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By J. L. Leland Myer

Some of the early experiments on the oxidation temperature of coal1 were undertaken in England in connection with a study of self-heating, or spontaneous combustion. It was then suspected that coals with low oxidation temperature were most likely to ignite by self-heating, but further experiments showed that many additional factors were involved. The oxidation temperature has importance as a physical property or characteristic of the coal. While only a few of the physical properties have been studied, they appear to have basic significance2 in the ultimate classification of all coals. When reliable data become available on the oxidation temperatures, as determined by standard and adequate methods, it should provide an additional basis for classification and comparative evaluation. Oxidation Temperature Defined For such a heterogeneous substance as coal is known to be, no simple definition of oxidation temperature can be established on a theoretical basis. If coals were homogeneous and of simpler structure, the accepted definition of "ignition temperature " as applied to simple gaseous mixtures might be adopted; that is, the temperature at which self-heating of the mixture sets in. But most coals self-heat slightly even at storage temperature, as evidenced by spontaneous combustion, and the definition for gases cannot be applied to coals with any exactness. By subjecting coals to suitable experimental conditions various oxidation characteristics can be obtained and examined for critical or significant stages of the oxidation process. Oxidation temperature itself must then be defined on the basis of such experimental results. Experimental Methods Attempts to determine critical points in the temperature functions of coal undergoing oxidation have resulted in the following experimental methods:

Jan 1, 1932

By B. L. Cusack, N. W. Stump

Selected technological developments applicable to lead and zinc mineral processing and changes in Australian concentration practices made since 1770 are reviewed. Laboratory and pilot plant studies of two new ores have been conducted since 1770. These have resulted in final flowsheet proposals which are described. New production capacity since IT0 has been based on plant expansion or the retreatment of oxidised tailings from plants operating pre-1940ts. Major developments in existing plants have come from the application of computer control to crushing, grinding and flotation and the installation of on-stream analysis systems. Flowsheet configurations have been altered in a number of plants. Selected research topics applicable to lead and zinc processing are also reviewed.

Jan 1, 1977

By J. D. Lubahn, R. P. Carreker, J. G. Leschen

THE formation of slip bands in crystalline solids undergoing plastic deformation has recently been treated as a problem of nucleation and growth.1 A simplified theory was developed and shown to be qualitatively consistent with certain experimental observations reported in the literature, such as the frequent failure of slip bands to traverse the entire crystal, the effect of specimen diameter and temperature on the yield stress, and the occurrence of incubation periods in the deformation of suddenly loaded crystals. The theory further predicts the appearance of transients in the rate of strain of a crystal when the applied stress is suddenly changed from one constant value to another. A transient consists of a discontinuous change in the strain rate followed by a gradual approach to a steady-state value. Such transient behavior apparently has not been recognized in previous experimental work. The preliminary experiments reported in the present paper were undertaken to confirm the existence of the predicted transients and thus to determine whether a more detailed treatment of the nucleation theory of slip might be theoretically and experimentally fruitful. EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE A simple creep apparatus was assembled as shown in Fig 1. Very little insulation was used on the furnace in order to facilitate rapid changes of temperature. Temperature was measured with a thermometer placed in the center of the furnace and was [ ] controlled by adjusting the Variac setting. The specimens were cold-headed in split-cylinder grips. The strain was measured as total elongation by a dial gauge sensitive to 1/10,000-in. movement of the weight pan. Since the specimen gauge lengths were

