate of potash and soda, besides very small proportions of carbonate
of ammonia and sulphide of ammonium, together with fragments of undecom posed rock, the
whole colored by sulphide of iron.

Professor Monoghini, in his beautiful monograph on boracic acid, observes that the lagoons
of Serrazzino are in the immediate proximity of serpentinous rocks, which he considers, in com-
mon with the greater part of geologists, as eruptive. He considers that the subterranean emana-
tions come to the surface at the line of contact of the serpentine rocks and the molasse and shelly
limestone, belonging, both of them, to the Miocene period. For my own part, I have absolutely
renounced my former belief in the eruptive nature of serpentine and allied rocks, so leaving
the explanation of this point to more able minds than my own. This being certainly no easy

SToblem to solve, I will only say that as I hold the more recent views of Gastaldi, Gerlach,
terry Hunt, and other geologists, I conceive there must exist here a center of immense activity
of chemical decomposition, the center of which is probably connected with the serpentine rocks
of prepaleozoic age, in the presence of water. The importance of these phenomena is such as
to be surpassed alone in their whole, by volcanic phenomena alone, and therefore it is not to be
wondered at they have alw^s excited the interest of the greatest of men of science, though
they afford a further ample field for useful research to future investigators. The boracic acid
itself, whatever be the state in which it exists in the rock, seems to be contained in some soluble
combination in the Tertiary, or at most in the Cretaceous sedimentary rocks.

I have the firm conviction that volcanic phenomena of all kinds, as well as earthquakes of vol-
canic oriain, are absolutely extraneous to the boracic add lagoons of Central Italy, never having
heard of a single plausible argument in their favor, after a more accurate examination of the
neighborhood than I could make the first time I visited it, and as given in my Mineral
JResources of Central Italy.

This does not, however, exclude the probability of faults according to certain directions aa
first suggested by Murchison, to have been due to very ancient earthquakes, and affording the
means for the passage of boracic acid and vapor of water, (f)

Laying aside the volcanic origin of the boracic acid lagoons, of which I wrote in my Mineral
JReaources of Central Italy, and which I wrote in deference to the celebrated chemists and geol-
ogists who had preceded me, but which I now consider to be far from correct, the reader will
find in the little volume mentioned a very detailed technological and historical account of the
boracic acid lagoons of Italy, as well as statements of the annual production up to 1859. Since
that time it has been absolutely impossible for any one to get statistical statements of the quan-
tity of boracic acid produced, but I believe it may be taken as being about equal to what it
used to be. The discovery of boracic acid in the United States for some time produced a con-
siderable perturbation in the trade of Italian boracic acid, it is true, but the clear profits are so
fabulously great, and the expenses so insignificant, that should the prices fall 60 or 70 per cent
from what they used to be, in all probability that circumstance would have as its only conse-
quence to diminish the profits but not to prevent the production from proceeding exactly as
before.

(t) Jbbvis /. Tucri Sotterranei deW Italia^ Torino, 1874, Vol. 2, pp. 454, and following, which see.

70 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

At the la^o di Monte Rotondo, in the commune of Massa Marittima, Province of Groasetto,
many celebrated geologists may have taken this natural depression for the crater of an eztijiet
volcano; its /orm, indeed, would authorize such a possible conjecture, but nothing more, for
the rocks around are entirely sedimentary, and either Cretaceous or Tertiary, as at Pomaranoe.
By means of deep borings, the rock has been brought into communication with water from
the surface, and which would rather seem to be converted into vapor by such means, than to
be natural steam or hot vapor of water already existing in the rock itself. The steam, charged
with infinitesimal proportions of boracic acid rises to the surface of the ground through the
bored holes, under very considerable pressure.

It is stated that the expense of producing a ton of boracic acid of commerce, in the crystal-
lized state, but not refined, is as follows :

Manual expenses *. $10 00

Packing and carriage 13 00

Administration 8 60

General expenses, repairs, etc 28 40

Taxes — _ _ 13 00

Total - - -_ $73 00

Boracic acid also exists in volcanic rocks. The chief i)lace in Italy where it occurs in some
quantity is in the crater of the semi-extinct volcano of Vulcano, in the island of the same
name, one of the classical ^olian group, close to Lipari, in Sicily. General Nunzianti, who
lately died, worked both boracic acid and sulphur, wnich deposit on the interior of the crater,
and can be collected on a small scale. Alum works were also made at the outer base of the
mountain. Little capital was spent on the undertaking, which seems to have been conducted
with little skill. At all events, it was sold by the General to a manufacturer of chemical
products in Glasgow, who began working it about the year 1873. The necessary reservoirs were
made and something began to be done, when it would appear that the American boracic acid
competed too powerfully, and the affair was left standing idle.

The following report is from the "Commercial Relations of the
United States." Reports from the Consuls of the United States on
the commerce, manufactures, etc., of their consular districts. No.
18. April, 1882. Published by the Department of State, according
to Act of Congress.

THE PRODUCTION OF BORACIC ACID IN ITALY.
[Report by Consul Rice, of Leghorn.]

I have recently returned from a most interesting excursion in the Volterra and Pomaramce
districts of the province of Pisa, and spent a short time at the mineral water establishment called
** Bagni a Morbo," situated in the center of the circle of springs yielding boracic acid, the property
of Count de Larderel; and, while there, had ample opportunity to examine and study the same.
I have considered the subject worthy of report, inasmuch as boracic acid is largely exported to
the United States from Leghorn.

The nearest of the boracic acid springs to Morbo (which establishment is also the properly of
the de Larderel family) is called '' Lardarello ,*'' the springs in and around the village so
named, and about forty in number, besides which, others exist which are not worked.

Lardarello is the most important of the seven *' borax villages" (if I may so term them),
which are respectively named Lardarello, Sasso, Lago di Monte Kotondo, Lusignano, and Serraz-
zano. The technical direction is here, as also the mansion of the Larderel family; the church,
theater, schools, warehouses, stores, etc.; in fact, Lardarello is a model village, and apart from
the scientific and commercial importance of the locality, is worthy of a visit simply as a speci-
men of what an intelligent ana generous employer of labor can do, if so disposed, for the
comfort of his laborers.

The properties of the springs, called on the spot " lagoni " or lagoons, were first discovered by
two chemists attached to the Tuscan Grand Ducal Court, named Pietra Hceffer and Paolo Mas-
cagni, in the year 1777 ; but the springs do not appear to have been effectually worked till early
in the present century.

About the year 1824, Count de Larderel (grandfather of the present generation of proprietors)
associated with a Frenchman named Lamotte, and commenced working, evaporating the water
which rose with the acid, and crystallizing the remainder by means of wood fires, and this
process continued till the sparsely wooded hills in the neighborhood were left bare of timber,
and then the enterprise was nigh falling into neglect. It is said that accident alone, some
thirty to thirty-five years since, decided Count de Larderel, then become sole proprietor, to
utilize the hot steam issuing from the hot springs themselves to vaporize the water and crys-
tallize the borax, and the system then introduced maintains its sway at the present time.

It would appear that the whole of this neighborhood contains most extensive borax deposits,
and though nature allows the vapor to find its way through the natural fissures in the soil, it is
by no means from such natural issues that tlie mo&t abMndokiit wi^^ly U obtained. Experience
lias shown that by the judicious use of artesian weWa a iot ^t^otXAx T«ew\\.\e> c^D\»Ivckfi;^.

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 71

The system followed is this : A shallow pond is dug, and in it an artesian well is bored,
which at a small depth invariably strikes the vein of borax; not content with vapor alone, the
boring is carried down till the well gives water; the boring machinery is then withdrawn, and
water let into the pond; the upshoot of the boring heats this pond to boiling point in a few
minutes, and the boiling in a veiy short time impregnates the water in the pond with boracic
acid shot up with hot water from the artesian well ; there only remains to draw off the water,
which is done every twenty-four hours, and evaporate it. This process is effected by passing it
oyer a series of shallow metal pans arranged as a cascade ; the fall from one pan to another
may be two to three inches, and the pans are fifteen to twenty in number.

Underneath the pans are a series of hot steam pipes, which keep the shallow pans at an
intense degree of heat, the consequence being that a very large portion of the liquid which
reaches the last or bottom pan is semi-solid boracic acid ; this is then pumped into vats and
allowed to cool, and when cold the vats have the appearance of being frozen over with a thick
skin of very dirty and rotten ice ; this skin is removed and strewed on the floor of a drying house
heated by hot pipes under the floor, and by this means the acid becomes crystallized.

The boreicic acid is then ready for packing; the color being the same in all cases, varying
from a dirty white to almoat black ; the acid is mixed in the stores and packed in huge casks,
weighing 14 to 16 cwt., for exportation.

The lagoons are most interesting to watch. When full of water the boiling is continuous,
rising (especially in the case of the artesian borings) to some feet in height. When natural
springs, tne bubbles are about a foot above the level of the water; the vapor is, however, most
clammy, and especially unpleasant from its excessive sulphurous odor.

When the water is pumped out, the bottom of the lagoon remains of a dirty mud color, with
round, semi-spherical holes like pock-marks, varying from a foot to several feet in diameter and
depth ; these are the springs. When empty they each give off a small amount of vapor, but as
water finds its way into the holes in question, ebullition commences, and each hole appears to
be a cooking pot, boiling with all its might, the water rising more and more, the lagoon one
huge boiling <^dron.

The diflSculty in the production, and a very grave difficulty it is, consists in the scarcity of
water; in fact, in the Summer Lardarello is almost the only establishment that can work satis-
factorily, and even at Lardarello the works are often working half time only. The water which
has served in the mineral baths at Morbo is carefully drained down to the Lardarello reservoir,
and there stored.

When I visited the place, after a long and particularly hot Summer, water for the works had
become a precious thing. The residents, of course, get used to it, but visitors to Lardarello find
any lengthy stay there unpleasant in the extreme, from the enormous quantity of moisture
and vapor permanently suspended in the atmosphere, as also the oppressive smell of sulphur.
The effect of this on metals may well be imagined. I happened to see in the music-room a
strange looking musical wind instrument of a novel form to me, it being black and covered
with a ereasy coating a millimeter thick. I concluded it was an antique, and was amazed
when I Teamed that it was a recent present from Count Lardarel to the band, and that what I
saw was simply the normal state of all brass instruments there. The chemist's silver watch
looked more like platinum than silver, and the chemist told me that only good gold of the
purest quality kept its color.

Matters have been so arranged by the Larderel family that their work-people, save for
alimentary substances and raw materials, are almost independent of the outer world. The
men and boys work on the borax, and the female portion of the community spin and weave.
I visited a building containing some thirty looms, and the stuffs manufactured were really very
fair in quality; the workers are paid by the piece, and the whole is put into store, the entire
population drawing their textile fabrics thence at moderate prices. There is a doctor, a resident
chemist, priest, schoolmaster and mistress, a bandmaster, etc. In case of illness the workman
is sent at Count Larderel's expense to Morbo, or other thermal establishment, as may be
necessary, without losing pay.' The houses are neat, airy, and commodious. The church is
worthy of a larger village; in it I found a pulpit and altar, frontal in bronze, which Count de
Larderel purchased at the Endish exhibition in 1851.

I understand that the health of the people is excellent as a rule, and I was interested in
hearing one of the head workmen, speaking of their contented life, saying, '* We pray to God
for the Larderel family first, and for ourselves afterwards." How many employers of labor in
the world have had that said of them ?

My remarks have been confined to Lardarello, the other stations being but Lardarello on a
smaller scale.

