k,
which renders the expense of digging vastly greater. In such cases,
unless great certainty exists of striking a rich vein of gold beneath,
the labor is suspended, the spot vacated, and another selected with
perhaps like results.

Occasionally some sanguine operator will push his well down through
fifty feet of solid rock at a great outlay, and with vast labor, to
find himself possessed of the means for a large fortune, while another
will find himself ruined by his failure to strike the expected gold.

When the pay-dirt is reached, its depth and the number of zolotniks of
gold in every pood taken out are ascertained. With the results before
him a practical miner can readily decide whether a place will pay for
working. Of course he must take many contingent facts into
consideration, such as the extent of the placer, the resources of the
region, the roads or the expense of making them, provisions, lumber,
transportation, horses, tools, men, and so on through a long list.

The earth over the pay-dirt is broken up and carted off; its great
depth causes immense wear of horseflesh. A small mine employs three or
four hundred workmen, and larger ones in proportion. I heard of one
that kept more than three thousand men at work. The usual estimate for
horses is one to every two men, but the proportion varies according to
the character of the mine.

The pay-dirt is hauled to the bank of the river, where it is washed in
machines turned by water power. Various machines have been devised for
gold-washing, and the Russians are anxious to find the best invention
of the kind. The one in most general use and the easiest to construct
is a long cylinder of sheet iron open at both ends and perforated with
many small holes. This revolves in a slightly inclined position, and
receives the dirt and a stream of water at the upper end. The stones
pass through the cylinder and fall from the opposite end, where they
are examined to prevent the loss of 'nuggets.' Fine dirt, sand, gold,
and water pass through the perforations, and are caught in suitable
troughs, where the lighter substance washes away and leaves the black
sand and gold.

Great care is exercised to prevent thefts, but it does not always
succeed. The laborers manage to purloin small quantities, which they
sell to contraband dealers in the larger towns. The government forbids
private traffic in gold dust, and punishes offences with severity; but
the profits are large and temptin