Jan 1, 1948

By W. A. Mudge

ONE of the most prominent features of our present-day industrial development is the ever-increasing demand put upon materials of con-struction. Engineering ingenuity, within the past 25 years, has been unusually active, and in some fields at least engineers frankly say that engineering design has progressed as far as the limitations imposed by the properties of the present materials of construction will permit. Consequently, they are today demanding improvement in their working materials and seeking new ones, through the aid; of which the present limitations of design may be overcome. The activity of this search is evident in all fields, but it is particularly so in that of structural materials required to be resistant to corrosion. The corrosion resistance of metals and alloys is never absolute and all-inclusive; a particular alloy will withstand some corrosive conditions well and fail utterly tinder others. Furthermore; other properties, physical and mechanical, required in-conjunction with corrosion resistance vary considerably for different commercial applications. One wants a soft, ductile sheet metal resistant to atmospheric corrosion; another, a high-strength- alloy resistant to sulfuric acid. The last decade has witnessed active and definite progress in the development of high-strength, corrosion-resisting alloys. In June, 1924, a symposium by the American Society for Testing Materials, on Corro-sion-Resistant, Heat-resistant and Electrical-resistance Alloys, disclosed no less than 60 commercial alloys the properties of which were described as being suitable for industrial service where corrosion resistance

Jan 1, 1935

By B. H. Sage, W. N. Lacey, W. M. Morris

The volumetric behavior of isobutane at temperatures below its critical temperature has been studied by several investigators. Seibert and Burrelll measured the vapor pressure of isobutane from the ice point to the critical temperature. Dana and co-workers2 determined among other thermodynamic quantities the density of the saturated liquid and the saturated gas and the vapor pressure from approximately 0 to 130 F. Sage and Lacey3 studied a number of the thermodynamic properties of this hydrocarbon from 70" to 250" F. The specific volume in the gas and liquid region was determined at pressures up to 3000 Ib. per sq. in.? throughout this temperature interval. In addition, the vapor pressures were measured at 30" intervals. These data taken together serve to establish the thermodynamic behavior of isobutane at temperatures between 0" and 250" F. with reasonable accuracy. However, apparently there are no data available at the higher temperatures. For this reason an investigation of the volumetric behavior of isobutane at temperatures between 100" and 460" F. was carried out with apparatus that has been described in another paper (p. 136, this volume). Materials The isobutane used in this investigation was obtained from the Philgas Division of the Phillips Petroleum Co. That company's special analysis upon this sample indicated it to contain less than 0.03 mol per cent of impurities. In order to avoid traces of noncondensable gases, this hydrocarbon material was subjected to two successive fractionations at a high reflux ratio in a column approximately 4 ft. long and % in. in diameter, which was packed with small glass rings. The middle portion of distillate from the first fractionation was used in the second fraction-ation and a portion of the overhead from this second distillation process was repeatedly condensed at liquid-air temperatures at a pressure only slightly above the sublimation pressure of isobutane at this temperature.

Jan 1, 1940

By Marc Lemieux

Computer pit design techniques generally make use of models in which the deposit is represented by a regular array of data. Using a regular system, the number of data points required to represent the air, waste and mineralization in a large deposit become excessive. The number of blocks used to describe the deposit is dependent upon the block size. The quality of the pit wall slope design also is dependent upon the block size used and the method of defining the slope. The error associated with reserve calculations becomes greater with increasing block size. A deposit model consisting of variable sized air and mineralized blocks has been developed at the University of British Columbia and improved upon at Climax for pit design work. The method permits put- ting the entire model in core for rapid data processing. This permits the use of a versatile cone generation technique which allows close adherence to variable slope constraints in all directions. The conical shape is approximated by rectangles on each level which equal the area of the ideal conical intersection. The shape of the intersection may vary from approximately circular to elipsoidal. The approximate cone shape is controlled by the slope constraints applicable at the point of intersection on the bench. The overall modeling technique greatly assists the pit design engineer in developing a high quality pit design.