It would be most difficult to estimate with any degree of certainty the quality of borax pro-
duced, as all are reticent in the extreme on this point. From what I could glean, going from
one source to another, I gathered that Lardarello averages three to three and a half tons per day,
and that this station produces nearly one half of the whole quantity extracted, which would
make some eleven tons per diem as the total production.

At Leghorn I have been unable to control these figures ; the exports to other countries I have
been unable to ascertain with precision. To the United States, 1,240,746 kilograms — value,
$211,061 85— was exported in 1880. This would be about one third of the whole amount
produced.

During the first three quarters of 1881, there was a heavy falling off, which I have noted in
former reports, exports to the United States amounting only U) 65,648 kilograms; value,
$14^098 51.

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

The laborers on the Larderel property numbered one thousand eight hundred persons, of whom
eight hundred males are employed in the acid production.

I may add here a few words regarding the baths of Morbo, used by the famous '^ Lorenzo il
Magnifico/' celebrated in Tuscan history ,• they contain springs hot and cold, comprising the
properties of the mineral waters of Vichy, Montecatini, Casciana, etc. I saw myself persoiu
suffering from chronic rheumatism carried into the establishment like children in arms, who,
after a three or four weeks' cure, walked away with the elastic step of youth.

It is to be regretted that the present proprietor does not fit up the establishment for the recep-
tion of invalids, as its sulphur and iron springs are far superior to any in Italy, and equal to
any in Europe.

WILLIAM T. RICE, Consul.

Unitbd States Consulate,

LsoHOBN, Italy, March 13, 1882.

Boracic acid is found in a free state in the waters of the lake of
Monte Rotondo, in Italy, which lies near the lagoons before described.
The waters contain one part of crystallizable boracic acid in five hun-
dred, which is recov.ered by evaporation. The area of the lake is
about eighteen acres. M. Duval, by whom the lake is worked,
extracted sixty-four tons in 1854 and one hundred and forty-two tons
in 1855. The following is the result of two analyses of crude Italian
boracic acid by Professor Luca, as published in the report on the
mineral resources of Central Italy by W. P. Jervis:

Anhydrous boracic acid

Water

Sulphuric acid

Chlorine

Silica

Magnesia ,

Lime

Ammonia

Potash, soda, alumina, oxide of iron, and organic matter

Impurity in the above.-

Crystalline boracic acid in one hundred parts

No. 1.

No. 2.

60.7
36.9
9.1
0.2
1.0
1.1
0.5
0.3
trace

46.6

40.4

9.5

0.1

1.2

1.3

0.6

0.4

trace

99.8

100.1

12.2
89.0

13.1

84.3

PRODUCTION OF BORACIC ACID AT THE WORKS OF COUNT LARDAREL, IN
TUSCANY, FROM 1818 TO 1859, INCLUSIVE. (JERVIS.)

Teabs.

No. of
Years.

Tons.

Cwt

Pounds.

1818 to 1828- - _ ' 10

1828 to 1838 - - I 10

1839 1

1840 1

1841 . ' 1

1841 to 1845 ..- 4

1845 to 1850 5

1851 - I 1

1852 : 1

1853 ._ —.-I 1

1854 1

1855 -- 1

1856 I 1

1857 - 1

1858... — ' 1

1859 _- i 1

Totals - ! 41

521
4,870
748
878
886
3,695
6,218
1,140
1,156
1,208
1,319
1,332
1,427
1,711
2,026
1,830

29,972

1,168,832
10,909,472
1,676,976
1.968,176
1,985,312
8,277,024
11,688,880
2,553,600
2,591,568
2,708,048
2,955,344
2,985,808
3.196,592
3,833,088
4,539,360
4,101,216

67,139,296

In 1861, more th&n 1,800 tons.

BOBAX DBPOaiTS OF CALIFOBNIA AND NEVADA.

UNITED STATES.

[Saut« HiK. Doe. No. 46, tMh OoDgna, IM SfMlon.}

Ihfobis IVD DDTTia— ISBT TO HIS. So. 110— Acids: Bobidio.

H
1

;

fll

770,768
343,993
B9S,033
I.IBB.UB
1,204,049
1,103,974
U32,008
233,956
41,742

1071488

ns.798

$73,398 on
22,845 00
109,974 DO
173,808 00
185,47700
101,576 00

52;7ss no
e,a8o 00

15,711 00
11.231 no

S eta. per pound.
S Ota. per pound.

5 cia. per pound.
5 els. par pound.

* FW^f ^utj. ■
Free of duty.
Free of duty.
Free of duty.
Free of duty.

138,537 80
12,100 65
40,401 BB
58,307 S5
60,202 45
5i,lBa 70

ofls

002
110

ITl

22H
150
114

loa

Boracic acid was placed on the free list June 6, 1872, and baa been
exempt from duties until recently. The duties at present, by late
Acts of Congress, are as follows:

Heflnad bonn - 5 cents

Pure boracic acid 5 ceoti

Commercial bomi - - - 4 cents

Boimteof lime— ,.. 3 eenta

Cradeboruc -— - 3 cents

IMPOETS AND DUTIES— BOHAX AND BORACIC ACID.

[Beporta of U. B. Custom House.]

Ihpobts iHD Ddtixb— 1SB7 TO 18TS.— Ko. 108.- Bobai, CmoD* on Tmcti..

ISBT—

5,872
22,293

fi4,B2i
!,B1«

$711 00

2,985 00

8,011 33

323 00

1 DO

5 cts. per pound

Seta, per pound
S Ola. per pound

¥!S3 eo

1,114 85

2,741 10

130 80

.128
.132

.150

!200

40.00

IBTO...

40.61

588

78 00

Free of duty.

.131

2se

IS DO

.219
.213

BBPOBT OF THE STATE HIN BRALOOIST.

No. 169.— BORIX, RKFtKED.

7B,I83

97,0TS
131,S2I

8^84
3,seo

6,1 bi
3,Ha

1 eta. per pound

t4,9Bb 30

10 etB. per pound

lOcta. perpound

10ol«.per|)OQnd

lOctB.perpouQd

IDcts. per pound

10 da. perpound

928 40

10 oU. par pound

ID els. per pound

10 cW. perpound

349 20

No. STS.— Lime, Bobui □

1
1

1 1

= 1

laro

33,530
4S,H00
22,600

tl,8BH 00

2^48 00

800 00

Sets, perpound
5 eta. per pound

$l,GTe 45
2,SB0 00
1,125 80

$64 3S

.049

.047
.035

100.8:

No. S6. — luFOKTKD MiSCHAM

t CONBUHPTION, 1

Jn»« 30, 1881.

^™..

Wit]idnml» torn
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'^^i

T>ln».

fluty.

Free <tf duly.

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REPORT OF THE STATIC MINERALOGIST.

Tbab Ending Junb 30, 1880.

Boracic Acid— Free.

Borax, refined— 10 Cents par Pound.

Qvantity— (Poands).

Yalne.

«
Quantity — (Pounds).

Value.

63,756

23,015

106,123

48,557

$4,368 00
1,741 00
7,806 00
4,294 00

9,489
1,232
4,367

$884 00
213 00
866 00

241,451

$18,209 00

15,088

$1,963 00

Tbar Ending June 30, 1881.

Boracic Acid — Free.

Borax, refined— 10 Cents per Pound.

Quantity— (Pounds).

Value.

Quantity— ( Pounds).

Value.

93,on

22,900
69,029

$6,207 00
1,832 00
7,375 00

$15,414 00

* 1,568

1,224

560

$351 00
275 00
127 00

185,006

3,352

$753 00

Fisgal>Tbab Ending Junb 30, 1882.

Boracic Acid — Free.

Borax, refined — ^10 Cents per Pound.

Quantity — (Pounds).

Value.

Quantity— (Pounds).

Value.

68,644
190,902
141,811
128,146

$9,647 00
20,821 00
22,211 00
17,400 00

$70,079 00

3,450
1,796
3,514
1,904

10,664

$848 00
374 00

1,363 00
477 00

529,503

$3,062 00

The following tables show the various duties imposed by our laws
since 1842 :

1842.

1846.

1867.

1861.

1867 to 1872.

1873 to 1883.

Boracic acid -

5 per ct.

20perct.

4 per ct.

lOperct.

5 cts. per lb.

Free.

1842.

1846.

1857.

1861.

1867 to 1883.

Refined borax

Free.

25 perct.

30perct.

3 cts. per lb.

10 cts. per lb.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFOBNIA AND NEVADA.

1842

1846.

1867.

1861 to 1867.

1867 to 1883.

Borate of lime - ---

25perct.

20perct.

12perct.

10 cts. per lb.

Free.

1842.

1846.

1867.

1861.

1867 to 1873.

1875 to 1883.

Tincal (crude)

25 per ct.

25perct.

4 per ct.

Free.

5 cts. per lb.

Free.

CONSUMPTION, IMPORTATION, AND PRODUCTION OP BORAX AND

BORACIC ACID.

It is impossible to estimate the cost of production of borax in Cal-
ifornia and Nevada, for the reason that the producers decline to give
the information, but it may be assumed that with few exceptions it
has not proved a remunerative business, for the reasons stated else-
where.

Before March. 1873, the Legislature of Nevada passed a law taxing
the proceeds of borax and soda mines.

For the quarter ending March, 1873, three companies reported, as
follows:

A. M. Hbarn:

Gross proceeds— — $12,318 00

Total expenses — 8,785 00

Net profits $3,533 00

Or about $154 per ton.

MosHRiMBR k Enoelke:

Net profits on ten tons, $210, or $21 per ton.

Pacific Borax Company :

Net profits on 113 tons, $1,737 ; about $15 per ton.

In 1866 the consumption of borax in Great Britain was estimated
by Ross Brown at 11,000 tons. Seventy-five tons of borax are con-
sumed on the Pacific Coast.

Charles Pfeiser, of New York, estimates the consumption of boracic
acid in the United States as follows, all of which is imported :

Manufacture of borax 2,000,000 pounds

Preserving meat 300,000 pounds

Manufecture of glass and pottery 300,000 pounds

Total - - 2,600,000 pounds

In 1882 the total consumption of borax in the United States was
estimated at 1^600,000 pounds. •

The Oil, Pamt, and Drug Reporter of January 18, 1882, estimates
the importation of boracic acid into New York for the year 1881 at
1,669,256 pounds.

The importations of boracic acid into New York for the ten months
ending November 1, 1882, was 2,009,993 pounds.

The following examples of the imports of boracic acid into Eng-
land ar^ from Ure's dictionary — values calculated into dollars :

REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

For thb Ybar 1855.

Amount in pounds.

Value.

Sardinia

9,520

2,999,024

106,064

$1,857 55

Tuscany

687,640 55

Gibraltar

20,782 25

Total - -

3,114,608

$610,280 35

For thr Year 1856.

Amount in pounds.

Value.

Sardinia

35,056

2,807,056

1,463

112

$6,678 45

534,780 40

31,010 90

19 40

Peru

Total „

2,843,677

$572,489 15

The following tables, showing the production of borax in the Pacific
States, have been prepared with great care, and are as nearly correct
as possible. The ngures have been furnished by the producers them-
selves, or by those who have bought and sold their products:

PRODUCTION OF BORAX OF THE PACIFIC STATES— m POUNDS.

'%r^^m^

Califobkia.

Nkvada.

Total.

Tear.

San Bernardino
Borax Manfng Co.

Others.

Smith Bros.' Pacific
Borax Co.

Others.

