Impressions of Spain

by Albert Frederick Calvert

The Rio Rimal Mines, in the province of Gerona, are situated close to the quaint old-world village of San Lorenzo, which stands, surrounded by its mediæval fortifications, at the foot of a high mountain. Far above it an ancient watch-tower still looks out over the wide expanse of plain and valley. It is broken and weather-beaten, but is otherwise as it was left by the old Moorish warriors who built it. Within a mile or two, on the east and west, are the comparatively modern fortified places of Figueras and Rosas. In the municipality of San Lorenzo, at the beginning of the last century, was a huge Government Arsenal and Smelting Works, where the metals won from the neighbouring mountains were cast into cannon, and made into shot and shell. Among the hills are still to be seen the remains of busy mining camps where hundreds of men were once engaged in working the mineral deposits. Before Napoleon’s all-conquering marshals marched across the frontier the Spanish Government blew up the arsenal, destroyed the smelting works, and concealed the entrance to the more important workings. Nothing remains to-day but a few melancholy ruins to show the extent of the former operations.

The Government factories were never re-constructed. The proximity to the border, and the exposed nature of the country, combined with the experience of the then recent events, rendered the situation too insecure for the purpose, and the arsenals of San Lorenzo were re-built on more powerfully-protected spots at Ferrol and Carthagena.

Even the massive stone bridge over the river Muga, which was blown up to impede the passage of the French troops, has never been rebuilt. The interesting point about all this is the fact that somewhere, close at hand in the hills, must exist the mineral deposits which fed the factories before the Peninsula War. The tunnels and workings have been very effectually concealed—by no means a difficult matter. A few barrels of gunpowder would have brought down hundreds of tons of rock and débris over the mouth of the shafts and galleries, and left no trace of human handiwork. But that these mines are still there, and waiting only to be re-discovered, is an indisputable fact.

The operations of the Spanish owners on the Rio Rimal property commenced, as modern engineering science counselled, near the bottom of the hill, and they put in their galleries and levels to tap at lower depth the richest portion of the reserves of copper. But work had only been in progress for about years when the Carlist war broke out. For seven years operations had to be suspended, and during the whole of that period the mine was abandoned. When the owners again turned their attention to the property, it was to find that many parts of their galleries had caved in, and the mine had become flooded. After a considerable interval, the worst parts of the galleries were repaired. The water was pumped out, the level and inclined shaft were cleared, and work was resumed. The price of copper in 1874 at Swansea was very low, and the method of inclined shaft workings being very costly, all hope of continuing to work the property at a profit was extinguished. For thirty years nothing was done at the mine. In 1898 an endeavour was made by the present owners to obtain possession of the mines, but it was not until January, 1902, that work was resumed on the property.

It was then decided that the most profitable course to be adopted was to concentrate all labour upon the work of repairing and unwatering the second level, and of driving a further level some ninety or 100 feet lower down the mountain side. This work was at once put in hand, and the north-west gallery was driven a distance of 185 feet on the line of the lode, cutting entirely through the same for the whole distance. In many places the lode is mineralised for a width of fifteen inches, the ore assaying thirty-three per cent. copper. In driving this gallery some splendid copper was obtained. Work on the level has in the meantime been progressing steadily, although the workmen experienced great difficulty on account of the hardness of the rock. At the beginning of this drive a very hard conglomerate was encountered, which resisted all tools. For a time the formation defied dynamite, and small progress was made until the sandstone ground was reached. Thereafter work became easier, and consequently more rapid.

The Buena Presa property, which adjoins the Rio Rimal Mine on the north, was subsequently acquired, thus increasing the original area by 141 acres. The Rio Rimal lode traverses the adjoining concession for a distance of about 2,100 feet. It is a strongly-defined masterly lode, and has every appearance of producing large quantities of mineral when developed. Judging from the outcrops, it resembles the Rio Rimal lode in every respect; and although no systematic work has been done upon it, the probability is that it will be found to be of equal value.

The Coruna Copper Mines.

The Coruna Copper Company’s property, which covers an area of 2,540 acres—a tract of country more than six times as large as Hyde Park—is situated in the mining district of Santiago, and is connected with the railway, which is about eight miles distant, by a first-class road. The country in which the concession is situated, consists of a series of low rolling hills, and the character of the ore, so far as it has yet been explored by the prospecting operations, is very similar to that produced by the Rio Tinto and Tharsis Mines. It is a low grade copper ore, carrying on the average twenty-three per cent. of sulphur, and from two to three per cent. of copper. No attempt was made by the late owners to determine by a systematic series of borings the extent over which the mineral actually exists, or the depth and character of the ore; but the prospecting work already carried out by the English company, and the natural outcrops found at many points on the concession, place it, in the estimation of some mining experts, quite beyond doubt that the mass of mineral is one of the largest known, extending in one direction for over two miles, apparently without a break. This preliminary work has clearly proved the whole of the north-west quarter of the concession; and taking the outcrops into account, one-half of the whole ground is assumed to contain mineral. Three shafts and nine trenches are being sunk, and numerous outcrops have also been located on the concession. The original estimate of the quantity of mineral was 50,000,000 cubic metres, equal in round figures to 250,000,000 tons. The most recent assays indicate a mean of three per cent. copper in the ore. The prospecting work has in every instance proved the accuracy of original estimates as to the value of the property, as well as the correctness of the opinion, that a very large output could be obtained with practically none of the unproductive development work required in most mining enterprises. It was recommended that mining operations should be chiefly “open-cut,” and of the simplest character, the exceptionally favourable conditions under which the ore exists rendering operations an extremely easy and inexpensive matter. The property is being opened up on these lines, and it is considered there will be no difficulty in supplying the concentrating works with 1,000, 2,000, or even 3,000 tons per day, all obtained from open cutting.

Tin.—The Mines of Beariz.

Fortunately for the present proprietary of the Beariz Mines, the late owners possessed considerable technical knowledge; and if the property was not worked extensively by them, the work was prosecuted on right lines. They overhauled the Roman shafts and put in new galleries; and at a time when the standard price of metallic tin was £153 a ton the mine returned the owners a handsome profit. Some years ago, when the mines were reopened and actively exploited, a large number of hands were engaged; and although the ore had to be carted by road to Vigo, large profits were made. Gradually the price of tin dropped, and the profits shrank until operations could only be conducted at a loss. Then work was suspended. Since 1878 the Beariz Mines have remained idle, save for the persistence of the “Tributors,” who have continued to make a livelihood by washing alluvials.