mg the whinftone; a fingular circumftance
which alfo occurs in Brown’s vein, and
the mines at Wanlock Head, &c.
The veins produce oxyd of copper,
mountain cork, and great variety of carbonates,
phofphates, and molybdates of
lead, with quartz and calcareous fpar; and
fometimes barytes.
At Wanlock Head, diftant two miles to
the fouth, are fome rich mines belonging
to the Duke of Queensberry; the fnbftan-
ces being much the fame as at Lead Hills.
Near the latter mines native gold is procured
in grains, by a fimple, but interefting
procedure. A perfon who underftands the
bufinefs, (and little art is required,) takes
about 20 or 30 pounds of earthy matter,
as near the folid rock as poflible, and putr
ting it in a trough, he proceeds to a rivulet,
pillipg the trough with water, he turns
the earth a little with a fmall lhovel, and
places, it in the current, which carries off
the light earth; and the ftones are thrown
out. This procefs is repeated till little,
be left; which is turned again and again,
in the running ftream, till it dimi-r
nifties to a few ounces, chiefly of lead ore
and other heavy particles 5 among which,
a few grains of gold are almoft always discovered,
their gravity precipitating them to
the bottom.
On enquiring if it would be produ&ive
to conduct thefe operations on a large
fcale, I was anfwered in the negative. The
fmallnefs of the grains indeed afforded fuf-
ficient information; yet the certainty of
finding gold, more or lefs, is ftrikingly
fingular. Pieces have been found above
an ounce in weight, and I am informed,
that Lord Hopton has a piece yet heavier
in his poffeflion. A. company of (Germans
once worked here for gold; and the manager