1864

24,304
251,092
401,632
439,824

64,513

24,304

1865

251,092

1866

401,632

1867

439,824

1868

64,513

1869

1870

1871

1872

280,000
280,000
99,980
189,000
121,909

280,000

1873

750,000
1,729,891
2,147,000
2,752,000
1,986,970

746.840

970,000
166,199
488,740
566,281
4,610

2,000,000

1874

1875

1876

1877

2,003,930
2,315,260
1,740,720
2,735,700
2,055,960
827,840
2,640,800
2,665,200
2,350,539
1,567,724

4,000,000
5,140,000
5,180,910
4,727,280

1878

2,802,800

1879 727^146

1,554,988

1880

1,219,948

1,380,205

1,465,732

720,000

3,860,748

1881

4,045,405

1882

420,020
432,276

4,236,291
2,800,000

1883

80,000

Totals* _

15,625,732

2,232,254

20,903,673

3,048,126

41,809,785

•To June 1, 1883.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

PRINCIPAL PRODUCERS OF BORAX ON THE PACIFIC COAST.

CALirORMA.

California Borax Company

San Bernardino Borax Mining Company

Bodge k Co

Others

Nevada.

Smith Bros.

Pacific Borax Company

Jos. Mosheimer

Smith <& Storey

Teel's Marsh Borax Company

English A Shaver

Judson & Shepard

J. M. Kane

American Borax Company

Johnson & Shaver

A.J.Rhodes

D. H. Dillard

L. A. Engelke

E. Griswold

B. M. Johnson

S. Austin

Nevada Salt and Borax Company.

W.J. Houston

Others

Grand total to June 1, 1883

Amount,
(lbs).

1,741,364

15,625,732

254,209

236,681

18
2

!,007,511

,896,162

553,240

501,910

344,760

250,320

216,360

66,120

46,900

132,120

29,280

21,120

18,980

7,000

6,720

1,000

82,300

43,400

726,696

Total,
(lbs).

17,857,986'

23,951,799

41,809,785

SALES OF BORAX BY THE CALIFORNIA BORAX COMPANY.

1864.
1865.
1865.
1866.
1866.
1867.
1867.
1868.

24,304 lbs Shipped to New York

250,880 lbs ShiWd to New York

212 lbs Sold in San Francisco

353,248 lbs Shipped to New York

48,384 lbs. Sold in San Francisco

374.752 lbs _ Shipped to New York

66,072 lbs. Sold in San Francisco

64,512 lbs Sold in San Francisco

Total... _.-l,l 81,364 lbs.

BRCAPITULATION.

Sold in New York 1,003,184 lbs

Sold in San Francisco 178,180 lbs

Total 1,181,364 lbs

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

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BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 81

JORAX MINERALS AND THOSE CONTAINING BORACIC

ACID IN SMALL QUANTITIES.

BORAX.

Biborate of soda, native borax, or tincal, has been described in the
)ody of this work. The chemical and mineralogical characteristics
i-re given below:

It has a sweetish taste and an alkaline reaction. It dissolves in
welve parts of cold water and in two parts of boiling water. At a
ow heat it melts in its water of its crystallization ; if the heat be
continued, it swells and becomes a white porous mass. At a red
leat it fuses into a transparent fluid, which becomes, when cold, a
ransparent solid resembling glass. Fused with fluorspar and bisul-
)hate of potash it colors the olowpipe flame distinctly green. Lus-
ier, vitreous; color, white, gray, brown, pinkish, greenish; generally
translucent, sometimes transparent ; brittle, streak white ; phospho-
rescent if powdered in the dark.

The most beautiful transparent and perfect crystals form at the
borax works in weak solutions, which have been allowed to stand for
a considerable time undisturbed. The purest natural crystals are
found on the property of the San Bernardino Borax Company, which
are shoveled into the tanks by the ton. They differ from the cele-
brated crystals from Borax Lake^ Lake County, in being transparent
md inclosing fluid in large cavities.

SASSOLITE.

Native boradc acid has been sufficiently described in the body of
he work under the head of boracic acid.

ULEXITE.

Borate of Lime, Tiza, Boronatrocaldte. Natroboi^ocaldte, Tinkatzit, Cotton

Balls, Sheet Cotton, etc,

Ulexite is a natural hydrated borate of lime and soda. This
curious mineral was flrst found in the nitre beds of Peru in small
ijuantities, in small globular concretions, showing when broken inter-
Laced, silky-white crystals; sometimes also inclosed crystals of salt or
2;ypsum. It was first examined by Ulex. His analysis of a specimen
from Iquique, Southern Peru, gave:

Boracic acid _ _ 49.5

Lime _ _ _._ __. 15.9

3oda _ _- - 8.8

Water _. 25.8

Total - _ 100.0

' The mineral was afterwards analyzed by A. A. Hayes, who pro-
)osed the formula (CaO, 2 B0s+6H0). He supposed the soda found
fy Ulex to result from mechanically mixed ^lauberite. For some
lae this mineral was called "Hayesene" \i\i^\3^\i^,*Yc^^Jckfc\^^^^-

11 ''

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

tion of his work on mineralogy, gives it the name of Ulexite, in jus-
tice to the first observer.

The following extracts from "Mineraux du Perou," by A. Rai-
mondi, Paris, 1878, seem to show the analysis of Hayes to have been
a mistake.

Ulexite was first found in the Province of Tarapaca, then named
Borax or Tiza — lately found in the Cordillere de Maricunga, at an
altitude of 3,800 meters (12,464 feet). Mr. Raimondi calls attention
to a widespread error found in works on mineralogy, as to a borate of
lime without soda, under the name of Hayesene, which, in his opinion,
does not exist in Peru. In 1853, while in the employ of the Gov-
ernment of Peru Jie visited all the known localities of the borates in
the Province of Tarapaca. He examined a large number of speci-
mens, and made a great number of excavations, and his conclusions
were that the sample of borate of lime called Hayesene was Ulexite,
or Boronatrocalcite. Ulexite was found for the first time in 1836-7,
in Tarapaca, forty or fifty kilometers from Iquique, under the crust
that covers the nitrate of soda beds, nearly always in little rounded
masses from the size of a hazelnut up to that of a potato — color white,
fibrous, and silky. Very often the balls of ulexite have in their
interior a nucleus of glauberite. The first notice in the Scientific
Press is found in the second edition of the mineralogy of Dana, 1844,
page 243, in which the author says that he had received a communi-
cation from Mr. Hayes, descriptive of a new mineral, under the name
of borate of lime {borocalcim ohliqnus). But in that description
Mr. Hayes confounded borate of lime with glauber salt in a state of
mixture:

I repeat here wliat I have already said, that I possess the most intimate convictiou that the
mineral described by Mr. Hayes as presenting rounded masses showing fibrous, white, silky
crystals frequently acx^ompanied by glaul>erite, is borate of lime and soda, and not simple borate
of lime.

The many analyses which I made of all the specimens collectetl while Commissioner to the
(irovernment of Peru in 18.33; the analysis made in 1855 by the distinguished chemist Ram-
melsberg, of the material whicli presented all the physical characters of the doubtful Hayesene,
establishes in a manner nearly certain that in Peru there exists only a single combination of ,
t>oric acid with lime, and that the combination is a double borate of lime and soda, described in
works on mineralogy, un<ler the name of ulexite or boronatrocalcite.

To complete what I have said on this important mineral, I give the composition of three
specimens of boronatrocalcite^ found in a state of great purity in a very dry earth in the province
of Tarapaca, which apj)ear in the report which I presente<l to the Peruvian Government in 1854.

These results agree with those obtaine<l by Rammelsberg. only the specimens analyzed by
the latter were not pure, because the boronatroiuilcite was mixed with a small quantity of
chloride of sodium and sulphate of soda an<l lime.

ANALYSIS OF ULK

.XITK, OR BOR(

(1) ^

42.98

13.94

6.96

:56.80

► SATROOALCIT>

.Substance Found.

By A. Raimondi

43.13

14.14

6.92

35.75

By Bammeto*
berg.

Boracic acid

43.04

14.06

7.06

35.85

42.12

Lime

Soda-_- _^ -

12.48
6.52

Water ._ __

34.40

Chloride of potassium -

1.26

Chloride of sodium

0.16
0.12

Traces.
Traces.

1.66

Sulohate of soda -

0.81

Sulphate of lime

0.77

Total -...

100.96

99.94

100.00

lOO.OO

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 83

Notwithstanding the fact that Mr. Raimondi failed to find hayes-
ene there seems to be such a mineral, a hydrous borate of lime, with-
out soda, Mr. N. H. Darton (American Journal of Science, 1882,)
describes a mineral from Bergen Hill, New Jersey, to which he gives
the name of Hayesene, which had the following composition:

Lime.. _ _ 18.39

Boracic acid :. 46.10

Water 35.46

Total ,..-_ _ ..99.95

Soda, silica, and magnesia, traces.

Ulexite is found at a number of localities on the Pacific Coast,
some of which have been noticed elsewhere in this paper. It
occurs in rounded concretions, from the size of peas to masses ten
or twelve inches in diameter. Unless the so called cotton balls
are carefully selected by hand the percentage is greatly reduced
by the admixture of sand, worthless soluble salts and water. Much
disappointment has been experienced from this cause. Shipments
have rarely failed to be much lower grade than was expected.

As early as 1871, in the examination of ulexite and impure borates
from the then newly discovered Columbus marsh borax fields, I
accidentally discovered that very impure borate of lime in the cotton
ball form could be concentrated and purified by very simple mechan-
ical means, which information was given to the public in a report to
the Nevada Consolidated Borax Company, November 11, 1871, in the
following words:

Crude borate of lime can be easily and cheaply concentrated by simple mechauical treatment
"with cold water, in which it is nearly insoluble. A large vat should be constructed, in which
the crude material is to be placed with a quantity of cold water. The contents of the vat must
be kept in slow agitation by the proper machinery, until the borate of lime has been reduce^
to a pulpy form, and all mechanical impurity has settled to the bottom. When these conditions
are fulfilled, a plug is withdrawn, and the contents of the tub allowed to run into a settling vat.
Care must be taken not to allow the sand and other impurity to flow out with the purified borate
of lime. In the settler the borate of lime will soon fall to the bottom, and the clear portion,
which contains biborateof soda (if that salt was associated with the borate of lime), may be re-
covered by proper crystallization.

The purified ulexite may then be thrown on an inclined platform and allowed to drain,
and then be dried in the sun.

The borate of lime so purified should have nearly the composition of the best natural product.

As borate of lime is quite voluminous in this condition, it should
be compressed by powerful screws into a smaller bulk, as crude cotton
is treated for the same reason. Ulexite containing twenty-four per
cent of boracic acid has a market value in London of £18 per ton of
2,240 pounds.

There is a variety of ulexite called sheet cotton by the prospectors,
which is sometirnes quite overlooked. It is granular in appearance,
but under the microscope it is seen to be ulexite in minute silky
crystals. There is a specimen in the State Museum (No. 3590) which
shows both varieties. Ten tons of boracic acid was made from this
substance at the Phoenix Chemical Works at Columbus, Esmeralda
County, Nevada, of wliicli Mr. H. S. Durden was Superintendent. A
sample of this acid (No. 3591) may also be seen in the State Museum.
The following mechanical analyses of crude ulexite show the nature
of the impurities:

REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

No. 1.

