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By Frank T. Sisco

The discovery of phosphorous is usually credited to the German alchemist Brand, in 1669, and the element was rediscovered the next year by Boyle in England. IT was more than 100 years later, however, before its presence was detected in high-carbon iron produced in early blast furnaces. In 1781 the German chemist Meyer published the results of his investigation on the ?white earth? that he had found in cast iron made from bog ores. This white earth was metallic in appearance, it was extremely brittle, it was readily fusible, and it was not attracted by magnet. Meyer noted that cast iron containing this white earth was more fusible than other cast iron, and he was sure that he had discovered a new metal ? for which he proposed the name Wassereisen, or the Latin term Hydrosiderum. Two years later the distinguished Swedish Chemist Bergmann made the same discovery, finding a ?white calx? in cast iron, which he also mistakenly considered to be a new metal, and for which he proposed the Siderum.

Jan 1, 1944

By L. H. E. Weyher

As a result of past developments, mainly at universities, the coal industry has had access for a decade or more to a number of computer programs for coal mine planning. Using some of these programs Bethlehem Steel's Research Department in 1969 launched jointly with Bethlehem Mines Corporation an extensive research and development program aimed at: (1) testing the capabilities of these programs through trial applications as the need and opportunity existed, (2) defining what additional capabilities were required to make mine planning computer systems fully useful in the hands of Bethlehem's mine-planning engineers in the field, and (3) developing and implementing in the field the mine-planning systems agreed on. This program is now nearing completion, and several of Bethlehem's operations routinely use the planning tools that were developed. The progress of this research program is discussed in terms of our initial trial applications of computer methods to mine planning and the incorporation of several innovative features into our new set of computer programs, in particular, the use of time sharing, data base management systems, and general-purpose simulation languages.

Jan 1, 1977

By Euzebio De Oliveira

ONE of a recent batch of samples from the Serra da Baliza, in the state of Parana, Brazil, contained asphalt and a dark heavy oil; and workmen on the railway from Porto União to Uruguay discovered asphalt, coming from eruptives that outcrop along the Rio de Peixe. The occurrence f asphalt in the triassic eruptives of southern Brazil, however, has been known a long time, according to Dr. Gonzaga de Campos. It is generally believed that the Botacatú sandstone is always a hard vitrified rock, from the metamorphic action f. the overflowing eruptive contacts. In this region, however, the contact metamorphism is almost nil; the sandstone is slightly hardened in a narrow zone about 20 to 30 cm. wide. In many places, the sandstone is so friable as to be easily reduced to sand, which is used-.in, mortar for building in Guara-puava and Palmas. South and west from Porto União,. this bench of sandstone is about. 50 m. thick, and is capped by a heavy bed. f basic eruptives, many of which are amygdaloids. Dr. Geo: P. Merrill, after studying the triassic eruptives collected by the Coal Commission, reached the conclusion that. "All these rocks are of typical basalt-diabases, not in any essential different other than in structure. An interesting mineralogical phase is its paucity in olivine, which in many cases is completely lacking. Professor Hussak, who carefully studied these rocks and their accessory minerals, decided that in the dikes they are granular (diabase) and, that in the lava sheets, porphyritic (augite-porphyrite or melaphyre), and that the latter pass evidently to normal diabases and are always typical of effusive rocks. The examination f many slides from dikes and sheets leads us to adopt the opinion of Professor Hussak; the rocks of the dikes are of ophitic structure, while that of the sheets show a great variety f structure and may vary from almost granular to basaltic. The great paucity in olivine had been noted by Hussak, who classes as melaphyres, the porphyritic triassic rocks in Brazil which contain olivine.

