is of the water was as follows:--

Carbonate of Iron FeCO3 2.76 grains per gallon
Carbonate of Calcium CaCO3 7.61 grains per gallon
Sulphate of Calcium CaSO4 81.71 grains per gallon
Chloride of Calcium CaCl2 2797.84 grains per gallon
Chloride of Magnesium MgCl2 610.13 grains per gallon
Chloride of Sodium or
Common Salt NaCl 5072.65 grains per gallon

Total solid matter 8572.70 = 19.5 oz. to the gallon.

It will be seen, then, that this water is nearly four times more salt
that that of the sea. The effect of using a water of this character, as
I have previously found, is to cause the amalgamation of considerable
quantities of iron with the gold as in this case.

I received 10 oz. of amalgam, and having found what constituted its
impurities proceeded to experiment as to its treatment. When retorted on
the mine it was turned out in a black cake so impure as almost to
make it impossible to smelt properly. I found the same result on
first retorting, and after a number of experiments which need not be
recapitulated though some were fairly effective, I hit on the following
method, which was found to be most successful and will probably be
so found in other localities where similarly unfavourable conditions
prevail.

I took a small ball of amalgam, placed it in a double fold of new fine
grained calico, and after soaking in hot water put it under a powerful
press. The weight of the ball before pressing was 1583 gr. From this
383 gr. of mercury was expressed and five-eighths of a grain of gold
was retorted from this expressed mercury. The residue, in the form of a
dark, grey, and very friable cake, was powdered up between the fingers
and retorted, when it became a brown powder; it was afterwards calcined
on a flat sheet in the open air; result, 510 gr. of russet-coloured
powder. Smelted with borax, the iron oxide readily separated with the
slag; result, 311 gr. gold 871-1000 fine; a second smelting brought this
up to 914-1000 fine. Proportion of smelted gold to amalgam, one-fifth.

The principal point about this mode of treatment is the squeezing out
of the mercury, whereby the amalgam goes into the retort in the form of
powder, thus preventing the slagging of the iron and enclosure of
the gold. The second point of importance is thorough calcining before
smelting.

Of course it would be practicable, if