Sand - -- 9.25

Water hygroscopic _- 21.00

Soluble salts, mostly sulphate of soda and salt MM

Borate of lirae _ 52.S0

100.00
No. 2.

Sand— - — traoeb

Water ._ 36.80

Soluble salts _. 11.04

Borate of lime 52.16

100.00
CRYPTOMORPHITE.

Cryptomorphite is a very rare mineral, found with glauber salt,
only in Nova Scotia, at one locality. It is white, without luster, soft,
in kernels the size of a pea. When a small portion is placed under
the microscope and magnified 100 diameters, the mineral is seen to
consist of rhombic plates, from which the name is derived, meaning
hidden form.

ANALYSIS BY HOWK.

Boracic acid _ _ 58.5

Lime 15.6

Soda -- 5.8

Water i 20.1

100.6
PRICEITE.

In October, 1871, Lieutenant A. W. Chase brought to the Academy
of Sciences of San Francisco a sample of chalky substance which he
thought to be magnesia. A small sample was given to me for exam-
ination, which I turned over to a pupil, Mr. E. J. Shipman, who
Spent some time over it and reported it to be borate of lime. Never
having seen borate of lime in this form, I requested him to repeat
his experiments, which he did, and with the same result. I then
made an examination of the mineral myself, both chemical and
microscopical, which led me to class it with cryptomorphite. The
appearance under the microscope was so characteristic that I had no
doubt as to its identity. At the evening meeting, November sixth,
Lieutenant Chase presented it to the Academy of Sciences. Subse-
quently two samples were analyzed by Thomas Price, of San Fran-
cisco, which gave the following' result:

Boracic acid

47.04

29.96

22 76

.25

45.20

Lime „

29.80

Water

25.00

Alkalies

traces.

100.00

In 1873, Professor Silliman made a study of this mineral, and ob-
tained the following mean of three analyses:

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 85

Boracic acid 49.00

Lime... _ „- 31.83

Water _ 18.29

Alumina, salt, and oxide of iron .96

100.08

The absence of soda separates this mineral from ulexite and cryp-
tomorphite, and seems to make it a new species, named as above by
Professor Silliman. After studying this mineral and examining
many specimens, I am led to believe that it is changed from ulexite
by the abstraction of the soda and part of the water. I have a speci-
men of colemanite which has undoubtedly changed from a ulexite
cotton ball.

PANDERMITE

Is a variety of priceite. The following extracts from The London
Journal of the Society of Arts, August 6, 1880, by C. C. Warnford
Lock, aflfords all that is known relating to this mineral:

I have now to deal with a new commercial borate, which, on the score of geographical
position, abundance, cheapness of working, and easy manipulation, is certainly destined in a
great measure to rule the markets of Europe, and particularly of Great Britain.

The new field lies on the Tchinar-Sau, a small stream feeding the Rhyndacus River, whose
outlet is in the Sea of Marmora, near the port of Panderma, on the Asiatic shore. It embraces
the villages of Sultan-Tchair, Yildiz, and Omerli, and the guard-house of the Demircapon pass.
The area of the field is computed at over 13,000 acres (20 square miles). Its eastern confines
nearly abut upon the Rhyndacus, which has been navigated by steamers up to a point called
Balakeser. A company has been formed for deepening and improving the stream, and a rail-
way has been projected from Panderma to Balakeser. The wagon road has hitherto been
utilized for transporting the mineral, the distance from Panderma to the western edge of the
field being about forty JGnglish miles. The port of Pandemia is regularly frequented by local
steamers, and offers every convenience for shipping.

The field is situated in a basin of tertiary age, surrounded by volcanic rocks, which vary
from granite on the east to trachyte on the north, and columnar basalt on the west. Several
basaltic hills and dikes protrude in different portions of the basin, and the presence of hot and
mineral springs further testifies to the volcanic influences which have been at work, and in
which, doubtless, originated the boracic mineral. The latter occurs in a stratum at the bottom
of an enormous bed of gypsum, its greater specific gravity probably impelling it downwards
while the whole mass was yet in a soft state. Several feet of clay cover the gypsum bed, which
is here 60 to 70 feet thick, though in places it attains to double that thickness.

The boraciferous stratum varies in depth; it has been proved for a vertical distance of forty-
five feet. The mineral exists in closely-packed nodules, of very irregular size and shape, and
of all weights up to a ton. Von Rath has named it " Pandermite,'' from the port of shipment.

In outward appearance it closely resembles a snow-white, fine-grained marble. Chemically
speaking, it is a hydrous borate of lime, its composition being expressed by the formula 2CaO,
3B20g,3H20; in other words, it consists of boracic acid 65.85 per centj lime, 29.78 per cent,
and water 14.36 per cent. Its richness in boracic acid is at once apparent, and places it high
above the other commercial borates. Thus ordinary borax (borate of soda) contains only 36.58
per cent of the acid ,* boro-calcite and boronatro-calcite (borates of lime and of lime and soda)
vary from 8^ per cent up to 46 per cent, and average about 40 per cent, boracite and stassfurtite
(borates of magnesia), containing respectivelv about 63 per cent and 60| per cent, alone surpass
it in this respect, and they can haraly be deemed commercial minerals. After very simple
preparation pandermite can be very directly applied as a flux, and is more economical than
oorax for this purpose, thanks to its larger proportion of boracic acid.

An outcrop of the mineral was discovered by a foreigner some years since, and the bed was
secretly worked ; small shipments were occasionally made to Europe under the denomination
of plaster of Paris, thus keeping the matter hidden, and at the same time avoiding the payment
of dues and duties. The Ottoman Government has since been apprised of these irregularities
and has taken energetic measures to correct them. More recently it has granted a comprehen-
sive concession to a party of British residents, who are setting to work to develop the property.
The district enjoys tne great advantage of being under British protection.

The workings were at first placed under that section of the K^glement des Mines relating to
quarries, but have since been transferred to the section regulating mines proper. Steps are
being taken to open up the deposit in a systematic manner, by first sinking a number of bore-
holes — as has been done with the Kainit beds at Stassfurt--to ascertain the points of greatest
development in the basin. The locality possesses a healthy climate, except in the Autumn,
whan there is some ague.

86 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Labor is very cheap and abundant, Turks, Armenians, Greeks, Circassians, Tartars, luid
Italians being obtainable from the neighboring villages. There is a supply of water; o&kaad
fir timber may be procured at six to seven miles distant, and scrub for fuel covers the sorround-
ing hills.

The actual cost of the mineral, as now worked, is as follows :

Raising and dressing (exclusive of cost of tools; 10.0 paras peroke

Transport to Panderma 9.0 paras peroke y

Customs duty, 1 per cent ad valorem _ .5 paras per oke I

MnnflD-AmAiit. nnn r»th«r <»hn.rorA« 2.5 naras nAr oIta '

Management and other charges : 2.5 paras per oke

Total— - - 22.0 paras per oke

£ 8. d.
At 795^ okes per ton, and 128| piastres per £ sterling { I piastre=40 paras) this

will equal 3 8 3 per ton

To this must be added government royalty, 6 per cent ad valorem, say 6 per ton

Contingencies 1 10 per ton

Freight and insurance 16 per ton

Making a total cost, "c, f., and i." £4 18 3 per ton

The present values of the boracic products now in the market vary from £46 to £60 per ton,
according to quality j the lowest figure ever reached here has been about £20 a ton, at which
price the demand would immensely increase.

Pisani, of Paris, analyzed this mineral and obtained the following
result:

Boracic acid _ — 50.1

Lime -- -- - 32.0

Water... _ _. - .-. 17.a

100.0

It will be found stated elsewhere that the variety pandermite has
recently been found in apparent abundance in Death Valley, Inyo
County, and at Calico, San Bernardino County, and the cryptomorphic
variety at the latter locality.

COLEMANITE

Is also a variety of priceite found recently in Death Valley. The
following analysis was made by Thomas JPrice, of San Francisco,
March, 1883, by whom the original priceite was first analyzed :

Anhydrous boracic acid — ' — , 48.12

Lime _ - _- 28.43

Water -_. _ 22.20

Alumina and oxide of iron __ .60

Silica -- --- .65

100.00

In the analysis of colemanite, the alumina, iron, and silica are
probably mechanical impurities — 1.25 being added proportionately
to the other constituents, gives the following percentage:

Boracic acid _ 48.72

Lime 28.79

Water ..._ 22.49

100.00

This gives the approximate formula 4B03, 3CaO, 6H0, which is the
same obtained by Silliman for priceite, which no doubt it is in a
crystalline state. As this mineral possesses certain physical proper-
ti'es differing from priceite, the name co\eiiiam\.^>aaa\i^^TL^^^\!L\Ki\^

BORAX DBPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

to distinguish it from the soft chalky mineral found both in southern
Oregon and San Bernardino Countv, California.

The name colemanite was given by the discoverer of the mineral
in honor of William T. Coleman, of. San* Francisco, who has been
identified with the borax interests of the Pacific Coast from the com-
mencement.

PROPERTIES OF COLEMANITE.

Color and streak white; milkv to transparent; hardness 8.5 — 4;
specific gravity, 2.39; before the blowpipe exfoliates, decrepitates vio-
lently, and melts imperfectly; after considerable heating it imparts a
reddish yellow color to the name, which changes to ^reen. The min-
eral pulverizes easily, fragments obscurely rhombic. It is wholly
soluble in hydrochloric acid with heat. From the solution boracic
acid crystallizes on cooling. The filtrate gives a white precipitate
with ammonia and oxalate of ammonia. With sulphuric acid, or
with fluorspar and bisulphate of potash, tinges the blowpipe flame
green. Luster of the mineral vitreous to adamantine. It shows no
perfect crystals, but appears like semi-crystalline calcite.

BECHILITE

Is a borate of lime without soda, and therefore resembling priceite,
found by Bechi, from whom it was named, as an incrustation, at the
baths of the lagoons of Tuscany.
The following analysis is by Bechi:

fiorsccic acid _ _ 52.2

Lime 20.9

Water . - __ _ - 26.9

luo.u

Very little is known about this mineral, which was found only in
small quantities. It has physical properties resembling ulexite. and
priceite.

HOWLITE,

A silicious borate of lime, is found in small imbedded globules in
gypsum at Brookville, Nova Scotia.
Analysis by How:

Silica

Boracic acid

Lime

Water

This mineral is too rare to have any commercial value.

TABLE SHOWING THE SIMILARITY OF THE BORATE OF LIME MINERALS.

15.2.'>
44.22
28.69

11.84

100.00

Ulexite.

Cryptomor-
phite.

Priceite.

Pandermite.

Culemanite.

Bechilite.

Uowlitft.

Boracic acid

Lime

Water—

43.04

14.06

35.86

7.05

58.50
15.60
20.10

49.00
31.83
18.29

55.85
29.78
14.36

48.72
28.79
22.49

52.20
20.90
26.90

44.22
28.69
11.84

Soda.—

5.80

Silica -

15.25

lOOM

100.00

1 99.\2

1 ^"im

I VViVi.QO

. IQO.QQ

100.00

88 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

RHODIZITE.

Rhodizite — named from a Greek word meaning resemblance to a
rose, from the red color imparted to the blowpipe flame—is a very
rare mineral, found only in minute ciystals on red tourmaline at one
locality in the Ural Mountains. These crystals are modified dodeca-
hedrons, so small that sufficient cannot be obtained for analysis, for
which reason its chemical character is uncertain. Dana considers it
a lime boracite, while Gmelin describes it as a borate of lime. Before
the blowpipe it fuses with difficulty to an opaque glass, tingeing the
flame first green and then red.