Jan 4, 1921

By R. G. Wayland

SINCE the installation at Kropfmuehl, Bavaria, of a modern flotation concentrator in 1938, the flake and fine graphite from the Passau area can now be delivered in about any normal specified carbon content of any size range up to a flake averaging about 0.7 mm. The graphite finds a wide German and export market for crucible manufacture, pencil leads, dry cells and other uses. A controversy over the origin of the graphite deposits is being resolved in favor of syngenesis rather than epigenesis. The syngenetic theory is newly supported by the yet unpublished work of Hartmann of the Bavarian Geological Survey. Development work and exploration for graphite in the area may be changed in direction as the syngenetic theory is accepted. Crystalline graphite is produced in the area east of Passau near the junction of Germany, Austria and Czechoslovakia, as shown in Fig. 1. This is the only graphite area of importance in Germany, and Gra-phitwerk Kropfmuehl AG is the only operating firm in the area. The plant and mine are located at Kropfmuehl near Hauzenberg, Kreis Wegscheid, about 10 miles east of Passau. A narrow gage railway from the mine connects with the German Railway at Schaibing Bahnhof. The Pfaffenreuth mines date from about 1730. Until the early 20th century mining operations were carried out in a haphazard fashion. During World War I graphite mining and milling was increased, since it had to cover almost all of the crucible needs of the Central Powers. Between the wars some 11 mines were operated by two large and several small companies, but under the Nazis these were consolidated by 1938 into the Kropfmuehl enterprise. Kropfmuehl built a modern flotation mill to treat its own ores and small amounts of custom ores and tailings from the area. Since Graphitwerk Kropfmuehl AG was an I.G. Farbenindustry subsidiary, it has been under Military Government Property Control and probably will be sold to private German capital. Geology The country rock of the graphite area is part of the "kristallines Grundgebirge," the series of old gneissic and schistose rocks that constitutes the bed rock of most of the Bohemian basin and rims the Sudeten-land. The gneissic rocks of the graphite area are considered to have been metamorphosed during the Carboniferous period. They are bordered on the north by granite stocks and penetrated by numerous smaller granite and pegmatitic intrusive rocks, as shown in Fig. 1. The gneiss is classed as a micaceous, coarse-grained cordierite gneiss by most investigators. It is much metamorphosed by the granite, particularly in the north near the larger granite bodies. Interbedded in the gneiss are the graphite seams and lenses, and also beds and lenses of crystalline limestone containing disseminated graphite in noncommercial quantities. The gneiss, together with the included graphite and limestone seams and lenses, is cut and displaced by a number of granite sills of medium to fine grain and by a large number of diorite lamprophyre dikes and a few syenite-pegmatite dikes. The lamprophyre dikes are of various mineral compositions and textures, but many are banded and richly impregnated with pyrite; while the syenite-pegmatite dikes are coarse-grained with good crystals of titanite, pyroxene, uralite and other green amphiboles. Most investigators and the miners speak only of diorite and granite dikes cutting the graphite seams. The diorite dikes are later than the granite and some of the faulting, as is evident from Figs. 1 and 2. Individual graphite seams and lenses may be mined for thicknesses of several feet up to several scores of feet, and for distances of several hundred feet. The aggregate thickness of a series of some 20 seams of graphite, limestone and interbedded gneiss at Kropfmuehl is stratigraphically about 450 ft. Laterally, the graphite in a seam may pinch out or grade into crystalline limestone. Graphite crystals also are found disseminated in the gneiss itself, although in unmineable concentrations. The faults that cut the graphite seams carry graphite for some feet or tens of feet away from the seams, apparently mechanically. Similarily, the graphite lenses themselves often contain mechanically introduced inclusions of wall rock, probably from flowage during folding. Graphite crystals make up 10 to 30 pct of the fresh, mineable graphite lenses at Kropfmuehl, averaging about 20 to 25 pct after hand-sorting by the miners. In weathered lenses, the graphite concentration is said to be as high as 50 pct. The associated primary and hydrothermal minerals are dom-inantly feldspar and calcite, plus quartz, pyrrhotite, pyrite, biotite and occasional garnet, hornblende, sphalerite and galena. Associated secondary minerals include kaolin, nontronite, mangano-oxide-silicates (mog), adularia and chlorite. The superimposed suite of siliceous cementation minerals present consist largely of opal, chloropal, chalcedony, jasper, and hyalite. The kaolin is of special interest since it too was mined as early as 1730 and was used in the well-known Nymphenburg porcelain from 1756 on. The kaolin is derived from the gneiss and the syenite pegmatites. The crystals of graphite vary in size within a given seam, but in seams more than a mile away from the granite on the north the average crystal-linity is less coarse, lowering the commercial value. The lenses in the Kropfmuehl-Pfaffenreuth area are the most developed, and are the only ones with deep workings now accessible. Other similar crystalline graphite lenses are known from older workings at Habersdorf, Oberoetzdorf, Ficht, Diendorf, and

Jan 1, 1952

By A. J. Carlson, G. M. Marincel, M. L. Hovland, J. H. Healy

Research personnel of Erie Mining Co., a pioneer taconite mining firm on the Mesabi Range, have invented a new method to make an effective 325 mesh separation at high tonnage rates over stationary screens. The company regards this development as historically significant in that it represents the first successful method to commercially screen large tonnages of ore at fine sizes. Erie, which is now completing an expansion program at its plant site near Hoyt Lakes, Minn., has incorporated this screening method as part of that expansion. When completed, the concentration plant will produce 10.3 million tons of iron concentrate, all of which will have been efficiently screened at 325 mesh.

