COPPER, one of the metals; for the properties ofwhich, see CHEMISTRY-Index in this Supplement.—The Chinese have a metal which they call pe-tung, butwhich Sir George Staunton denominates White Copper. This metal has a beautiful silver-like appearance, and a very close grain. It takes a finepolish, and many articles of neat workmanship, in imita-tion of silver, are made of it. An accurate analysis hasdetermined it to consist of copper, zinc, a little silver;and in some specimens a few particles of iron and ofnickel have been found. From this account it wouldappear that white copper is not an artificial mixture ofmetals, but is found native in the mine. Yet in thevery same page and paragraph, Sir George proceeds to say that Dr Gillan was informed at Canton, that theartists, in making their pe-tung, reduce the copper into as thin sheets or laminae as possible, which they makered hot, and increase the fire to such a pitch as to soft-en in some degree the laminae, and to render them re-ady almost to flow. In this state they are suspendedover the vapour of their purest tu-te-nag or zinc, placedin a subliming vessel over a brisk fire. The vapour thuspenetrates the heated laminae of the copper, so as to re-main fixed with it, and not to be easily dissipated orcalcined by the succeeding fusion it has to undergo.The whole is suffered to cool gradually, and is thenfound to be of a brighter colour, and of a closer grain,than when prepared in the European way. Surely thisis not the white copper, which consists of copper, zinc,silver, iron, and nickel.