WARWICKITE

Is a borate and titanate of magnesia, with iron, alumina, and silica.
The following analysis is by J. Lawrence Smith, who made a reexami-
nation of it in 1853:

Boracicacul-— .-. - - _ 27.B0

Titanic acid (Ti O2; -- -- --- 23.82

Magnesia .-- 36.80

Sesqui-oxide of iron 7.02

Alumina .._ - 2.21

Silica _ - - IM

98.65

Hardness, 3 — 4; specific gravity, 3.188; color, dark brown, sometimes
copper red; fracture, uneven, brittle.

This is a very rare mineral, first described by Professor C. U. Shep-
ard, and named from Warwick, New York, the first locality. It was
first supposed to be a titanate of magnesia and iron. The presence
of boracic acid was discovered by Smith. It is too rare to have any
commercial value, but is interesting as showing that borax minerals
may exist more plentifully than is generally supposed, and that it
may be to their decomposition that free boracic acid and the soluble
borates are due. It occurs in a granular limestone at the locality
mentioned.

LAGONITE.

Named from the lagoons of Tuscany, another rare mineral, is a
borate of iron, found in earthy masses of yellow ochre, and is an
incrustation at the Tuscan lagoons.

ANALYSIS BY BECHI.

Boracic acid - 47.95^

Sesqui-oxide of iron 36.26

Water - - 14.02

Magnesia, lime, and loss _. -. 1.77

100.00
LARDERELLITE.

Named from Count Larderell, is a hydrated borate of ammonia,
found in the lagoons of Tuscany. It occurs in small crystalline
rhomboidal plates. It is a rare mineral, never found in quantities
sufficient to have any commercial value.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 89

ANALYSIS BT BECHI.

Boracic acid 68.556

Ammonia 12.734

Water._ ._. 18.325

99.615
BORACITE.

This mineral occurs crystallized and massive; color, white, gray,
yellow, and green, streak white, fracture conchiconchoidal, uneven;
sub-transparent, translucent. The massive variety which is found at
Stassfurt, Prussia, under the name of stassfurtite, is white and hard,
resembling fine grained marble j vitreous luster, inclining to adaman-
tine; hardness, 7; specific gravity, 2.83, 2.98; pyroelectric; soluble in
acids. The crystals, which are isometric or tetrahedral, have the
following composition (3MgO 4B03+i Mg CI):

Boracic acid _ _ 62.33

Magnesia. .__ 27.03

CHorine ._. _ _ 7.91

Magnesium 2.73

100.00

The massive variety contains sometimes six per cent of water. The
boracite crystals found in the kainite beds at Stassfurt are soft and
form a slimy mass with water.

The massive variety gives water in a closed glass tube; fuses in the
blowpipe flame easily to a white crystalline glass, coloring the flame
at the same time distinctly green; with oxide of copper on charcoal,
colors the flame azure blue; soluble when powdered, in dilute hydro-
chloric, sulphuric, and nitric acids, found at several localities in
Europe, notably at Stassfurt, Prussia, associated with salt, gypsum,
and anglesite. It is reported also in Turkey, as shown by the follow-
ing extract from a consular report; but as borate of lime is given as
a synonym, there is some douot as to the character of the mineral
mentioned. A reference to the description of pandermite will show
that the locality, if not the mineral, is the same:

[August, 1881.]

MINES AND MINERALS OF TURKEY.

[Report hy U. S. Consul-General Hkap, of Constantinople.]

Boracite (Borate of Limb).

This is found at Moulreh, near Yeddis, on the Asiatic side of the sea of Marmora, where one
mine has been in operation for six or seven years, and another has recently commenced
delivery. The present annual yield is 4,000 to 5,000 tons, of which 4,000 tons are exported to
France, where it is worth from $75 to $87 per ton, delivered ; the freight from Kaloninie, where
it is usually shipped, ranging from 30s. per ton for sailing-vessels to 21 s. per steamers. The
first cost of boracite is very little.

HYDROBORACITE

Is a mineral which resembles gypsum. It is represented by a single
specimen in a collection of minerals in Europe.
The following analysis is by Hess, who first noticed it :

12"

90 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Boracic acid 49.92

Lime _ — _ _ _ 13.30

Magnesia 10.43

Water __ 26.33

99.98

This mineral may be distinguished from gypsum by its fusibility.

SZAIBELYTE

Is a rare borate of magnesia found in nodules in gray limestone in
Werksthal, Hungary. It is named from Szajbelyi, who first noticed
it. Its occurrence in limestone is interesting in connection with the
theory that rock formations contain borax minerals in very large
quantities.
The following analysis is by Stromeyer :

Boracic acid 36.66

Magnesia _ 52.49

Water _ _ 6.99

Chlorine -. _.. _. .49

Sesquioxide iron - .. _. 1.66

Silica - 20

98.49
TOURMALINE

Is a mineral almost invariably found crystallized, of all colors, from
opaque black to nearly or quite transparent colorless. The usual
colors are: black (schorl), red (rubellite), blue (indicolite), green (crys-
olite), honey yellow (peridot), colorless (achroite).

All the tourmalines contain boracic acid from three to ten per
cent. This mineral has never been worked for boracic acid, but is
probably a source of that acid in nature, resulting from the decom-
position of rocks containing it. (See the description of Tuscan lagoons
under head of Boracic Acid.) The following analysis, selected from
many, is given as an example of the general composition of tour-
maline:

Silica 36.71

Boracic acid - . _. 6.49

Alumina _- _ — - ._ 36.00

Binoxide of manganese 6.14

Sesquioxide iron _. ■ 7.14

Magnesia _ 2.30

Lime

.,i .80

Soda

2.04

Potash

.38

Fluorine _- .-. .

2.00

DATOLITE

100.00

Is a silicate of lime, containing from eighteen to twenty-two per cent
of boracic acid. It is found in trappean rocks — gneiss, diorite, and
serpentine. It hafe been mentioned elsewhere as a probable source of
boracic acid resulting from the decomposition of rocks.

DANBURITE

Is a rare mineral, as far as known*, coxitaimii^ twenty-aeven per cent
of boracic acid. It is found at DaiibwTy , Coiiii., m ^oVotCLYXa,

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 1^1

AXINITE,

Another rare mineral, contains from two to six per cent of boracic
Acid.

SUSSEXITE

Is a newly discovered hydrated borate of manganese and magnesia,
found with franklinite and other minerals in Sussex County, New
Jersey. The following analysis is by Brush :

Boracic acid 31.89

Oxide of manganese 40.10

Magnesia ^ 17.03

Water __ - 9.59

98.61
CHEMISTRY.

Foi* forty-eight years after the discovery by Baron, the base of
boracic acid remained unknown. Crell nearly found it in 1800, when
he published a statement that boracic acid was the oxide of a sub-
stance resembling carbon. Davy repeated the experiments of Crell,
but without obte^ining the same results. In 1807 he submitted
boracic acid to the action of a powerful galvanic battery, and obtained
a black substance at the negative pole. But to Gay, Lussac, and
Thenard belong the honor of first isolating the element boron, which
is now known to be the base of boracic acid. The decomposition was
made by fusing potassium with boracic acid in a copper tube.

Modern chemists have added much to our knowledge of boron and
its compounds. Until the invention of the oxyhydrogen blowpipe,
many substances were assumed to be infusible which now yield to
its powerful action.

In 1837 Gaudin fused alumina into crystals resembling rubies and
other precious stones of which alumina is the base. In 1847 Ebel-
men, the manager of a Sevres porcelain factory, noticed that boracic
acid sometimes volatilized in his furnaces. He commenced experi-
menting with boracic acid and alumina, which resulted in his
obtaining shining crystals of extreme hardness, which he supposed
to be oxide of alumina, but which were probably boron.

It is well known that carbon assumes three forms or conditions,
which are "graphite," "charcoal " and the "diamond," or, as it would
be expressed scientifically, Graphitoidal, Amorphous, and Adamantine.
Wohler and Deville have made elaborate experiments on boron,
and found that it likewise exists in three forms like carbon, to
which it exactly corresponds. Graphitoidal boron is obtained by
subjecting a mixture of fluoborate of potassium with alumina to a
high temperature. The amorphous form is prepared by strongly
heating boracic acid with a small quantity of alumina, and boiling
the residue in hvdrochloric acid. It is a dull olive-green powder.

Adamantine boron is produced by submitting boracic acid and
alumina in a charcoal-lined crucible, to a temperature at which
nickel melts. Crystals of boron result, which are found imbedded in
metallic aluminium. Some of the crvstals are red; others yellow-
ish. They are all extremely hard — almost as much so as the dia-
mond itself. Corundum yields to the superior hardness of these

92 REPORT OK THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

crystals. If this substance could be produced cheaply, it might be
substituted for the diamond for certain mechanical purposes.

Boron is among the least plentiful of the non-metallic elemenh.
When freed from water, boracic acid forms a colorless, transparent^
brittle glass, which fuses at a red heat ; does not volatilize alone, but
with water or alcohol at a high temperature it is partly volatilisBd.
If fused in a platinum crucible and allowed to cool, cracks are formed,
during which a vivid light is seen, even in the daytime. In solution,
it reddens litmus paper slightly, and its mixture with sulphur burns
with a green flame.

Hydrate of boracic acid is formed by heating crystals of boracic add
above 100° centigrade, when they lose a part of their water. All the
borates, except those of ammonia, potash, soda, and lithium, are insol-
uble in water, or difficultly so.

The borates are not decomposed bjr ignition, with the exception dt
those with alkaline bases. The solutions are colorless, and all (even
the acid salts) give an alkaline reaction.

BORATE OF ALUMINA

Is formed when a solution of borax is poured into one of common
alum. It forms white pearly scales, sparingly soluble in water.

BORATE OF AMMONIA.

There are several compounds of this nature. Quadroborate is pre-
pared by saturating a warm solution of caustic ammonia with boracic
acid. As the solution cools slowly, this salt crystallizes out in clear
irregular six-sided prisms. The biborate is prepared as above, but
with excess of ammonia. During the process the temperature rises,
and on cooling right rhombic octehedrons form. Cotton goods satu-
rated with solution of borate of ammonia and dried are rendered
non-inflammable.

BORATE OF BARYTA.

Chloride of barium throws down in solutions of the borates, if
not too dilute, a white precipitate of borate of baryta, which dissolves
in acids and in solutions of ammonical salts. This precipitate, from
solutions of the neutral borates, has the formula (BaO BOs+aq.), and
from the acid borates (3BaO, 5BO.H+6 aq.)

BORATE OF BISMUTH

Is a white, very heavy powder, insoluble in water. Its preparation is
not given in the text-books.

BORATE OF CADMIUM

Is a white powder, difficultly soluble in water, which falls when solu-
tions of borax and sulphate of cadmium are mixed. It has the
following composition :

Oxide of cadmium __. _ 72.115

Boracic acid _ _ _ 27.885

IQQ.QOO

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 93

BORATE OF CHROMIUM.

Borate of chromous oxide is obtained by mixing solutions of borax
and protochloride of chromium, a pale blue precipitate, soluble in
free acids.

To produce the borate of chromic oxide, borate of ammonia is pre-
cipitated with sesquichloride of chromium. It is a pale green
powder.

BORATE OF COBALT.

' A reddish white powder obtained by the double decomposition of
borax and chloride of cobalt, which may be fused to a beautiful blue
glass. Oxide of cobalt fused with boracic acid yields a similar
compound.

BORATE OF COPPER.

Solution of borax poured into a solution of sulphate of copper
produces a voluminous pale green precipitate of borate of copper,
slightly soluble in water, which may be fused to an opaque green glass.

BORATE OP IRON.

