1a bellows.
From the crucible is a small pipe through which the molten
bismuth runs down into a dipping-pot, and from this cakes are made.
bismuth runs down into a dipping-pot, and from this cakes are made.
On a dump thrown up from the mines, other people construct a hearth
exposed to the wind, a foot high, three feet wide, and four and a half feet
long. It is held together by four boards, and the whole is thickly coated at
the top with lute. On this hearth they first put small dried sticks of fir wood,
then over them they throw broken ore; then they lay more wood over it,
and when the wind blows they kindle it. In this manner the bismuth drips
out of the ore, and afterward the ashes of the wood consumed by the fire and
the charcoals are swept away. The drops of bismuth which fall down into
the hearth are congealed by the cold, and they are taken away with the
tongs and thrown into a basket. From the melted bismuth they make
cakes in iron pans.
exposed to the wind, a foot high, three feet wide, and four and a half feet
long. It is held together by four boards, and the whole is thickly coated at
the top with lute. On this hearth they first put small dried sticks of fir wood,
then over them they throw broken ore; then they lay more wood over it,
and when the wind blows they kindle it. In this manner the bismuth drips
out of the ore, and afterward the ashes of the wood consumed by the fire and
the charcoals are swept away. The drops of bismuth which fall down into
the hearth are congealed by the cold, and they are taken away with the
tongs and thrown into a basket. From the melted bismuth they make
cakes in iron pans.
A—HEARTH IN WHICH ORE IS MELTED. B—HEARTH ON WHICH LIE DROPS OF
BISMUTH.
C—TONGS. D—BASKET. E—WIND.
C—TONGS. D—BASKET. E—WIND.
Others again make a box eight feet long, four feet wide, and two feet high,
which they fill almost full of sand and cover with bricks, thus making
the hearth. The box has in the centre a wooden pivot, which turns in a hole
in two beams laid transversely one upon the other; these beams are hard and
thick, are sunk into the ground, both ends are perforated, and through
which they fill almost full of sand and cover with bricks, thus making
the hearth. The box has in the centre a wooden pivot, which turns in a hole
in two beams laid transversely one upon the other; these beams are hard and
thick, are sunk into the ground, both ends are perforated, and through