Jan 4, 1967

By V. F. Parry, E. O. Wagner

This paper summarizes investigations during 1949 on three pilot plants for drying low-rank fine coal by entrapment in hot gases. Detailed operating results on processing seven coals having moisture ranging from 24 to 62 pet, formulas and data for calculating performance of large units, and general conclusions on the problem of drying fine coal are presented. THIS paper presents a summary of investigations by the Coal Branch of the Bureau of Mines during 1949 on the removal of internal moisture from low-rank coals by processing them in the entrained and fluidized state. A paper on this subject, giving a summary of the early work, was presented at the 1949 AIME annual meeting1 and gave a the- oretical discussion of the time and heat required to dry various sizes of low-rank coal. The investigations on two pilot plants were presented in the foregoing paper. During 1949, three additional pilot plants were built to study phases of the drying problem and to investigate different techniques of handling fine coal in the entrained and fluidized state. The present paper gives operating data on the new units and presents detailed data on the drying of seven coals having bed moisture ranging from 62 to 24 pct. The problem of removing surface moisture from fine coal is principally one of heat exchange and dispersion of the coal particles so that heat can reach the liquid moisture to permit evaporation, and it does not involve the factors of size and time of contact to any great extent. If enough heat can reach the surface of the particles at temperatures higher than 250°F, moisture evaporates almost instantly, and the factors of time and size are of secondary importance compared with the factors of heat balance and dispersion of the coal. Therefore, it does not appear to be necessary to employ a fluidized bed when removing surface moisture, and the most efficient process would be one in which the coal particles are entrained in a hot gas stream of optimum temperature traveling at a velocity that causes the particles to disperse into a low-density phase. When low-rank coals are dried, the fluidized bed is necessary to provide control of time of contact. This is done by adjusting the superficial velocity which controls the density or dispersion of the particles. The density of beds having fluidized properties suitable for drying low-rank coals appears to range from about 5 up to about 15 lb per cu ft. When the density is below 5 lb per cu ft, which represents a low-density phase, optimum conditions for removal of surface moisture should be found, and this requires superficial velocities of about 15 fps. The problem of removing bed moisture from low-rank coals involves consideration of size of coal, temperature, mass flow, heat balance, pressure, time of contact, and method of dispersing the coal in the heating mediums. The experimental work presented here gives data on these factors. Coal sizes up to 1/2 in. x 0 were dried with hot gases having initial temperatures ranging from 1900° to 2400°F. Coal

Jan 1, 1951

By E. O. Wagner, V. F. Parry

This paper summarizes investigations during 1949 on three pilot plants for drying low-rank fine coal by entrapment in hot gases. Detailed operating results on processing seven coals having moisture ranging from 24 to 62 pet, formulas and data for calculating performance of large units, and general conclusions on the problem of drying fine coal are presented. THIS paper presents a summary of investigations by the Coal Branch of the Bureau of Mines during 1949 on the removal of internal moisture from low-rank coals by processing them in the entrained and fluidized state. A paper on this subject, giving a summary of the early work, was presented at the 1949 AIME annual meeting1 and gave a the- oretical discussion of the time and heat required to dry various sizes of low-rank coal. The investigations on two pilot plants were presented in the foregoing paper. During 1949, three additional pilot plants were built to study phases of the drying problem and to investigate different techniques of handling fine coal in the entrained and fluidized state. The present paper gives operating data on the new units and presents detailed data on the drying of seven coals having bed moisture ranging from 62 to 24 pct. The problem of removing surface moisture from fine coal is principally one of heat exchange and dispersion of the coal particles so that heat can reach the liquid moisture to permit evaporation, and it does not involve the factors of size and time of contact to any great extent. If enough heat can reach the surface of the particles at temperatures higher than 250°F, moisture evaporates almost instantly, and the factors of time and size are of secondary importance compared with the factors of heat balance and dispersion of the coal. Therefore, it does not appear to be necessary to employ a fluidized bed when removing surface moisture, and the most efficient process would be one in which the coal particles are entrained in a hot gas stream of optimum temperature traveling at a velocity that causes the particles to disperse into a low-density phase. When low-rank coals are dried, the fluidized bed is necessary to provide control of time of contact. This is done by adjusting the superficial velocity which controls the density or dispersion of the particles. The density of beds having fluidized properties suitable for drying low-rank coals appears to range from about 5 up to about 15 lb per cu ft. When the density is below 5 lb per cu ft, which represents a low-density phase, optimum conditions for removal of surface moisture should be found, and this requires superficial velocities of about 15 fps. The problem of removing bed moisture from low-rank coals involves consideration of size of coal, temperature, mass flow, heat balance, pressure, time of contact, and method of dispersing the coal in the heating mediums. The experimental work presented here gives data on these factors. Coal sizes up to 1/2 in. x 0 were dried with hot gases having initial temperatures ranging from 1900° to 2400°F. Coal