The protoborate is obtained by precipitating protosulphate of iron
with borax. It is a pale yellow powder.

The per borate is an insoluble yellowish powder, vitrifiable at a high
heat, which precipitates when solutions of per sulphate of iron and
borax are mixed.

BORATE OF LEAD.

One hundred and twelve parts of oxide of lead fused with twenty-
four parts of boracic acid yields a soft yellow glass which is a borate
of lead. It may be also produced in the form of a white flaky pow-
der by precipitating a lead salt with borax. This precipitate fuses to
a transparent glass and has the following composition: PbO + 2B08.

BORATE OF LIME.

Borate of lime occurs in nature as ulexite, cryptomorphite, priceite,
pandermite, colmanite, etc. In fact, there seems to be a strong affin-
ity between boracic acid and lime. It may be prepared artificially
by pouring a solution of borax into one of lime water. Borax pre-
cipitates lime salts, also, if they are not too dilute. These precipitates
have the general properties of the natural borates of lime.

BORATE OF MAGNESIA.

There are several borates of magnesia: 1. Tri-borate; 2. Mono-
borate; 3. Four thirds borate; 4. Ter borate.

1. Obtained by boiling solution of sulphate of magnesia with
borax and washing thoroughly. At first it is gelatinous, but becomes
white and solid, slightly soluble in water.

2. Aqueous solution of sulphate of magnesia and borax, boiled

(

94 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

together until they become turbid, and rendered clear by cooling, we I'f
set^aside for some months, when crystals of the salt form.

3. Occurs only in nature as boracite,

4. Hydrate of magnesia in excess is boiled with boracic acid and
water, filtered and evaporated; a crystalline crust forms, which is
soluble in seventy-five parts of cold water.

BORATE OF MANGANESE |

Precipitates as a white powder when borax and proto-sulphate of |
manganese, both in solution, are mixed. Care must be taken that i
there is no maenesia present as an impurity, for the borate of man- I
ganese is soluble in solution of magnesia.

The borate of manganese has been found to be a most excellent
drier for paints, oils, and varnishes, and is coming into general use
in the arts for that purposct As manganese and borax are abundant
and cheap in California, there seems to be no reason why it should /
not be extensively manufactured in the State. This subject is well '
worthy of the attention of some of our idle men and boys. Oil is
boiled with the usual precautions, slowly at first, as water may be
present; when so hot that it is certain that the water has been wholly
driven off, the heat is increased. When sufficiently boiled, the
borate of manganese is mixed with a little hot oil in a small vessel
and added by degrees to the kettle, stirring all the while. When
thoroughljr mixed the kettle is covered and allowed to cool. There
is no arbitrary rule for the quantity of drier to be used, as the
requirements are not always the same. But three pounds of borate
of manganese to 100 gallons of linseed oil has been used in practice
and published.

BORATE OF MERCURY.

The proto-borate is obtained by mixing solutions of proto-nitrate
of mercury and borax, and evaporating the solution.. The result is
a mass of small shining crystals.

BORATE OF NICKEL.

Borax throws down from solution of nickel salts a pale, apple green,
precipitate of borate of nickel, insoluble in water, but soluble in sul-
phuric^ hydrochloric, and nitric acids. It may be fused to a glass, of
a hyacinth color.

BORATE OF POTASSIUM.

The boride obtained by heating the elements together in chemical
proportions, has been examined, and found to he a mechanical mix-
ture, and not a chemical compound.

The borate is formed when Doracic acid and dry carbonate of potash
are strongly heated together. It is fusible at a white heat; difficultly
soluble in water, from which it does not crystallize.

The biborate is obtained by supersaturating carbonate of potash
with boracic acid at a boiling heat; solution of caustic potash is
added until the liquid is alkaline, when it is set aside to crystallize ;
the crystals are slightly alkaline to the taste, redden turmeric paper.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 95

Bwell with heat like borax, then fuse to a transparent colorless glass,
and dissolve readily in hot and cold water.

BORATE OF SILVER.

Nitrate of silver produces, in concentrated solutions of neutral
borates, a white or slightly yellow precipitate of borate of silver
(AgO BO3+HO); in concentrated acid solutions a similar precipitate
(3 AgO, 4 BO3). Dilute solutions of the borates give, with the same
reagent, a precipitate of oxide of silver. All of these precipitates
are soluble in nitric acid and in ammonia.

•

BORATE OF STRONTIA.

Borax in solution gives a precipitate with neutral salts of strontia.
The precipitate is a white powder soluble in one hundred and thirty

Earts of boiling water; it dissolves also in a cold aqueous solution of
ydrochlorate or nitrate of ammonia.

BORATE OP TIN

Is an insoluble white powder which fuses to a gray slag. Very little
is known about it.

BORATE OF URANIUM.

To produce it, a solution of a uranic salt is precipitated with one
of borax. It is light yellow in color, and sparingly soluble in water.

BORATE OF ZINC.

Aqueous solutions of sulphate of zinc and borax, when mixed
togetner, throw down borate of zinc as a white powder, insoluble in
water, but soluble in aaueous solution of boracic acid. It becomes
yellow when ignited and fuses into a solid, compact, opaque slag.

BORATE OP ZIRCONIA «^

Is a precipitate formed by mixing solution of a salt of zircon ia and
borax. It is a white insoluble powder.

BROMOBORACIC ACID.

When vapors of bromine are passed over an ignited mixture of
vitrified boracic acid and charcoal, a colorless gas is formed, which
gives off white fumes in contact with moist air.

CHLORIDE OF BORON.

Chlorine gas is passed over perfectly dry boron, ignited in the
large part of tube of glass or porcelain. The gas which forms is
collected over mercury, and the free chlorine removed by agitation
with mercury. It is a colorless gas, which gives off dense white
vapors in contact with moist air.

96 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

FLUORIDE OF BORON

Is a colorless gas, incombustible, and not a supporter of combustion.
It has a pungent odor. In contact with moist air it forms a white
cloud. It is formed by gently heating one part of vitrified boracic
acid with two parts of fluorspar and twelve of concentrated sulphuric
acid in a leaden vessel. Great care should be taken in its prepara-
tion, as the gases are poisonous.

IODIDE OF BORON.

Vapors of iodine are passed over an ignited mixture of boracic acid
and charcoal. A small yellow sublimate forms, which is probably
iodide of boron ; but of this there seems to be some doubt.

SULPHIDE OF BORON

Forms when boron is heated to redness in a vapor of sulphur. It is
a white opaque substance.

FORMULAE USEFUL IN CALCULATION.

Element.

Symbol.

Atomic Weight.

Boron

Sodium...
Oxygen __
Hydrogen
Calcium ._
Carbon ...

Na,
.
H-
Ca
C ..

.11.
.23. ■

-^ 'J
. 1.
.20. -ft)

COMPOUNDS.

Boracic acid, anhydrous. BOj ^= atomic weight 35

Boron 31.43 percent

Oxygen 68.67 percent

100.00

Boracic acid, crystallized. BOj -|- 3H0 = atomic weight 62

Boracic acid 56.44 per cent

Water 43.56 percent

lOO.OU

Borax, anhydrous. NaO 2B03 = atomic weight , 101

Soda—- 30.70 percent

Boracic acid 69.30 percent

100.00

Borax, crystallized, prismatic. NaO 2BO3-J-IOHO = atomic weight 191

Boracic acid 36.65 per cent

Soda 16.23 percent

Water 47.12 per cent

100.00

Borax, crystallized, octahedral. NaO 2B05-|-SHO = atomic weight 146

Boracic acid 47.94 per cent

Soda 21.23 per cent

Water 30.83 per cent .

BORAX DEPOSITS OP CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 97

Ulexite, 2CaO, NaO, 5BO3+IOHO = atomic weight 352

33oracic acid 49.5 percent

Xime 15.9 percent

6oda 8.8 per cent

"Water 25.8 per cent

100.0

Carbonate of soda, anhydrous. NaO, COj = atomic weight 53

fioda 58.49 per cent

Carbonic acid 41.51 per cent

100.00

Carbonate of soda, crystallized. NaO, CO2+IOHO = atomic weight ^^.143

Soda 21.67 percent

Carbonic acid 15.39 percent

Water _ 62.94 per cent

100.00
EXAMPLES SHOWING THE USE OF THE FORMULA.

Let it be required to determine how much crystallized borax can be made from a certain quan-
tity of anhydrous boracic acid, say 74 pounds.

As the percentage of boracic acid in prismatic borax (36.6) is to 100 so is 74 to the unknown

q[uantity.

74 X 100 „^„ ,

— gg-g — = 202-j- pounds.

The borax equivalent of borate of lime may be calculated as follows :
Percentage of boracic acid in —

Borax _-_ __ 36.6

Ulexite— 49.6

36.6:100: :49.5: unknown quantity.
49.5X100 _

36.6 — ^^^-^i-

Therefore the boracic acid in 100 pounds of ulexite, if combined with soda and water, would
yield 135.2 pounds crystallized prismatic borax.

ASSAY OF BORAX.

Simple tests serve to detect the usual foreign substances contained
in borax. When pure it should dissolve in twelve to twenty-four
parts of cold water to a clear solution without color or residue. A
sample heated to fusion should leave a residue wieighing fifty-three
per cent, nearly. If adulterated with nitrate of potash it will
deflagrate when thrown on burning coals. If alum is present as an
impurity, its solution will react acid to litmus paper. Borax is often
degraded by admixture of phosphate of soda, sometimes to the
extent of twenty per cent, in which case its solution will give a yellow
precipitate upon addition of molybdate of ammonia mixed with
excess of nitric acid. Lime is indicated by a white precipitate, which
falls when carbonate of soda is added to the solution. This precipitate
dissolves in dilute hydrochloric acid with effervescence. Sulphate
of soda and chloride of sodium (common salt), the natural impurities,
are indicated, the former by a precipitate with chloride of barium in
the presence of free acid, and the latter by the formation of a white
curdy precipitate with nitrate of silver in the presence of free nitric
acid. The latter precipitate is soluble in ammonia and is reproduced
on the addition of an acid.

13"

98 REPORT OP THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

If to a solution of boracic acid, or an alkaline borate, hydrochloric
acid is added to slight acid reaction, and a slip of turmeric paper
half dipped into it and dried on a watch-glass at 212° Fahrenheit, the
dipped portion shows a peculiar red tint; this reaction, which is
delicate, must not be confounded with similar colors obtained from
other substances; to avoid which, experiments should be made wiili
pure solutions, carefully prepared, to educate the eye.

The flame test has been described elsewhere.

Borax may be determined volumetrically. For this assay a solu-
tion of sulphuric acid must be prepared, in which an exact chemical
equivalent of the acid shall be contained in each litre. This acid
solution, called " normal sulphuric acid," must be carefully preserved
in a well stoppered bottle, as on its purity and uniform strength
depend the accuracy of the results. An equivalent of the borax to be
assayed (or rather what would be an equivalent if it were pure) must
then be dissolved in distilled water.

Now if both solutions contain exact equivalents, they would neu-
tralize each other if poured together. In a like manner, if a tenth of
each solution were mixed they would neutralize each other. The
tenth of a litre is a convenient measure for the assay, because it con-
tains 100 cubic centimeters (C.C). If 100 C.C. of the acid solution
neutralized the tenth of an equivalent of borax in solution, it would
be evident that the sample was pure. If 80 C.C. only were required,
the sample contains eighty per cent of borax. In other words, each
C.C. of the acid solution represents one per cent of crystallized borax
in the sample.