Jan 1, 1977

By George A. Bell

THE mine and milling plant of Demonstration Gold Mines, Ltd., is near the city limits of Baguio, Mt. Province, P. I. The mine road connects with the main highway to Manila. The nearest railway point is near sea level, approximately 40 miles distant. The Baguio district is very mountainous and has one of the heaviest rainfalls in the world. It is therefore difficult to maintain roads or to impound tailings and mine dumps. All supplies are trucked into the district direct from Manila or the nearest railway point, which means uncertain deliveries and high freight rates. Installation of equipment is difficult and costly. The average elevation at the mine is 4000 ft. and the climatic conditions are ideal except for a three months rainy season. The company generates its own power for mining and milling operations with three 400-hp. Ruston Diesel engines direct connected to 250-kw. General Electric alternating current generators. Labor conditions have been excellent, although at present social security laws are causing some unrest. Labor receives a higher average wage rate in this district than other labor in the Islands. The company also furnishes free living quarters, hospitalization and work- men's compensation. Taxation has been reasonable up to the present time, but some of the new mining legislation may make it difficult to operate and pay dividends. The future depends largely upon the continuation of $35 gold and the political outcome in the Islands. HISTORY The Demonstration ore body was worked by the Igorots for many years, as evidenced by old stopes and fill encountered in present operations. Attention of Americans was first attracted soon after the Spanish- American war. During the building of the Benguet road to Baguio, the engineers and foreman became interested in the geology of the district.

Jan 1, 1939

By V. Sobitsky

In open cast mining of coal, the cost per ton of output is four to five times less and labor productivity five to six times higher than in under- ground mining. This is why the coal industry of the USSR is oriented toward giving priority to the development of open cast coal mining. Deposits of coal which lend themselves to open cast mining in the USSR are enormous, with 90% of them located in the eastern part of the country. The technique is by no means limited to the eastern part, however-despite wide variations in climate, other parts of the Soviet Union also use open cast mining. The occurrence and type of coal deposits in the USSR vary greatly. Some of them are flat coal seams 2 to 40 m thick, and a few are even thicker. There are also deposits having a complex mode of occurrence, such as a series of seams of different thicknesses with angles of dip varying from slightly inclined to steep, often with dislocations. Overburden materials are quite diverse with regard to physical and mechanical properties. There are three kinds encountered-loose or unconsolidated overburden, medium-hard material, and hard rock. The stripping ratio, i.e., the amount of cover per ton of mined coal, varies from 1 to 12 cu m per ton. SYSTEMS OF MINING The great diversity of natural conditions has brought forth a variety of technologies and techniques in the open cast mining of coal. In open cast practice, the following systems of mining are used : (1) a transportation system in which the overburden is transported to spoil banks by rail or by truck; (2) a system with direct disposal of overburden, the rocks being dumped on spoil banks with a stripping excavator; and

Jan 1, 1969

By Francis Pyne

THE following notes are presented in an endeavour to point out the disadvantages attending the use of chrome brick in reverberatory furnaces used in the treatment of materials that are too valuable to allow any great amount of metal absorption by the brick. Several years ago one of the large Eastern copper refineries decided to utilize basic material in place of siliceous material in the walls of their reverberatory furnaces for the treatment of very foul blister copper, as the latter rapidly corroded the siliceous linings. It was also expected that there would be less slag formation, with a consequent decrease in the cost of treatment and a reduction in the metal losses. Magnesite brick were first used, but while the corrosive action of the foul material was greatly reduced, and the amount of. slag formed was very much less, the magnesite proved to be unsatisfactory in certain parts of the furnace, because of its tendency to crack and span badly when subjected to the alternate heating and cooling that takes place in a reverberatory refining furnace. This made many repairs necessary, and consequent frequent interruption in the operation of the furnace, which, together with the high price of the magnesite brick, ran up the cost of maintenance to an unreasonable amount. It was, therefore, decided to substitute chronic brick for magnesite brick in the parts of the furnace affected. The results, as far as the reverberatory furnace was concerned, were very satisfactory. The corrosion due to the action of the foul blister was small and the amount of slag formed was no greater than when using magnesite, and the tendency to crack and spill shown by the magnesite was eliminated. Gradually the use of chrome brick was extended to all furnaces; those treating blister copper as well as those melting cathodes, and the results were so satin-, factory that the siliceous roofs were replaced by roofs of chrome brick except in certain places where experience showed a more satisfactory performance on the part of the silica brick.

