Search Documents

By A. C. Wallace

THE development of the natural resources of any district of any magnitude, inevitably gives rise to many problems off title, usually due to the greatly enhanced value of the land. The development of the mining industry in the Quapaw Agency has been no exception to this general rule. Our problems, how-ever, have not been many or particularly serious. The Quapaws were allotted and patents issued by the United States Government in 1895. These patents contained a restriction against alienation for a pe-riod of twenty-five years. The effect of the restric-tion was to prevent the Indian from selling, leasing, or in any way encumbering his land. The Govern-ment, in a paternalistic spirit, sought to teach the Indian thrift and industry and to insure him a place of residence. This is evidenced by the first Leasing Act passed by Congress, which permitted only incom-petents and those physically disabled to lease their land for either agricultural or mining purposes. The able-bodied Indian was denied the right to lease. It soon became apparent to the Government, how-ever, that this was a mistaken policy, and in 1897 a General Leasing Act was passed by Congress and it was under this act that the mining industry in the Quapaw Agency was developed. The act, reads as follows: "That the allottees of land within the limits of the Qua- paw Agency, Indian Territory, are hereby authorized to lease their lands, or any part thereof, for a term not ex-ceeding three years, for farming or grazing purposes, or ten years for mining or business purposes. And said al-lottees and their lessees and tenants shall have the right to employ such assistants, laborers, and help from time to time as they may deem necessary: Provided, That when-ever it shall be made to appear to the Secretary of the Interior that, by reason of age or disability, any such allottee cannot improve or manage his allotment properly and with benefit to himself, the same may be leased, in the discretion of the Secretary, upon such terms and conditions as shall be prescribed by him. All acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this are hereby repealed." It was the interpretation of this Act that gave rise to our first serious problems. It will be noted that the Act says that "allottees of land" within the limits of the Quapaw Agency are authorized to lease their land. Thus, the first question was presented by the use of the term "allottee," and the question was as to whether or not Congress intended to limit the Quapaw Indian to the leasing of his own allotment or did Congress mean that the term "allottee" was synonym-ous with "Indian" and intend to give the Indian a right to lease both his allotment and his inherited land and was an Indian without an allotment an "allottee" even though he was a member of the Qua-paw tribe and the owner of the Quapaw land by in-heritance, and not being an allottee, could he lease his inherited Quapaw land under the authority granted in this Act?

Jan 5, 1928

By George Smith

THE discussion of production control at the Insti-tute's annual meeting was profitable in that it started some thinking. One pertinent question there raised was how the opening of new mines, whose now unneeded output would inevitably react on prices, could be postponed until the market was ready to ab-sorb their output. In transportation some restraint is being exercised on building new and unneeded fa-cilities, but in production no general solution of the problem has been offered. Yet in a special field of new development of increasing importance a quick and easy solution has been suggested. I refer to the leasing of mineral deposits on the public domain. The report of the United States Coal Commission says: "In its possession of approximately 60,000,000 acres of public coal lands the Federal Government has its own responsibility in restraining overdevelopment. The Department of the Interior, which has control of these lands under the leasing law, construes the law as giving the department no discretionary right to refuse applications for leases regularly made by qualified citizens or corporations for coal deposits on the pub-lic domain. It presumes, that the applicant believes there is a need for an additional coal mine in his local-ity and expects to find a market for the coal produced. Overdevelopment, however, is a fact in the West as well as in the East, and wherever present involves needless investment and excessive costs of operation. Plainly, the leasing law should be so amended as to give the executive department full discretion in its approval of the opening of a new coal mine on the, public domain, making that approval contingent on the showing that the new mine would serve the in-terest of the consuming public." A similar view of the Federal Government's re-sponsibility in restraining overdevelopment of its oil lands has been presented by the Federal Oil Conser-vation Board. The leasing law vests little or no dis-cretion in the Secretary of the Interior, who must grant a lease to a qualified applicant regardless of any obvious country-wide condition of surplus produc-tion. This wide-open invitation to exploit and dissi-pate the people's own oil resources could be restricted by simple legislation, although as remarked by the board, such a legislative remedy for a plain economic ailment "does not evoke popular support when its purpose is avowedly to put the brakes on development of natural resources."