Jan 1, 1951

By A. C. Losekamp, R. M. Fincel, J. B. Conway

TANTALUM like several other metals exhibits a great affinity for or reactivity with certain gases. Tested in atmospheres which are not completely pure this metal becomes contaminated by certain impurities (notably nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen) with a resultant change in various properties. Well-known are the drastic changes in hardness, ductility, and electrical resistivity. Also previously recorded are the distortions of the lattice1,2 accompanying the increased content of oxygen and nitrogen in tantalum. This pronounced affinity for certain gases along with the significant property variations thereby produced makes it necessary to observe additional experimental precautions in making various property determinations with tantalum. Some recent measurements of the linear thermal-expansion characteristics of tantalum have made this point quite emphatically. Failure to observe the greatest precautions in reducing the contaminating influence has led to some extremely distorted results. Not only does such operation lead to different heating and cooling curves during the thermal-expansion measurements, but upon cooling to room temperature the sample is found to have suffered a permanent (actually semipermanent since the specimen can be returned to its original length by a 3-hr degassing treatment in vacuum at 2300°C) elongation. In addition, subsequent heatings will not follow the initial heating curve unless the expansion measurements are based on the actual specimen length at the beginning of the heating cycle. These thermal-expansion measurements were made by positioning the specimen horizontally at the longitudinal midpoint of a 20-in.-long, 4-in.-diam resistively heated tungsten tube furnace. The specimens were in the form of 20-mil sheet formed into a sharp U-shape about 0.3 in. in width and 0.3 in. in depth. Fiducial marks in the form of 0.010-in. holes drilled at either end of the 2.5-in.-long sheet specimens were viewed by a paired filar micrometer telescope system mounted on an Invar bar on the top of the furnace. Tests were made in helium with temperatures measured by a Pt/Pt-lORh thermocouple to 1000°C; above 1000°C temperature was measured by means of an optical pyrometer sighted into a black-body hole drilled into the specimen-holding fixture in the vicinity of the specimen. Previous tests with black-body holes drilled in a 0.25-in.-diam rod specimen had confirmed the temperature uniformity between specimens and specimen-holding fixture in this furnace. A typical thermal-expansion curve for arc-cast tantalum in helium is shown in Fig. 1 for the case where no attempt is made to remove all the impurities from the cover-gas atmosphere. The initial heating curve appears smooth and has a shape characteristic of all metals. However, it is known that the sample begins absorbing impurities at temperatures above 1000°C which are sufficient to distort the lattice and lead to specimen lengths which are somewhat larger than would be obtained in the absence of contamination. During the cooling cycle the expansion curve is seen to be significantly different from the heating curve. This is due to the impurity content causing a semipermanent (i.e., permanent until the impurities are removed by vacuum degassing) deformation which will not allow the speci-

Jan 1, 1965

By B. B. Gottsberger

IT SEEMS strange that so many years after the pas¬sage of the first acts requiring registration or licensing of engineers, so few members of the mining branch of the profession are aware of what has taken place. Laws regulating the practice of engineering have now been passed in 19 states of this country, and in many others, such legislation has been proposed. That such laws are necessary for the protection of life, health and property, as is stated in most of them, is doubted by many. That the standing of the engineering profession will be improved by them is certainlyy open to question. That such laws are a welcome addition to the regulation of business by governmental agency, is not likely to be a general opinion. That once more, and in spite of appeals to engineers to interest themselves in affairs of government, an active minority has succeeded in imposing its will on a passive majority, seems but too true. However, the laws are there and information regarding them should be of use and interest to those most directly concerned.