Jan 12, 1917

By J. Richard Maier

Short-range mine planning (less than five years) previously was accomplished using contour and isopac maps, pencil and paper, an abacus, and our lucky quarter. Through the use of both micros and mainframe time sharing, Glenrock Coal Company (GCC) has been able to virtually put the old equipment away (except the problem solving quarter). In the process, GCC has saved many man-days and eliminated the more tedious parts of mine planning, such as picking elevations off a map with an engineer's scale and repetitive calculations. These savings have allowed GCC to do a more extensive job of mine planning as well as offer more alternatives, making GCC better prepared for possible economic changes. Mine planning, simply, involves looking at what has been done and deciding what needs to be done using various constraints. The application of this concept is not as easy as it sounds. The need for experience and insight cannot be replaced by a machine, but machines can supplement a person's ability by doing the bookkeeping and the repetitive work. Through the application of computers and their accessories, GCC has brought mine planning to a more modernized state. The following paper will detail the development and use of one system as used at GCC. Please note: In the figures and tables following, some of the data has been altered to protect confidential information used in mine planning.

Jan 1, 1983

By W. J. Reagan

A SURVEY of the literature on bottom-cast practice gives but scant information as to some of the real facts concerning this most interesting method of steel manufacture, and some of the information available is very misleading.1 An exceptionally good description of this method of pouring or teeming is to be found in an English publication2 on the heterogeneity of steel ingots. Quoting from this paper: (a) With bottom teeming, the metal rises steadily and progressively in the mold with the minimum possible agitation, the main force of the stream coming from the ladle being broken down or retarded by the down gate or runner. Further, the stream of metal from the ladle, under these conditions of casting, is invariably main-tained at a much more continuous rate and is steadier than with top teeming. (b) In view of the facts referred to in (a) it follows that with bottom teeming the metal is not exposed to atmospheric oxidation to anything like the same degree as with top teeming. In this paper it is intended to detail briefly some of the advantages of bottom-cast practice and to discuss the possibilities of iron-oxide control in the basic open-hearth furnace. A description of the type of charge, ingot mold set-up, etc., is found in detail in an earlier paper.3

Jan 1, 1934

By W. F. Holbrock

IN a previous paper1 a method for the measurement of the compara-tive desulphurizing power of slags was described and data, were presented covering the range of likely slags containing up to 10 per cent MgO. In the present work the range is extended to include Tags containing up to 20 per cent MgO, and the effect of temperature on 5 per cent and 15 per cent MgO sings over the range 147.5° to 1525° C. is included. The method used was that described in the previous paper except that some of the temperature measurements were made with a noble-metal thermocouple instead of a tungsten-graphite thermocouple. Twelve-gram charges of 0.S per cent sulphur-metal and 5-gram charges of slag were subjected to heating for 30 min. at a prescribed temperature. The charges were analyzed for sulphur content. For purposes of comparison, desulphuriz-ing power is defined as the ratio of the percentage of sulphur found in the slag to that found in the metal. Six slag and metal charges were made coincidentally in holes in a section of all electrode graphite rod. One slag and metal charge was used as a control by means of which adjustment in the desulphurization value could be made for small varia-tions in temperature and other factors. For convenient presentation of the data, the slags are arranged in groups -in each of which one of the four main slag components is constant. Thus, the 15 per cent MgO slags are presented separately from those containing 20 per cent MgO.

Jan 1, 1938

By Breaux B. Castleman

The ultimate test of a business strategy is whether it achieves the owner's objectives. Most shareholders are interested in growth and profits, and share values on stock exchanges are very often closely correlated with profit growth and profitability measured as return on equity (ROE). Strategic management, then, involves managing investments or resource allocations to optimize long-term growth and real return on equity, within reasonable limits of risk. Figure 1 shows a plot of the five year, weighted average ROE of a number of communications companies against their stock market valuations in 1983, measured as a ratio of market value to book value. The principal explanation of the differences in the relative valuations of the individual stocks is historical ROE, weighted toward the most recent years. Further analysis demonstrates the added importance of growth in explaining the differences in stock market to book ratios. [ ] Research conducted by Booz Allen and others in recent years suggests that the relationships between ROE and market to book multiples hold true in industry after industry. Furthermore, we have found that in assessing business strategies for companies in these industries, the analyses should focus on whether proposed strategies are likely to lead to consistent long-term growth in real ROE, without excessive leverage. Our research also reveals, however, that these approaches to strategy assessment are not consistently applicable in the natural resource extractive industries. Figure 2 shows a similar comparison of market to book values against five year average ROE for a group of nine mining companies in 1983. Market value of the shares shows little correlation with ROE. [ ] Analysis of the data for other extractive industries indicates a similar pattern; that is, low correlation between share values and