When litmus is added to a solution of borax, only a purple red
color is seen while any borax remains undecomposed; but, upon
adding sulphuric acid, at the instant that the last atom of soda is
changed to sulphate, a light red color appears.
. Upon these reactions, the volumetric assay is based.

It has been shown elsewhere, that the chemical equivalent of
crystallized prismatic borax is 191. One tenth of this weight — 19.1
grammes of the borax — is dissolved by shaking in cold water; 250 to
300 cubic centimeters will be required. The solution must not be
filtered.

This solution is placed in a clean beaker, solution of litmus added
until a deep color is imparted to the fluid. Normal sulphuric acid
is then dropped in from a burette, graduated to 100 C.C. and tenths,
until the color suddenly changes to a bright red. The first test may
be made somewhat carelessly, as it will only be an approximation.
The beaker is then washed out, and the operation repeated; this time
with greater care. The result will be nearly correct. A third exper-
iment will serve to verify the result. The reader should refer to
some practical work on chemistry for description of the apparatus
and method of making the test solutions. Sutton's Systematic Hand-
book of Volumetric Analysis, third edition, is one of the best.

Only borax can be estimated by this method. The determination
of boracic acid in minerals and other substances, is extremely diflB-
cult, and can hardly be explained without an elaborate description,
which may be found in text-books on analytical chemistry. In the
volumetic method described above it is customary to deduct 0.5 CO.,
to correct for the excess of sulphuric acid required to develop the red
color in the assay.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA. 99

USES OF BORAX AND BORACIC ACID.

The consumption of boracic acid and its salts is only limited by the
supply. It is very largely used in the manufacture of pottery and
earthenware as a glaze. In 1820, Mr. Wood, of Liverpool, applied
boracic acid to the glazing of pottery, which has continued, with
increasing consumption, to the present time.

The following mixtures are published. For common English
porcelain:

Feldspar 45 parts

Silica 9 parts

Borax 21 parts

Flint glass .• 20 parts

Nickel 4 parts

Minium 12 parts

111 parts

For figures and ornaments:

Feldspar 45 parts

Silica 12 parts

Borax 15 parts

Flint glass 20 parts

Nickel 4 parts

Minium 12 parts

108 parts

The glaze is made by melting the ingredients together, and after-
wards grinding them with water^ into which the ware is dipped and
dried. The articles are first partially burned, in which form they are
called "biscuit."

Large quantities of borax are consumed in the potteries at Trenton,
New Jersey; East Liverpool, Ohio; Philadelphia, and Cincinnati,
and will eventually be used in prospective potteries in our own
State.

Borax has lately been extensively applied to the manufacture of
porcelain-coated iron ware, known as "granite ware."

Boracic acid is used in the manufacture of certain varieties of glass
and in " strass," which is the base of artificial gems named after the
inventor, Strass of Strassburgh, who lived in the seventeenth cen-
tury, and who was the first to make artificial gems of this character.

The following is the composition of strass :

Pure silex 300 parts

Potash__- -__ ___ 96 parts

Borax 27 parts

White lead 514 parts

Arsenic • 1 part

938 parts

All the ingredients must be pure, specially the borax, which must
be prepared from pure boracic acid. Tincal is not suitable.

The mixture is put into a Hessian crucible, and kept at the highest
heat of a pottery furnace for twenty-four hours. The longer it is
kept in a state of fusion the clearer and more homogeneous it will be
when cooled. It is used by lapidaries for imitating diamond, topaz,
and other white gems. For colored gems various metallic oxides are
added in proportions only learned by experience. Tlv^ coWvas^\ca.V

100 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

ter must be in the finest powder, and not only very intimately mixed,
but the mixture must be very strongly heated, the heat must be
long continued, and the cooling gradual.

It is stated in Parke's Chemical Essays that four o\inces of borax
and one ounce of pure fine white sand will make a pure glass, so hard
as to cut common glass like the diamond.

The following formula is given of the brilliant greenish yellow
glass of Sevres :

Silica -. _ 19.32

Protoxide of lead 57.64

Soda _ _ 3.08

Boracic acid 7.00

Protoxide of iron 6.12

Oxide of zinc 2.99

Antimonic acid 3.41

Potash— .44

lOO.OO

Vitrifiable pigments for glass staining and encaustic tiles are
rendered fusible by admixture of borax. The following formulae
are given :

1. One part sand, three parts litharge, one third part borax. The borax must be fused in a
platinum crucible and poured into water, and, when cold, ground fine.

2. One part sand, two and three quarters parts litharge, three eighths part borax. Heated as
in No. 1.

3. One part sand, two parts litharge, one fourth part borax. Heated as in No. 1.

4. One part sand, three parts minium, one eighth part borax. Prepared as in No. 1.

5. Six parts white sand, washed, and heated to redness, four parts yellow oxide of lead, one
part borax glass, one part saltpeter.

6. One part sand, two parts litharge, three quarters parts borax glass.

• 7. Eight parts white quartz sand, washed and calcined, four parts borax glass, one part salt-
peter, one part white chalk.

In the art of enameling, borax is also largely used as a flux.

Borax has the property of dissolving the metallic oxides, which
makes it useful in soldering metals. It renders the surfaces to be
joined clean, so that the solder "runs " and fills the joint between
them. For this purpose, as well as in weldijig iron, the octahedral
is the most desired, as, containing less water, it sooner settles down
quietlv on the work. In soldering small articles, the borax is rubbed
on a slab of slate with water, and the mixture put on with a camels-
hair brush. •

The same property is taken advantage of in blowpipe chemistry,
to determine the presence of certain metals which may be in the
substance under examination. A loop is prepared on the end of
a thin platinum wire, in which borax is melted in the blowpipe
flame; a small quantity of the substance in a flne powder is then
introduced by wetting the borax bead and touching it to the powder.
The bead is again suojected to the flame; first in the outer, and then
in the inner flame, and allowed to cool while being closely observed.

BORAX DEPOSITS OF CALIFORNIA AND NEVADA.

101

BLOWPIPE REACTIONS.

Outer Flame.

Inner Flame.

Hot.

Cold.

Hot.

CJold.

Yellow

Vanadic acid.
Sesqui-oxide of iron.
Oxide of lead.
Ter-oxide of bismuth
and of antimony.

Tungstic, titantic,
vanadic, and mo-
lybdic acids.

Red-

Oxide of chromium.
Sesqui-oxide of ce-
rium.

Oxide of nicj^el.

Oxide of copper.

Violet

Sesqui-oxide ofman-
ganese.

Oxide of cobalt con-
taining manganese.

Blue

Oxide of cobalt.

Oxide of cobalt.
Oxide of copper.

Oxide of cobalt.

Green

Oxide of copper.

Sesqui - oxide of
chromium.

Sesqui-oxides of iron,
chromium, and
uranium.

Vanadic acid.
Sesqui - oxides of
iron, chromium.

and uranium.

Borax has great detersive properties and is very useful in the
laundry. The washerwomen of Holland and Belgium, so celebrated
for their fine and white linen, have used borax as a washing powder
for many years. They add borax in the proportion of half a pound to
ten gallons of boiling water. For washing laces, cambrics, and even
woolen blankets and other goods, it will be found very useful. It is
also a valuable cosmetic, rendering the skin soft, and it is claimed it
will prove a preventive and even a cure for certain skin diseases.
It is an exlcellent shampoo, without any admixture except water, and
is perfectly harmless. For cleaning brush and comb it will be found
very useful. It is so essential to the toilet that a bottle of it should
be kept always ready, prepared as follows:

A quantity of refined borax is shaken up in a bottle with water
until no more will dissolve. The solution is then poured off into a
clean bottle and half the quantity of water added, and both mixed by
shaking. If not clear it must be left some time to stand and the clear
portion poured off, or better still, filtered through paper. In this
condition it may be added to a basin of water, used as a mouth wash,
and other ways as described.

In medicine, according to the United States Dispensatory, borax is a
mild refrigerant and diuretic. It is a remedy for nephritic and cal-
culous complaints dependent on an excess of uric acid. Externally
it is used in solution as a wash in scaly eruptions, and for other
diseases.

102 REPORT OF THE STATE MINERALOGIST.

Borax and boracic acid are used to render cream of tartar more
soluble. The formula given in the French codex is as follows:

Four hundred parts cream of tartar, and 100 parts of boracic acid
are dissolved in a silver basin with 2400 parts of water at a boiling
heat. The solution is kept boiling until nearly all the water is evap-
orated. The heat is then moderated and the mixture stirred. When
it has become very thick it is removed in portions, which are flattened
in the Imnd, well pounded, and powdered. This is soluble cream of
tartar.

A solution of borax is used as a gargle for sore throat and in colds,
and it has been found effective in cases of epizooty in horses. In
1878, experiments were made in San Francisco which gave favorable
results. The doses were four ounces daily, given pulverized in the
food.

In hot climates a cooling drink is said to be prepared with bicar-
bonate of soda, tartaric acid, and borax. This statement wants con-
firmation.

In 1878 Smith Bros, sold 20,000 pounds of borax to Chicago con-
sumers, to be used in preserving and canning beef.

Borax is used as a mordant in calico printing and in dyeing, and as
a substitute for soap in dissolving gum out of silk ; in solution as a
wood preservative, and in the manufacture of soap. A varnish made
by boiling one part of borax with five parts of shellac is used iu
stiffening hats. With caseine borax forms a substance which is used
as a substitute for gum. A solution of borax in water may be mixed
with linseed oil and used for cheap painting.

Borax is extensively used in assaying, in the metallurey of ores,
and in the smelting of copper, and it is said to be an excellent insec-
ticide, being especially obnoxious to cockroaches.

There are probably other uses to which it has been put, and no
doubt new applications will be found for it if the production should
increase.

INDEX.

INDEX

Adrian evaporators 65,66

Agricola 7

Alkaline Lake 19

American Borax Company - 45

Analysis of borax 49, 50

Analysis of borax, refined, from Borax Lake 26

Analysis of ulexite 81,84

Apparatus for crystallizing borax 12

Apparatus for making borax from boracic acid ^ 11

Apparatus for obtaining green flame from boracic acid 59,60

Artificial borax 10

Artificial borax — Sautter's process for making 12

Artesian well — Borax Lake - 25

Artesian well — Death Valley 36

Artesian well — San Bernardino County _-_ 27

Assay of borax , 97,98

Axinite '. 91

Ayres, Dr. William 0.,quoted 20

Baurach

Belted Mountains.
Bennett's Wells- -.
Beechilite

Bisulphate of potash, preparation of
Blowpipe reactions

Blake, Professor William P., cited—
Boiling tanks

Boiling tanks, covers for

Boracic ac

Borax .

d ^ _ 55,56,

d, anhydrous ^

chemistry of

chemical equivalent

crystallized

crude Italian, analyses of

discovered by Homburg

efflorescence of

in Clear Lake

in Italy

in Lago di Monte Rotundo

in Mono Lake

in Pyran&id Lake

in salt J.

microscopic appearance of

native

obtained by sublimation

production of Italian ,

percentage, composition of

ravine

solubility of, in water (table)

spectrum of

table of fluctuation in price

United States duties :

