Canada_, p. 175.

Weld mentions having seen in the possession of a gentleman at Niagara a
lump of copper, of several ounces weight, apparently as pure as if it
had passed through the fire, which had been struck off with a chisel
from a piece equally pure, growing on one of the islands in Lake
Superior. Rich veins of copper are visible in almost all the rocks on
these islands near the shore; and copper ore, resembling copperas, is
likewise found in deep beds near the water.--Weld, p. 346.

In Charlevoix's time (1720), "on trouvoit sur les bords du Lac Superieur
et autour de certains isles, de grosses pieces de cuivre qui sont
l'objet de cette superstition des sauvages; ils les regardent avec
veneration comme un present des Dieux qui habitent sous les eaux; ils en
ramassent les plus petits fragmens et les conservent avec soin, mais ils
n'en font aucune usage. J'ai connu un de nos freres lequel etoit orfevre
de son metier, et qui, pendant qu'il etoit dans la mission du Sault
Sainte Marie, en etoit alle chercher la, et en avoit fait des
chandeliers, des croix, et des encensoirs, car ce cuivre est souvent
presque tout pur."--Tom. v., p. 415.

Kalm says that the copper found is so pure that it does not require
melting over again, but is fit for working immediately.--Kalm in
Pinkerton, vol. xiii., p. 691 (1748).

"Before saying good-by to Lake Superior, let me add, that since the date
of my visit, the barren rocks which we passed have become an object of
intense interest, promising to rival, in point of mineral wealth, the
Altai chain and the Uralian Mountains. Iron had long been known to
abound on the northern shore, two mines having been at one time worked
and abandoned, chiefly on account of temporary obstacles, which the
gradual advance of agriculture and civilization was sure to remove; and,
more recently, the southern shore, though of a much less favorable
character in that respect, was found to possess rich veins of copper and
silver. Under these circumstances, various enterprising persons in
Canada have prosecuted investigations which appear to have
satisfactorily proved that, in addition to their iron, the forbidding
wastes of the northern shore contain inexhaustible treasures, both of
the precious and of the useful metals, of gold and of silver, of copper
and tin, and already have associations been formed to reap the teeming
harvest."--Sir G. Simpson's _Journey round the World_, vol. i., p. 35
(1841).

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