Jan 1, 1985

By William Kent

More than twelve years were spent by Wöhler at the instance of the Prussian Government in experimenting upon the resistance of iron and steel to repeated stresses. The results of his experiments are expressed in what is known as Wöhler's law, which is given in the following words in Du Bois's translation of Weyrauch:* " Rupture may be caused not only by a steady load which exceeds the carrying strength, but also by repeated applications of stresses, none of which are equal to the carrying strength. The differences of these stresses are measures of the disturbance of continuity, in so far as by their increase the minimum stress which is still necessary for rupture diminishes." A practical illustration of the meaning of the first portion of this law may be given thus: If 50,000 pounds once applied will just break a bar of iron or steel, a stress very much less than 50,000 pounds will break it if sufficiently often repeated. This is fully confirmed by the experiments of Fairbairn and Spangenberg, as well as by those of Wöhler; and, as is remarked by Weyrauch, it may be considered as a long-known result of common experience. It partially accounts for what Mr. Holley has called the " intrinsically ridiculous factor of safety of six." Another "long-known result of experience"—although this has not, as the writer believes, been investigated by scientific experimenters—is the fact that rupture may be caused by a succession of shocks or impacts, none of which alone would be sufficient to cause it. Wrought iron will crystallize by repeated blows in service and become weaker than cast iron. Iron axles, the piston-rods of steamhammers, and other pieces of metal subject to continuously repeated shocks invariably break after a certain length of service. They have a "life" which is limited. Iron rods in bridges sometimes crystallize and break, although the rods in most of our iron bridges

Jan 1, 1880

By J. Gordon Parr, L. P. Srivastava

DUWEZ1 has shown that pure titanium and pure zirconium transform martensitically during rapid cooling at temperatures about 30° and 15°C re spectively below their To temperatures. Holden et al.2 determined M, temperatures of Ti-Cu alloys by a metallographic technique applied to isothermally treated samples. Their results, superposed on the McQuillan3 version of the partial Ti-Cu diagram are shown in Fig. 1. Sources of metals were: Titanium: Iodide bar; Foote Mineral Co. Ltd. Zirconium: Iodide bar; Foote Mineral Co. LM. Copper: Spectrographic Standard; Johnson Matthey and Co. Ltd. Alloys were prepared by levitation melting under argon to the following nominal compositions:* 0.5, Quenching, at rates to about 8000°C per sec, was performed by cooling in a stream of helium (99.999 pct pure) a 3/64 in. cube of material previously heated by a tungsten coil in a system operating at. 10-5 mm Hg. Cooling rates below 200°C per sec w were obtained by controlling the current to the heater coil. The specimen was supported on a 32 gage Pt, Pt-Rh thermocouple attached through a DC amplifier to an Edin magnetic oscillograph (Model 8082) with a maximum chart speed of 250 mm per sec. Transformation temperatures were read off the oscillograph charts at the location of the beginning of the thermal arrest. The same specimen was quenched several times, and all runs were repeated on new samples. Regular calibrations of the oscillograph against a potentiometer were made between quenching experiments. The criterion of martensite formation was the effect of surface rumpling. Previously polished samples that showed a rumpled surface after transformation are assumed to have undergone martens itic transformation: transformations of a diffusion type produce no surface disturbance, Figs. 2 and 3. Electrochemical measurements were made in a cell described elsewhere4 whose electrodes were the martensitic and the diffusion-transformed materials in the following electrolytes:

