Mr. Blanford examined a promising lead vein at Chieholi, near Raipur.
Lead is found in several places in the Burmese territories, but is chiefly brought from the Shan States. It is used all over Burma for musket bullets, in refining silver, and as small change in the bazars. Its price varies from 5 to 8 tikals the visa. Lead is found in abundance in the Shan States, and is extracted front galena. It is also imported from Yunnan.
Lead ore of the richest kind, and containing a large quantity of silver, is obtained in the province of Mergui.
In the valley of the Salwin there is a rich vein of argentiferous galena. A specimen that Dr. Morton sent to England for analysis contained lead, sulphur, silver, gold (traces), lime, magnesia, iron, silica, carbonic acid.
Ina small band-specimen of ore from Martahan, the amount of silver was found to vary in different portions of it, the percentage of lead being about 75. In the first trial the silver was found to amount to about 70 ounces to the ton of ore ; but in the second to not less than 300 ounces in the ton, or a little less than 1 per cent.
Lead ore is found in Amherst, at Tounghoo, in Maingay Island, and in the Pahpoon district ; the latter yielding 50 per cent. of lead and 31 ounces of silver to the ton.
The primary ranges in S.E. Asia and the Indian Archipelago are all more or less metalliferous.
Lead mines are worked in that part of the Malaya range which traverses the kingdom of Ava ; and copper mines have been opened in the Annam or Cochin-Chinese range, the produce of which is equal in quality to South American copper, but inferior to that of Japan.
Iron is smelted from the native ores on the western side of the Annam range.
The tin of the Malay Peninsula, I3anca, and Billiton, and the gold of the Peninsula, Borneo, and Celebes, are all collected from the detritus in which the projected metal has been deposited. Lead and antimony ores are found in the Cambo dian range to the north of Kampot.
In China a mine of the zinkenite lead ore occurs 15 miles from Chefoo ; the ore contains 38 per cent. of antimony.
Galena occurs in China, in Chekiang, Foh kien, and Sze-cbuen.
Acetate of lead, Yuen-shwang, BuaxesE, is made • by the Chinese by mixing up an amalgam of 14 parts of lead and 1 part of mercury, and exposing sheets of it to the fumes of vinegar in covered jars for some time.
Black lead or plumbago is an iron ore found in Ceylon, in Travancore, also in the Northern Circars at Vizianagram. It is sold for antimony in the bazars.
Carbonate of lead, called also sub-carbonate of lead, white lead, or cerussa, is used as a white paint.
Chromate of lead, Valayati peori, is a precipitate produced by the addition of bichromate of potash to a solution of acetate of lead. It is the chrome yellow of artists' colourmen, and called peori from its resemblance to the Hardwari peori or Indian yellow.
Red lead.
Isrcnj, ARAB. Sala Ianganm, . MALAY.
Irsang, . . . Galonggam, .
Yuen-tan, Tan-fen, CHIN. Tnnuonerd, . .
Chu•fon, Ilung•tan, „ Scgappu sinduram, TAN.
Ingur, Sandur, . IIIxo. Yerra sinduram, . Minium, . . . . LAT. Gunge sanduram, . TIB.
This is largely used in India and China for painting, glass-making, and decoration. It is manufactured in Kiang - si in China. In the Madras Presidency it is used both as a idols, and a drier by moochees. Hindus use it for re ligious purposes, smearing it on their dols, etc., putting it on their rupees at certain seasons for good luck ; and in numerous places in the Penin sula it is to be seen smeared on stones to convert them into • dev ' or objects of worship.
Semivitrified oxide of lead.
Mih-to-sang, . . . CHIN. Murdar singh, . . HIND. Litharge, . . ENG., FR. Lithargyrum, . . LAT. Blei-oxyd, . . . GER. Murdara-singy, . . TEL.
When lead continues to be exposed to a current of heated air, the surface of the metal becomes rapidly covered with a scaly powder of a sulphur yellow colour. This is the protoxide of lead, and, being skimmed off, is known in commerce by the name of massicot. When the heat is continued to a bright red, some metallic lead is separated, the oxide is fused, though imperfectly, and on cooling becomes an aggregated mass, which readily separates into crystalline scales of a greyish-red colour. These form the litharge of commerce, which varies in colour, and is called gold litharge when of a red colour, owing to the presence of a little red lead, but silver litharge when lighter coloured. These are frequently obtained in the process of refining gold and silver by means of lead, and in separating the silver from argenti ferous lead. The litharge of commerce is liable to contain a little iron, also copper, carbonate of lead, silica and other earths. Litharge is employed for making diacetate of lead, and by combining with oil to form the leacPplaster. It is used as a drier in painting, but only seldom, the red lead being preferred by moochees ; it is, however, suitable for rendering drying oil for varnishes.
White carbonate of lead.
Isfidaj, . . . . ARAB. Bleiweiss, . . . . Gm.
Peh-fen, Fen-sih, CHIN. Kohlen saures hlei-oxyd, „ Kwang-fen, Fen-yuen, „ Safida, . . HIND., TEL.
Hu-fen, Kwan-fen, „ Tima-putih, . . MALAY.
Shwui-fen, Yuen-fen, „ Valle, TAM. Carbonate de plomb, . FR.
This is a manufacture used as a white paint. When exposed it rapidly decomposes the oil with which it is mixed, or it changes from the presence of hydrate of lead or adulterating additions. Oxides of lead are avoided in all outside work in India.
Yellow oxide of lead is the Hwang-tan of the Chinese, and massicot of the English.—Newbold; Powell ; Turner's Embassy; M. E. J. R.; Ains. ; Oldham in Yule's Embassy ; Gerard's Koonawar ; Cat. Exhib., 1862; Mason's Tenasserim; Smith's Mat. Med. ; Rohde, MSS. ; Birdwood, Bombay Products; Boyle, Mat. Med.