Humberside Collegiate Institute - Hermes Yearbook (Toronto, Ontario Canada)

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ii i i i is i f.7a?5f?! XXX rf-ie Hammer rehnery. Twice a week the visitors are allowed by special permission to see the gold go through the Howing process caused by heating. It Hows as a red hot liquid into iron pans, and when it has cooled, emerges as a solid block. In the stamper,' the Hol- linger seal is pressed upon it and the gold is ready for shipment to almost any part of the world. The Hollinger has extended her search for mineral wealth into the newly-prospected lands of Kami- scotia, some twenty miles northwest of Timmins, and holds high hopes of discovering a rich vein in this area. With all this important work going on in the Hollinger, the mining region is not devoid of beauty spots. Whethei' you drive in from Timmins or arrive by train from North Bay, you will not fail to see the beautiful coloured which marks the main entrance to the mine. ln the centre of a circular garden a well-polished but exceedingly old piece of machinery stands in solitary glory. It is the iirst stamper ever used in the Hollinger. The tennis courts are situated farther along a circling road which leads to the beautiful homes of Alexander Brigham, general manager, and of John Knox, assistant manager, of the Hollinger. Many men are kept happy by employinentg the mine brings in countless riches to the Dominion annuallyg and the officials expect that for the next iifteen or twenty years the Hollinger will continue to produce the equivalent to the one hundred and forty millions in gold which she has brought to Canada in the past. fountain in front of the ofhce building, -M. Tilly, II-C. s 'Q X17 1 ,. Q if l I .Au X ,X , dl 2 k T X f T - g H Z -- 2f'X F -K 107 X NX

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THE I-igrewu-gf The Hollinger Mz'ne A quarter of a century ago the mineral lands of Northern Gntario lay unmolested. Until 1909, when Benny Hollinger borrowed money-to furnish himself with equipment for prospecting and forced his way north- Ward, the people looked upon the country as being too rocky to show any profit for excavating the fold that might be in those huge boulde1'S. The ore on Hollinger's staking, which made him famous in Canada's mining history, proved to be of the best quality. The production mounted each year until a great catastrophe sweptiover the north in 1911. It took the form of an enormous bush-hre. and as the Hollinger stood in the centre of a forest belt, every building was swept out. The immense cost of reorganizing the work of the mine set them back so far that for several years they made little headway. Eventually the mine was put into working order and modern structures replaced the old wooden buildings. Now, the Hollinger is pointed out as being one of the best equipped producers. Benny Hollinger did not live to -see the fulfilment of his dreams. After several years of hard toil he sold his share of the claims for a compara- tively small sum and died soon after. The mine now employs two thousand four hundred men, the majority of whom work underground. They are equipped with waterproof hats and coats and long rubber boots. Small miners' lamps, attached to their cap-bands, complete the uniform. The miners are lowered beneath the sur- face in large wood and iron cages, similar to huge boxes. These eleva- tors are worked by an electric system in the hoist-house. From this little flat-roofed house two large cables extend to the top of an immense shaft and then downward inside of the building where they are attached to the cage. Owing to the lack of air under- ground the compressive air plant is working continually to keep the tem- perature at a certain degree and pro- tect the miners from the danger of escaping gas. On being dropped into the depths of the earth, a sickening breath of warm air will greet the visitor, and upon looking around he will find him- self in a disagreeably dark place filled with eerie noises. The low rumbling thuds. often heard on the surface, tell the ground men that a blast has passed off suc- cessfully underground. VVhen a tunnel has been dug out after an explosion, the men set to work, some- times knee-deep in poisonous water. to excavate the ore which is piled into iron cars and dragged by a miniature engine over part of the one hundred and ten miles of underground railway to the cages. T Having once reached the surface the rock is sent to the crusher, where it is ground into small pieces. Iron buckets run on a railway built from the top of the crusher to the mill, and carry the ore to this building so that the mineral may be taken from the ordinary rock. Often small quan- tities of copper, silver or some other ore is found mixed with the gold. ln the mill, this, too, is separated from the mineral which is sent to the 115

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4 S I ti -- Q - T H E E M Ef A M bl D S emom e JW 5 X Pu 3 . 1, ' HIS memorable day was Atter our noon meal we walk to the 3 Q CQ spent in the Cen- push-car tracks, and -here begins the 1: 5 ,gif tral mountains ot most enjoyable part of our trip. Here E, For mosa, Japan. we see push cars lined up ready to G L 1 where live the savage tribes of that island. Q The first stage ot our trip is taken in rickshaws. Then we travel in a small train, passing sugar cane and rice fields. Gradually the country rises in terraces, till we arrive at a small station in the foothills. Out of courtesy two Japanese police- men accompany us from here on and act as guides. A few minutes' walk brings us to the Japanese Inn. It is a square, frame building with a thatched root and a narrow verandah on all sides. There are three main rooms. Their floors are covered with finely woven grass mattresses, approximately two inches thick, called tatami. These rooms are seemingly empty, and have sliding doors on three sides.. The other sides are given over to large cupboards with sliding doors. We shall later learn of their use. The three rooms are easily made into one large room by sliding back the par- titions. Before stepping up on to the raised floors, we take off our shoes. A polite little -Iapanese maid, dressed in a dainty kimono comes to wait on us, and greets us with a low, gracious bow. First she goes to the cupboards and pulls out large, rather flat, square cushions for us to sit on. Then she brings in some small low tables not a foot high. She serves us with little cups of hot tea which is very refresh- ing. 'ii start, a coolie by each one. The push- car runs on narrow tracks, the rails being two feet apart. They are low, tlat cars with a post at each corner and an upturned box in the middle. Two people can sit on this box quite comfortably. VVide pith hats are necessary to protect one from the tropical sun, so when everyone is seated and umbrellas are hoisted the coolies commence pushing the cars. VVhen we are travelling at a fair speed they stand on the back. holding on to a post and pushing with one foot. Shooting down valleys is one of the most exciting rides I know, very much like the roller-boller coaster at an exhibi- tion. But going uphill pays for the fun of coasting, for it is very slow, and sometimes we have to get out and walk to the top. Magnificent scenery surrounds us all the way. Qver there is a deep gorge, where rushes a river full of falls and rapids. Along its banks grow tall ferns of all tropical varieties. Farther up grow beautiful trees and shrubs of vivid green shades. On all sides tower the high peaks. Some are covered with tall, waving grass several feet high, in the shape of domes. Others are bare, from landslides, except for short grass in some places. Some mountains are deeply hollowed, suggesting extinct volcanoes. Every- where is the dense, rich growth of plants. Sometimes when we look below we see little clearings with 108