Jan 1, 1962

By F. Selig, E. J. Couch

The following points serve to supplement the interesting theoretical study on forward combustion by Thomas, and may be of some general interest. The mathematical model presented by the author can be viewed as a first approximation to the problem of calculating the vertical burned height profile resulting from ignition of the interval | z |<h/2 in a very thick formation. However, the assumption of a given minimum combustion temperature T, would give a better approximation to the vertical burned profile if the burning height were not constrained to stay within the ignited layer. This follows from the fact that both fuel and oxygen are present in the adjacent region, |z|>h/2, and for certain combinations of process variables the temperature is sufficiently high for complete combustion to occur. In this case, the vertical coverage will first become greater than the ignited interval before cutting back to zero as the extinction limit is approached as shown in Fig. 1. Such growth of vertical coverage is possible if the minimum combustion temperature is less than the initial source temperature (r = rj) at the edge (z = h/2) of the ignited interval. But this latter temperature is equal to one-half the source temperature for the case of infinite burned height.&apos;,&apos; Thus growth will occur initially if The fact that the vertical burned height can be greater than the ignited interval complicates the picture considerably, as can be seen by referring to Fig. 1. Here burning occurs in Region A, whereas none was possible in the original mathematical model. At the same time, there is no combustion in Region B, contrary to the assumption of burning in the entire layer |z|<h/2. This apparent inconsistency suggests that the vertical coverage derived from this simple model does not adequately represent the vertical height of the burned zone. A more compatible model will result from the actual stepwise calculation of the burning length (as a function of time) that would give rise to the specified combustion temperature. This problem can be more conveniently attacked by using the temperature distribution, given by the author&apos;s Eq. 12, expressed in the integrated form:

By Leonard Waldo

PROBABLY some of the views advanced in this paper will appear, from a metallurgical standpoint, little less than revolutionary. It is with considerable hesitancy that I venture to offer a few thoughts concerning what, seems to me to be perhaps the most important development of metallurgy since the introduction of Bessemer steel. Dr. John Percy, with that rare insight which characterizes the epoch-making man, described in a communication to the Royal Society, about 1855, an alloy of duminum and copper which he called aluminum-bronze. The name has "stuck." The term "bronze" has been so variously used that I confess I do not know exactly what constitutes a bronze; but I know that in the great materials of engineering simplicity of composition is a cardinal excellence; and I wish to venture the suggestion that aluminum-bronze is not an alloy of aluminum and copper in any such sense as the compounds of tin and zinc with copper (except the copper-tin compound SnCn3) are alloys. There are several reasons which lead me to this view. In the first place, if a series of bars be prepared containing varying percentages of aluminum and copper, and the electrical conductivity of these bars be carefully determined, a curve of conductivity will be obtained, as shown in Fig. 1, which represents the result of such experiments. While I am not sure, at this time, that the values of conductivity shown in this diagram are wholly dependent upon the percentage of aluminum added, the assumption is a probable one; and the curve indicates that an extremely small percentage of aluminum affects the conductivity in a ratio out of all proportion to the amount of that metal. Another reason is drawn directly from experience in the foundry. If we take from the furnace a crucible containing melted aluminum and one containing melted copper, both at a little more than a red heat, and pour them together, the reaction is so intense that the