Jan 1, 1921

By T. C. King

AT the new Graham-Central Mill of Eagle-Picher, near Galena, Ill., material is simultaneously dewatered and introduced into the ball-mill scoop boxes by the use of variable-speed, 24-in. spiral classifiers. This arrangement has proved satisfactory in that the moisture content of the wet feed is reduced, thus allowing maintenance of density within the mills, and a constant feed at any desired rate to the mills is provided. In this mill the primary feed is wet crushed to minus ½ in. and preconcentrated by jigs to produce a bulk lead-zinc-iron concentrate and a waste tailing. The jig concentrate is then dewatered by a conventional dewatering classifier and stored in, bins ahead of the ball mills. Even though this material is well dewatered, the discharge at the bin bottom is sloppy because of the gradual drainage of the water from the surface of the particles. Conventional belt feeders with vertical cutoff gates are unsatisfactory because of the flushing characteristic of the wet sand.

Jan 1, 1950

By C. K. Leith, W. J. NEAD

(Glen Summit Meeting, June, 1911.) . ONE Of the most significant developments in the iron industry in recent years has been the discovery and opening of enormous reserves of low-grade ore in eastern and northeastern Cuba. The two principal fields are the Mayari and the Moa, situated on Nipe bay, in the Province of Oriente. A less well-known district of the same type is that of Baracoa, at the east of the island, and another is in Camaguey province in central Cuba. In the comprehensive estimates of the iron-ore reserves of the world, published during the summer of 1910 by the International Geological Congress in Sweden,' these Cuban deposits are estimated at about 2,000,000,000 tons. Certain it is that the reserve is a large one. The Spanish-American Iron Co., the Juragua Iron Co. (Bethlehem Steel Co.), the U. S. Steel Corporation, and others have been active in this exploration.. The Spanish-American Iron Co. has established a port for the handling of these ores at Felton, has built a railway 16 miles to the ore-fields, and has opened up deposits for steam-shovel mining. Its expenditures have reached an aggregate of about $6,000,000 in preparation for the handling of these ores. Shipment of the ore to Sparrow's Point, Md., has begun and may be expected to rise to a considerable amount in the near future. The ore reaches this point at a cost per unit of iron considerably lower than Lake Superior ores, and the presence of a low percentage of nickel gives a desirable steel. It is not the purpose of this article to consider these ores from a commercial stand-point, but rather to discuss their-origin. If our conclusions are correct, they throw light on the character of the deposits which should have some commercial significance. 1 The Iron Ore Resources of the World, an inquiry made upon the initiative of the Executive Committee of the Eleventh International Geological Congress, Stockholm, vol. ii., p. 795 (1910).

Mar 1, 1911

US 4,190,436 - In the cyanide leaching of gold ore in tailing or ore dump piles, or gold ore in vats or on pads, the ore is agitated and oxygenated by introducing timed bursts of air, along with cyanide in a cyclic or regulated manner. The leach liquor is drained from the material by providing a continuous flow of air. Fines are homogenously mixed, thereby reducing channelling In the ore bed. Yield is improved and cyanide consumption lessened. R M. Hughes Feb. 26, 1980. 7 pp. (75-105). Filed. 12-20-77 (862,335).

Jan 1, 1982

By Robert E. Reed-Hill, Edward R. Buchanan

A recent paper by Adams and vreeland30 describes dislocation density changes in zinc as a function of shear strain. The dislocation density was determined with the aid of an etching technique previously described by Brandt, Adams, and Vreeland.31 However, comparison of dislocation densities obtained by electron microscopy and this etching technique are not in good agreement, as will be shown below. Several zinc crystals of 99.999 pct purity were grown in air using a modified Bridgman technique.' These were annealed in air a 400°C for 1 hr and

Jan 1, 1969

By Y. J. Wang

A graphical technique by which the operating points for a two-fan ventilation system can be represented as the intersection of the modified fan curves is described. In constructing the diagram, the air quantities associated with the fans are considered to be independent variables and used as the axes of a rectangular coordinate system. The diagram may include, in addition to the modified fan curves, contour lines for resistances, pressures, and air powers. Procedures for drawing the diagram are discussed and illustrated with an example of the ventilation system.

Jan 1, 1986

Engineering Experiment Station, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Ark. W N Gladson, Dean and Director The Engineering Experiment Station has published a number of bulletins, only a few of which are of particular interest in this directory: Bulletin 3, Arkansas coal or oil for domestic heating; 4, Road materials of Arkansas, 5, A study of Arkansas coals, 6, Portland cement materials in Arkansas; 11, Natural gas versus Arkansas coal for house heating. Circular 3, Short cuts to combustion efficiency with natural gas Address the Engineering Experiment Station for any of these publications.