Jan 5, 1928

AS provided in Article VIII, Section 4 of the By- laws, the Papers and Publications Committee has formulated the following, rules of pro-cedure and submitted them to the Board of Directors for consideration and approval. In preparing these rules the committee, and an active subcommittee con-sisting of Messrs. Norris, Sharpless; Fohs and Wither-ell, have kept in mind the desirability of codifying the practice that has grown up through the now sev-eral years of experience of the committtee, without casting them in a mold so rigid as to be hampering. The problems of the Institute change from year to year and the methods of publication must change also to meet each new situation as it arises. "The estab-lishment of divisions and special volumes devoted to the papers. read before each required certain changes from former practice. These rules have been framed with this in view. The committee suggested, however, in its letter of transmittal, that the system will be made all the more workable if the Board will, as far as practicable, in making appointments to this committee, arrange for representation from each of the professional divisions and technical committees. It is understood that the chairman of the committee will be named by the Board. The rules regarding spe-cial volumes have been framed, keeping in mind the present policy of distribution, as already approved by the Directors under which the special volumes go only to the special. groups except on request. The committee has not attempted to provide rules governing consideration of any appeal made to the Board from one of its decisions, but its services and files will necessarily be at the full service of the Board in any such event. The rules which were ap-proved by the Board at its meeting on March 30, 1928, are as follows: Signed by C. S. Witherell, Chairman. (A) The authority of. the Committee on Papers and Pub-lications, hereinafter called the Committee, is defined in Art. VIII, Sec. 4 of the By-laws of the Institute, which reads as follows: "Papers and Publications: The Committee on Papers and Publications shall consist of the Secretary of the Institute, and at least twelve members of the Institute, to assist in passing on all papers offered for publication. They shall be appointed annually by the Board of Direc-tors, on recommendation of the President, and shall have authority, subject to appeal to the Board, to accept or reject papers for publication in the Transactions and Technical Publications of the Institute. The Commit-tee shall formulate a set of rules of procedure which, when approved by the Board, shall have the force of By-laws until revoked or amended." The policy of the Committee will be to uphold the ob-jects of -the Institute as set forth in the Constitution (Arti-cle 1, Sec. 2).

Jan 5, 1928

By J. A. Benell

DIOXIDE of silicon, commonly called silica, is one of the greatest single constituents of modern in-dustry. It is brought most clearly to the mind when we consider the various kinds of sand and their rela-tion to industry. The major portion of.all sand is silica, and should be its principal component part in building materials. As an abrasive for cutting, polish-ing and sand-blasting, sand serves a vital purpose in many industries. Even lumber is now being sand-blasted, to cut away the softer grains of wood, leaving the harder grains in relief. The result not only in-creases the beauty of the wood, but adds to it an ap-pearance of antiquity. The common uses of silica in industry may be classified about as follows: Chemical industries-filtering medium; manufacture of carborundum; manufacture of water-glass. Paint-inert extender. Mineral fillers-wood filler; filler in rubber, hard rubber, pressed and molded goods, phonograph records.

Jan 5, 1928

By Cornelius Kelley

I HAVE been asked to pay a tribute to the mining industry. It is appropriate to this occasion that a word upon this subject should be spoken to this assemblage; but to pay a tribute to the mining indus-try, one that would be worthy of its traditions and its accomplishment and that would outline what it has meant to the economic and social development of this nation, would carry me far beyond what must be the brief confines of this address. I wonder how many there are who have ever paused to reflect how different might have been the current history of the world had it not been that for nearly eighty years a never-interrupted stream of wealth has flowed from the storehouse of treasure in the mines of the West into the commercial and economic life not only of this nation but of the world. Truly it was a historic day that Marshall discovered in the runway at Sutter's mill the glistening particles that proved to be gold. That event was one of the most momentous events in its consequences that ever happened in the history of mankind. Without its occurrence this nation undoubtedly would have grown; it would have reached a position; of economic and social soundness; but certainly it could not have achieved the splendid and immediate results that have become our proudest heritage and established our unrivaled posi-tion in the industrial world. As the primal cause that led to one of the great migratory movements of man it stands alone, unequaled, without any precedent in the annals of history, comparable in its effect on the imagination, on the movement, and on the devlop-ment of a people. Nearly three-quarters of a century had passed since the banners of the Revolution had been furled and a new nation had come into existence. Beyond the boun-daries of the original colonies, and through the passes of the Alleghanies, hardy frontiersmen had cut their way, and the process of establishing what have become -great states in the Valley of the Mississippi was under way. An empire of virgin land beckoned to the home-seekers of the world; but scarcely had its occupation been begun when, true to the instinctive urge that meant the ultimate destiny of the nation, there began the movement to carry the Stars and Stripes westward to the Pacific. Within the boundaries of what was then Mexico, Americans fought and died in the Alamo, and the banner of the Texan had been raised in eager ex-pectancy that its Lone Star might be added to the grow-ing constellation on the American banner.