Jan 1, 1895

By R. R. Brandenthaler

Petroleum producers in the Mid-Continent field, up to the present time, have been more concerned with the mechanical operation and efficiency of the gas-lift than with its possible effects on the physical properties of the oil. As a result few specific data are available on the subject and contradictory opinions exist. Some operators are positive that the gravity of the oil is decreased, while others present data which definitely show that the gravity of the oil is increased. In other localities, some operators have given careful attention to the effect of the gas-lift on the gravity of the oil. When the emulsions formed have given much trouble, the problem has usually been dodged by placing the well on the pump. Certain Fundamentals Certain fundamental results may be expected under ordinary conditions and with all types of crude oil, when gas is the prime mover of oil in producing formations. For example, the gravity of oil will decrease as the rock pressure in the producing formation declines, the change being greater in the higher gravity oils. Furthermore, the character of emulsion formed is primarily dependent on the kind of oil, thus more refractory emulsions are formed from asphaltic-base oils, less refractory from mixcd-base oils, and the least refractory from paraffin-base oils. However, refractory emulsions are sometimes formed from paraffin or mixed-base oils that are difficult to treat by ordinary methods, especially by electrolytic processes. With oils having the same base, those of lighter gravity are less subject to the formation of emulsions, especially of refractory emulsions. There are two types of emulsions formed; namely, water-in-oil emulsions and oil-in-water emulsions. The former are the more common; in fact, very few examples of oil-in-water emulsions have been noted in the oil fields. The amount of water produced with the oil influences the percentage of emulsion formed. Agitation and velocity of flow play an important part in the forming of emulsions.

Jan 1, 1928

By Joshua E. Clayton

This remarkable gold and silver bearing district is situated on the middle fork of Boise River, in Alturas County, Idaho Territory, about eighteen miles north of Rocky Bar, and sixty-five to seventy miles, as the crow flies, east of Boise City, the capital of the Territory. This district lies in the very heart of one of the most wild and mountainous regions of Idaho. For many miles in every direction nothing can be seen but bold granite mountains, with deep narrow gorges cutting into their sides in every direction, rendering them almost inaccessible except to .the hardy mountaineer and adventurous prospector. The mountain sides are covered, in most part, by dense forests of pine, fir, and spruce timber. In every canon there are clear streams of pure running water that empty into the principal forks of Boise River. The only line of approach to this mountainous region at present is from the southwest, by way of Rocky Bar, the county seat of Alturas County, to which place there is a good wagon-road. From thence to Atlanta City, eighteen miles, the road, or pack-trail, passes over the high, steep range that separates the south and middle forks of Boise River. During severe winters this line of approach is closed up by deep snows for months at a time, thus leaving the district isolated, in the bosom of the grand old mountains. The geological formation is granite, of a coarse, friable texture, and in many places is traversed by numerous dikes of syenite, and three or four varieties of porphyry, which cut through the granite in easterly and westerly directions. The metal-bearing reins also have an easterly and westerly trend, bat are occasionally intersected by the dikes. The largest number of the gold and silver lodes are confined to a

By John C. Smock

The ten years, 1879 to 1888, inclusive, have been notable in the history of iron-making for the great rise during the latter part of 1879 and the earlier half of 1880; for the maximum of production in 1882 ; for the gradual decline and the reduced product through 1883,1884 and nearly to the end of 1885; then, for the recovery through- 1886 and 1887; and the extraordinary outputs of our iron furnaces during the last three years. The price of pig-iron might be taken as an index to the condition of the iron-mining industry, and if represented graphically, they would shorn approximately parallel curves. The mining industry cannot always respond quickly to a rise in price and an increased demand for ore; nor can its production drop simultaneously with sudden falls in price of iron and of ore. Hence, the irregularities of the one are not reflected in the other. The statistics of the iron mines collected by the United States census, for the year ending June 30, 1880, exhibit admirably their condition at that time. The reports received from mine owners and managers, of the production for the year 1888, furnish the basis for a comparison and supply data for some notes on the changes in the iron-mining industry in New York which have taken place in this period of time. The iron-ores of New York may be grouped in the following districts: I. The Highlands of the Hudson (magnetites). II. The Lake Champlain and Adirondack Region (magnetites). III. St. Lawrence and Jefferson Counties (red hematites). IV. Clinton and Wayne Counties (fossil-ores of the Clinton Group). V. Dutchess and Colnmbia Counties (limonites). VI. The Hudson River (carbonates). VII. Staten Island (limonites). The ores of the first and second districts, as enumerated, are almost exclusively magnetites; those of the third and fourth are hematites;

Jan 1, 1889