Jan 1, 1933

By William E. Ford, Edward Salisbury Dana

274. The PHYSICAL CHARACTERS of minerals fall under the following heads : I. Characters depending upon Cohesion and Elasticity - viz., cleavage, fracture, tenacity, hardness, elasticity, etc. 11. Specijic Gravity, or the Density compared with that of water. 111. Characters depending upon Light - viz., color, luster, degree of trans- parency, special optical properties, etc. IV. Characters depending upon Heat -viz., heat-conductivity, change of form and of optical characters with change of temperature, fusibility, etc. V. Characters depending upon Electricity and Magnetism. VI. Characters depending upon the action of the senses-viz., taste, odor, feel.

Jan 1, 1922

By AIME AIME

FEW indeed are the sections of the country where trained or partly trained workers have not already been hired by a war industry plant or will be within the near future. Yet right in the midst of the heavily industrialized East lies the anthracite area, home of a million people, whose productive power has persistently been by-passed either by private industry or by the Government Plant Site Board. The chief reason given for not locating war plants in the area is that it is not within the strategic zone, but in numerous instances elsewhere this rule has been waived. Furthermore, the anthracite region is well protected on all sides by mountains and is at all points more than 100 miles inland. Continued depression in the anthracite industry and a crippling blow dealt by the war emergency to the production of silk and rayon goods, the chief manufacturing activity of the area, have resulted in a heavy migration, particularly of trained young workers, into near-by industrial areas. At least 50,000 people are currently unemployed, with the likelihood of an increase in coming months, and as many families are on relief.

Jan 1, 1942

By J. A. Wilcox

A NEW LINE of specialists has arisen as a result of the trend toward labor socialization and collectivism in all branches of industry. These men are the ones who will govern the destiny of many companies and the labor policy of our government in coming years. They must be men of integrity and of rather exceptional qualifications; men who can foresee the trend of labor relations with business, and who are willing to sacrifice the immediate fruits of technical training for manual labor and study. They must take their place in industry, not with the idea of following the orthodox line of advancement, but knowing that they must stay at the bottom until they have learned to understand the viewpoints, the work, the advantages and the disadvantages of each classification of labor. They must not be of a radical nature or become easily biased, and they must study. You will say I am looking for a superman and in one sense that is true, but the business man and our government are both in the market even now for this type of man, and with the proper training and background, many of our young technicians can readily enter this field of work.

Jan 1, 1942

By AIME AIME

ORGANIZATION of The Federated American Engineering Societies was effected at the organizing conference of national, local, state and regional engineering and allied technical organizations at the Cosmos Club, Washington, D. C., June 3 and 4. Thus is brought into being the greatest national engineering society in the world. The object of the organization is to further the interests of the public through the use of technical knowledge and engineering experience, and to consider and act upon matters common to engineering and allied technical professions. Prominent engineers from all parts of the country, representing more than 75 engineering societies, with an aggregate membership of more than 125,000, participated in the organization. The constitution as adopted by the conference, calls for the creation of s managing body to be known as the American Engineering Council, and its executive board. The belief was expressed that the entire organization would come to be spoken of as the American Engineering Council. The council is to coordinate the activities of state councils and of local affiliations whenever these activities are of national or general importance or may affect the general interests of engineers. Representation in the council is to be according to membership of the component societies.

Jan 1, 1920

By John J. Collins

The plight of the Japanese mining business is pitiful. Coal mines were given the highest priority for all materials they needed, yet between the end of the war and June 1948, the government was obliged to subsidize them to the extent of 22 billion yen, this being the difference between the consumer's price and the producer's price. Most of the metal mining companies have been operating at only one fifth to one third of war-time production rates, and financial losses have been terrific. The chief difficulties have been a plethora of office workers and a dearth of equipment, supplies, and miners. The principal material needs at metal mines are steel rails. cars, plates, nails, rubber hoses, and belting, to say nothing of modern core drills which are totally lacking. Until recently the great shortage was in coal; for lack of fuel the smelters and factories failed to produce the very metals and equipment now needed to operate the mines. Nation-wide shortages have created a monstrous inflation of prices throughout all the economy, currently amounting to 200 times the prewar figures. For example, the price of copper ranged from 500 to 900 yen per metric ton for many years until 1937, but in mid-1948 producers were

Jan 1, 1949