FORTiA’s TRAVELS IN SWEDEN.

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it ; it is ftirred with a fort of blunt flick; this operation is termed the wafhing. In thispart of the building there are eight wafhing machines, and fifty-fix are diflributed in dif-ferent other places. As the mine is on the oppofite fide of the town* an eflablifhmentis about to be formed in its neighbourhood, fioiilar to .this for pounding and wafhing theore; the carriage thus will be lefs, when the ufeiefs matter is feparated from the oretaken for melting. The wafhing yields two kinds of ore ; that which remains at thebottom is the richeft. From this part we went to where it is calcined; they make ufeof wood for heating their furnaces, two in number, each of which works three fchip-punds of ore at a time. In another building a wheel adfs upon eight pair of bellows,and a number of wooden mallets ufed to pound the charcoal which is afterwards mixedwith clay, and ferves to form the bed on which the lead and filver runs, upon theirflowing from the furnace. In another building the calcined ore is thrown upon burn-ing charcoal. In this building there are four furnaces on the firft flory; and in one ad-joining two others of like defcription much lefs high. The melted matter falls, andwhen the fcoriae are taken off, an iron crow is ft'ruck into the body of the furnace, andthe metal runs into a hole made in the ground ; by a fecond procefs it is fhaped into in-gots, in moulds, and in this flate it is Amply filver and lead. Adjoining is a houfe con-taining a furnace in which the lead is feparated from the filver; in this operation thelead becomes vitrified, and is afterwards reduced to its natural flate; this operation takesup eight and forty hours; a very hot fire for eight or nine hours is requifite as a ladprocefs, to purify the filver entirely from the little l?ad which flill remains; this is donein a brick furnace placed under a bell, and the method ufed is much the fame as thatin practice at Freyberg. One quintal of ore yields between * two and three loths ofpure filver, and ten pounds of lead.

The wages of the workmen vary, fome are paid by the job, others by the month orday ; fome receive no more than from one to two rix-dollars a month ; then feeing theywork for twenty-four hours at a ftretch, have a reft-day alternately, with a day of la-bour : the foremen of the foundry may earn about 50 rix-dollars per annum, the com-mon workmen from 16 to 25. A warehoufe is to be built for the charcoal; the car-cafe is already compleat. On the fide of the foundry you have a delightful profpedt ofa fmall lake, three quarters of a mile long, and a furlong broad. In another brickbuildinr, two large furnaces are conftrudling, coated externally with iron and granite;the interior is to be of fiheljiein , a ilone which refifts fire ; it is expected they will becompleated this year 1791, when the two others we have before-mentioned are to bedeftroved ; thefe are in a feparate building where the poorer part of the ore, fuch as isnot waflied, is roafted ; it is blended with fulphur for the purpofe of extrafting the fmallpot tion of filver it contains. Four open furnaces are conftantly at work, and two fmalleronts; in thefe layers of charcoal are placed upon layers of ore, and a ftratum of coal atthe top. On thefe not only is that ore laid apparently but poor, but fuch fcoriac as arefufpe&ed to contain any particles of filver, fo that this matter thus roafted confifts ofiron, fulphur, fcorite, and limeftone. This operation has the efteft of caufing the ful-phur to* evaporate, the iron to become calx, and fits them to melt together with thepowd-r of filver and lead. For this calcination five hours are requifite-; five fchip-pur.ds of ore may thus be calcined daily ; the pure leaden ore'ds called fchlichter. Theexpenses of the foundry are about 6000 rix-dollars.

The mine of Sablberg is fituated half a league from Sahla, and belongs entirely to in-dividuals ; it is divided into one hundred and fixty lots or fhares, to each lot belonging

* From an ounce to an ounce and a half Englifb, Avoirdupois weight.

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