cals," he said, "hide a little gold in a claim that is
valueless, and, digging it up as you have seen, wash it out in the
presence of newcomers, in the hope of taking them in. But here we come
to a party who will show you a little of legitimate gold-washing."

They approached, as he spoke, a bend of the river where several men were
busy at work--some with pick and shovel, some with the cradle, and
others with tin washing-pans. Here they stood for some time watching
the process of gold-washing.

At the time of which we write, only the two simple processes of washing,
with the pan and with the cradle, were practised at Bigbear Gully, the
more elaborate methods of crushing quartz, etcetera, not having been
introduced.

The most simple of these was the _pan_ process, which was much in
favour, because the soil, or "dirt" was so rich in gold-dust that it
"paid" well, and it only required that the miner should possess a pick,
a shovel, and a tin pan. With this very limited stock in trade he could
begin without delay, and earn at least a subsistence; perhaps even make
"his pile," or, in other words, his fortune.

One of the men connected with the party above referred to was engaged in
pan-washing. He stood in a hole four feet deep, and had just filled a
flat tin dish with dirt, as Frank and his companions stopped to observe
him. Pouring water on the dirt, the miner set the pan down, dipped both
hands into it and stirred the contents about until they became liquid
mud--removing the stones in the process, and operating in such a manner
that he caused some of the contents to escape, or spill, off the top at
each revolution. More water was added from time to time, and the
process continued until all the earthy matter was washed away, and
nothing but a kind of black sand, which contained the gold, left at the
bottom. The separation of the metal from the black sand was an after
process, and a more difficult one. It was accomplished in some cases by
means of a magnet which attracted the sand. In other cases this was
blown carefully off from a sheet of paper, but a few of the miners, who
managed matters in a more extensive and thorough manner, effected the
separation by means of quicksilver. They mixed it with the sand, added
a little water, and stirred it about until the gold amalgamated with the
quicksilver, converting it into a little massive, tangible, and soft
heap. It was then put into a buckskin cloth, through the