The South African Mines - Cast

The South African Mines (1914)
Short | Documentary, Short

Primary photo for The South African Mines

The South African Mines (1914)

Short | Documentary, Short

Johannesburg, the metropolis of South Africa, a progressive city of about the same size as Denver, is the center of the gold mining industry. In its vicinity are the celebrated Rand mines which annually produce more gold than any other ...See moreJohannesburg, the metropolis of South Africa, a progressive city of about the same size as Denver, is the center of the gold mining industry. In its vicinity are the celebrated Rand mines which annually produce more gold than any other group of mines in the world. Views are shown of the more important mines in this group: The Joch, the Robinson Deep, and the Meyer and Charlton. In the latter mine, the gold-bearing rock is mined at a depth of 3,000 feet, brought to the surface and crushed by rotating tubes, or in the Stamp Mill. The crushed ore is dumped into the cyanide tanks. The cyanide solution dissolves the gold from the rock, and the gold is recovered from the cyanide solution by a simple reduction with heat. The principal diamond mines are situated near Kimberley and Pretoria. Of all of them, the Kimberley mine is the most famous. The diamonds are found in a sort of volcanic mud, known as "Blue Earth." This is removed from the mine, and dumped on fields known as "The Floors" which are surrounded by an intricate system of barbed wire fences. The "Blue Earth" is allowed to weather here for a year. After it has been thoroughly broken up by the action of the elements, it is removed to the washing plant, where its soluble portions are removed by water. The remaining insoluble "diamond mud" is sent to the pulsator, an interesting series of revolving greased tables. These greased tables catch the diamonds, while all other matter is removed by gentle streams of water. After a number of interesting views of life in the miners' compound, a portion of a day's output of diamonds, valued at $55,000, is shown. Written by Moving Picture World synopsis See less

Contacts

+ Add

Become a member to see contact information for The South African Mines.

Cast	+ Add Cast
0 cast members

Contribute to this section by adding a cast member

Add cast

There was an issue loading this tab.

MOVIEmeter

Members only

Become a member to access additional data

Ratings Breakdown

Something went wrong. Try entering your rating again

+ Add external reviews

Contacts

Cast

MOVIEmeter

Ratings Breakdown

MAIN MENU

YOUR TOOLS

YOUR ACCOUNT

IMDbPro