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272 BOOK VIII.

are protected with long gloves, to prevent them from being injured by thechips which fly away from the fragments.

In that district of Greater Germany which is called Westphalia and inthat district of Lower Germany which is named Eifel, the broken ore whichhas been burned, is thrown by the workmen into a round area paved with thehardest stones, and the fragments are pounded up with iron tools, which arevery much like hammers in shape and are used like threshing sledges. Thistool is a foot long, a palm wide, and a digit thick, and has an opening in themiddle just as hammers have, in which is fixed a wooden handle of no greatthickness, but up to three and a half feet long, in order that the workmencan pound the ore with greater force by reason of its weight falling from agreater height. They strike and pound with the broad side of the tool, in thesame way as corn is pounded out on a threshing floor with the threshingsledges, although the latter are made of wood and are smooth and fixed topoles. When the ore has been broken into small pieces, they sweep ittogether with brooms and remove it to the works, where it is washed

A—Area paved with stones. B—Broken ore. C —Area covered with broken ore.D —Iron tool. E —Its handle. F —Broom. G —Short strake. H —Wooden hoe.