United States imports and duties ,

8
35

31,35
87
60
101
61
27
28

57,58
96
91
58
96

68,72

55,56
16
61

62,70
70
44
54
61
57
61

55,57
72
58
16
62
58
80
73
73
9,51

14^

106 INDEX.

Boraxi artificial 96

BoraXi anhydrous 10

Borax, as a cosmetic l 101

Borax, as an insecticide 102

Borax, as a mordant __• 102

Borax, as a mouth wash 101

Borax, as a shampoo 101

Borax, as a substitute for oil in painting 102

Borax, as a varnish 102

Borax, assay of _ l._ 97,98

Borax, crude _ 7, 9, 10, 46, 49, 62

Borax, crude, in Inyo County 29

Borax, crude, refining of 38

Borax, crude, required to make a ton of borax in 8an Bernardino County 27

Borax, crude (tincal). United States imports and duties 73

Borax, Chinese 9

Borax, concentrated 27,46,47

Borax crystals 18, 37,53

Borax crystals described 22

Borax crystals, figured 11, 13,22

Borax, companies in California and Nevada 65

Borax, consumption of 77

Borax, discovery in California 14

Borax, discovery in Nevada 45

Borax, discovery in San Bernardino County 26

Borax, diflSculties in refining 37,38

Borax, Dutch 9

Borax, early writers on • 8

Borax, fatty substance in 9

Borax, first analysis of * 7

Borax, from borate of lime • 38

Borax, from boracic acid 10

Borax, history of 8

Borax in assaying 102

Borax in blowpipe chemistry 100

Borax in California . 26

Borax in enameling 100

Borax in glazing pottery 99

Borax in glass making 100

Borax in the laundry 101

Borax in medicine 101,102

Borax in metallurgy of ores 102

Borax in Museum of California Academy of Science 15

Borax in Nevada 43,46

Borax in preserving meat - 102

Borax in soap ^ 102

Borax in welding iron 100

Borax in vitrifiable pigments 100

Borax Lake, California 18

Borax Lake, California, crystals from 20

Borax Lake, California, calculation of borax in 25, 26

Borax Lake, California, discovered 16

Borax Lake, California, described 23

Borax Lake, California, first worked 20

Borax Lake, California, second visit to ^ 17

Borax Lake, California water, analysis of 20

Borax lakes of Thibet 7

Borax lands, location of -. 54

Borax minerals 81

Borax, octahedral 10,96

Borax, ore of • 8

Borax, origin of name 7

Borax, prismatic 96

Borax, principal producers on Pacific Coast 79

Borax, production of 77,78

Borax, refined.-- _ 12, 27,49

Borax, refined. United States imports and duties 74

Borax, refining of 9

Borax, refining of, in New York 38

Borax, refining of, in San Francisco 37

Borax, sales o^ in California 79

Borax of soda — '^

Borax, solubilitjr of, in water (table) ^^

INDEX. 107

Borax springs 18

Borax springs, iodine in waters of , 19

Borax works, described 37,49

Borax works, Hearn's steam — 63

Borax works, Teel's Marsh 46

Borate of alumina 92

Borate of ammonia 92

Borate of baryta 92

Borate of bismuth • 92

Borate of cadmium '. 92

Borate of chromium 93

Borate of cobalt _. _ 93

Borate of copper 93

Borate of iron 93

Borate of lead 93

Borate of lime _ _ 36, 93

Borate of lime, Formhals* process 40

Borate of lime, Gutzkow's process 41

Borate of lime, mechanical analysis 39

Borate of lime, Robertson's process 41

Borate of lime, shipped to Liverpool 40

Borate of lime, treatment in England 40

Borate of magnesia 93

Borate of manganese - 94

Borate of mercury 94

Borate of nickel 94

Borate of potassium . 94

Borate of silver 95

Borate of soda %

Borate of strontia , 20,95

Borate of tin 95

Borate of uranium 95

Borate of zinc 95

Borate of zirconia 95

Bromoboracic acid 95

Brown crust, analysis of 50

Burgess, W. H., discovery of ulexite by 45

California Academy of Science, borax in museum of 15

California Borax Company, borax sales by 79

Calico Print, quotation from 28,29

Carbonate of soda ' 51, 9Y

Carbonate of soda, anhydrous 97

Carbonate of soda, crystallized . 97

ChaptaPs Chemistry, quoted 10,55

Christmas Gift Mine 34

Chloride of boron 95

Chrysocolla 7

Clear Lake 16

Clear Lake, boracic acid in waters of 61

Coleman, Wm. T 37

Colemanite 36,86, 87

Columbus Borax Marsh 45,53

Cotton balls 38

Crystals of octahedral borax .. 13

Crystals of prismatic borax 11

Crystallizers 27

Crystallizers, Italian 67

Curious Butte 31

Danburite 90

Datolite _ __ _. 90

Daunet, I., experience in Death Valley 33

Death Valley, Inyo County _ 29, 30, 36

Death Valley, artesian wells in 36

Death Valley, borax production of 37

Death Valley, climate 32, 37

Death Yallejr, excaseiye heat in ^ 'i*L,"»»

108 INDEX.

Death Valley, experience of I. Daunet in 33

Death Valley, exploration of Dr. French 33

Death Valley, exploration of Dr. George 34

Death Valley, exploration of H. McCormack 35

Death Valley, exploration of R» R. Hawkins 35

Death Valley, fossil limestone in 31

Death Valley, geology of 31

Death Valley, history of 33

Death Valley, Indian sign of water in 33

De Groot, H.,quoted 45

Desert Springs, Kern County 29

Diorite belt___ 34

Drying house, Italian 67

Durden, H. S., quoted 40

Eagle Borax Mining Company 31,36,55

Early writers on borax 8

Elsworth Borax Manufacturing Company 40

Examples of calculation 97 j

^ i

Fish Lake _ _ 53 (

Fluoride of boron 96 i

Fourcroy's Chemistry, quotations from 8,56 |

Fossil limestone in Death Valley 31

Formhals* process 40

Formulae for calculation 96

French, Dr. Darwin, in Death Valley 33 <

Funeral Mountains 31 j

Furnace Creek— _ 31,34,36

Furnace Creek, lead furnaces at 31 I

Furnace Creek, water in 31 '

Furnace Creek, temperature of water in 31

Gernez, D., quoted.. 14

Glauber salt 51

Gooseneck 47,48

Graduation 18

Greenland _ _ _ 32,33

Greenland Salt and Borax Company 36,55

Gutzkow process 41

Gunsightlead-.- _ _ 30,33

Hacbinhama Lake 20, 23, 24

Hachinhama Lake water, analysis of 23

Hacbinhama Lake, mode of working 24

Hachinhama Lake, ulexite used at . 24

Hayesene 83

Hearn's steam borax works 53

Hebberling, A. A., analyses by 49

Hell's Half Acre.. — ^..- 36

Hieroglyphics on rocks 34

History of Death Valley _ __ 33

Hot springs 16, 17

Hot mud springs (Coso) 36

Howlite... _ _ 87

Hunter's Point _ _ _ 34

Hydroboracite 89

" Ice," so called 49

Indian sign of water in Death Valley 33

Inyo Borax Company 65

Iodide of boron 96

Iodine in mineral water VV

INDEX. 109

Iodine in mineral spring 17

Iodine in Borax Lake 19

Ita<jolumite in Death Valley 31

Jervis, W. P., quoted 62,68

Kirwan's Mineralogy, quoted 8

Knapp*s Chemical Technology, quoted 10

Lake Hachinhama 20

Lake Kaysa (Borax Lake) 1_ 18

Lago di Monte Rotundo, boracic acid in 70

Lagonite ^ 88

Larderellite - 88

Lava flows 43

Le Conte, Prof. Joseph, quoted 51

Lick Springs 15

Lost emigrants 30

Location of borax lands 1 64

Magnesian limestone 15,16

McCormack's Wells _ 33

Mesquit Springs 35

Microscopical appearance of boracic acid ^ 67

Mohave River 31

Mohave River, sink of the 31

Mono Lake '43,44

Mono Lake water - 44,45

Mono Lake water, boracic acid in 44,59

Mosheimer and Engelke 77

Mud volcanoes, boracic acid in . 69, 61

Natron 8

Neuman, Caspar, quoted 8, 66

Nevada, history of borax in 45

Nevada Salt and Borax Company 48,65

Oasis Springs 35

Octahedral borax 10

Octahedral borax, crystals 13

Owens Lake ^ 44

Owens River 44

Pacific Borax Company 53, 55, 77

Pandermite 36,85

Panamint range 35

Partz, Dr., cited 45

Phillips, J. A., quoted 25

Phoenix Chemical Works 83

Priceite-__ __. 84,85

Priceite, discovered in Calico District 28,29

Prismatic borax 10

Prismatic borax, composition of 10

Prismatic borax, crystals of 11

Producers of borax on the Pacific Coast 79

Production of borax 77,78

Production of borax in Pacific States 78, 79

Production of borax in Death Valley 37

Pyramid Lake, boracicacid in water of ^'t

110 INDKZ.

Ba^wnLake . 45

Refining of borax - 9

Refined borax 12

Refined borax. Borax Lake, analyses of 26

Refining of ulexite 83

Rhodes* Marsh 48,49,51,52

Rhodizite , — _. 88

Robertson process 41

Sales of California Borax Company's product 79

Salt _ - _- -.48,49,50,51

Salt crust, analysis of 50

SaltSprfngs - _ 17

Saline Valley Borax Company 55

San Bernardino Borax Company 26

San Bernardino County, discovery of borax in 26

San Bernardino County, method of working borax in 26,28

San Bernardino Times, quoted 28

San Carlos, Inyo County 29

Sand Springs , 45

Saratoga or Warm Springs 1 34

Sassolite 61,81

Sautter's process 12

Scupham, J. R., quoted 48

Sheet cotton— _ 38,83

Smith Brothers 46

Soapy gelatinous matter 18

Solubility of borax in water (table) 14

Soluble cream of tartar 102

Spectroscope, direct vision 58

Spectrum of borax 58

State Museum 37

Steam coil.. _ _. - 46,47

Steam dome 65

Strass -_— 99

Suetonius 7

Surprise Canon 31

Sulphate of soda 49, 51

Sulphide of boron 96

Sussexite 91

Szaibelyte-. _ _ 90

Table, borate of lime, minerals 87

Table, fluctuations in price of boracic acid 80

Table, fluctuations in price of borax 80

Telescope Peak 31

Telescope Mountains 36

Teel*s Marsh 46

Teel's Marsh, borax works at 46

Teel's Marsh Borax Company 55

Teller, Secretary, letter from 64

Thenardite _ ^ 27,37,62

Thibet, borax lakes of 7

Thinolite 44

Thompson's Chemistry, quoted 9

Tincal _ ...9,61, 52, 63

Tincal in San Bernardino County 27

Tincal, United States imports and duties 73

Tourmaline 90

Trona -. _ _ .._ — . 37

Troop, Wm., referred to 46, 63

Tuscan Springs 16

Tuscan lagoons . 62,63

Tuscan lagoons, figured (Frontispiece)

INDEX. Ill

Ulexite __ _ 36,45, 48, 61, 83, 97

Ulexite, analysis of 82, 84

Ulexite, discovered by W. H. Burgess 45

Ulexite, refining of 83

Ulexite in Kern County 29

Ulexite used in making borax at Lake Hachinhama 24, 38

United States duties on borax, boracic acid, and borate of lime 76

Uses of borax and boracic acid 99

Vasco 65

Veatch, John A., M.D., quoted 14, 45

Virginia Salt Marsh 45

Vulcano, island of, boracic acid in 68

Warm, or Saratoga Springs 34

Warwickite _._ 1 88

Waggoner, F. R., cited 54

Whisky Flat _ 44

Wild Rose Springs _ _ 34

NO. 55 ,CLASP e .. 5

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3 6105 031 142 818

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Stanford, California

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