Mining. [WASH sb. or v.] Auriferous soil or gravel to be submitted to washing.
1864. Eliz. Murray, Ella Norman, III. 58. Under the wash-dirt or stuff … there is always pipeclay.
1864. J. Rogers, New Rush, II. 30.
| A bucket-full of wash-dirt tried—the best,— | |
| Is of its value a sufficient test. |
1877. Raymond, Statist. Mines & Mining, 43. Large piles of wash-dirt are accumulated to be washed in the winter.
1890. Goldfields of Victoria, 28. Good tin can be obtained, mixed with a fair percentage of gold in the dish of washdirt.