Jan 5, 1928

By Walter Henoch

THE subject of my talk is, "What 'the college, student expects when he gets out of college." Since all of us, here tonight are engineers, I think it will be proper to limit the discussion to "What the engineering student expects when he emerges from college." It might be well to con-sider just why we chose engineering rather than some other of the many courses open to us. We certainly did not choose it because it is easy nor because we thought it would be a very pleasurable way to spend four years of our lives. The majority of students who choose this profession have a pretty well-formed idea of what an engineering course requires. They at least know that they must work to re-ceive their credits. The minority, which is no small num-ber, are soon disillusioned and as a result they either quit college entirely or they join the' Commerce School. I asked a number of my fellow students just what it was that induced them to join the engineering profession, but it was hard to obtain a clear cut statement from any of them. Some said it was due to environment; others said, they took it because they liked it, and still others said they took it because their folks wanted them to. These state-ments are rather vague and incomplete, but underlying them all is something that the fellows found hard to ex-press. I think it is this: To the layman there is something of romance and adventure about the engineering profes-sion, and this fact coupled with the reputed high salaries and high commands of certain noted engineers no doubt fired our imaginations and consequently led us to join the ranks of the engineers. No doubt many engineers have gone out into the world and have found little romance or adventure .attached to their work, but nevertheless it is an occupation of a wide diversity of interest, of constant change of scene, and of vivid and human relations.

Jan 5, 1928

By Charles Janin

ONE of the most interesting features of the world's platinum situation has been the steady increase of Russian production, which had dropped to 11,000 oz. in 1920, but increased to 92,000 oz. in 1926, and to probably over 100,000 oz. for 1927. It is ex-pected that Russian production of platinum will, be-fore long, closely equal its pre-war production, or approximately 200,000 oz. annually. The world production before the war was around 250,000 oz.; that for 1925 has been estimated at 160,000 oz., and for 1926 probably 170,000 oz. The consump-tion of platinum has, however, decreased. The esti-mate of the International Selling Agency was a de-mand of 130,000 oz. new platinum against a normal pre-war demand of over 200,000 oz. The high price of platinum during the war gave an added impetus to the search for substitutes for the metal, and sev-eral were developed that are now used extensively in place of platinum. The demand for platinum for high-class jewelry, however, was not greatly affected by the high prices, but "white" gold did replace platinum in the cheaper jewelry. Colombia is the most important producer of plati-num, next to Russia, and the production has increased from around 10,000 oz. pre-war production to 55,000 oz. or more in 1927. In 1924 important discoveries of platinum were made in South Africa. Prior to these discoveries practically all platinum was recovered from alluvial deposits, and the South African opera-tions are first to work an ore profitably for the pri-mary recovery of platinum. A number of companies were formed to develop these deposits, but only a few made any real progress. Total production for 1926 was about 5000 oz. The United States production is unimportant; that in Canada has increased to around 9000 oz., principally as a by-product in nickel-copper ores.

Jan 5, 1928

By Eugene Grace

IN THE careers of the men to whom I have referred we find typified the development of the chief prob-lems of engineering. The first is to shape and direct the forces of nature and thus to bring the world's resources to add to the comfort and welfare of man-kind. That, in a word, is the problem of production. Engineers have made a supreme contribution to the solution of that problem. But I feel that we have two somewhat newer branches of engineering which must command more and more of our attention. Those are what might be termed commercial and human engineering. Of what value is all our efficiency in pro-duction if we do not distribute efficiently, economically and effectively? And of what value is any of it unless we can add to the happiness and deeper satisfaction of those engaged in industry, as well as those who enjoy its -products? I predict that the outstanding advances in business over the next ten years will be in improved merchan-dising and distributing methods. Herein lies a wide field of opportunity for the engineer. We have briefly reviewed certain qualities of engi-neers who have become successful business executives. Is it possible for us to say that the material success of all these men was due to any one characteristic com-mon to each one of them? Indeed, I venture to assert that there is one quality which, in the last analysis, is determining as to whether any roan shall realize material success in this world of ours. That quality-so notable in the character of each one of the men I have named-is sound judgment. Moments arise in every life when it is necessary to say "yes" or to say "no" to a particular proposition or to a proposed line of action. It is the man who says "yes" at the proper time and "no" at the proper time who, in the final analysis, realizes business success. The ability to do this wisely is the mark of sound judg-ment, which is necessary in a business executive. I have known many business men seemingly slow in their mental processes, possessed apparently, of little imagination and of none of the flair which gives fasci-nation to so many characters, and yet who, when crises come-be they big or be they little-are able so to steer their business courses that they move in the right direction instead of into shallow waters or upon the rocks of trouble.

Jan 4, 1928

THE Rocky MountainClub brought into the East the spirit of the West; the impulse to build, to develop, to accept unquestion-ingly the comradeship and help of any straight shooter who had it in him to accom-plish things and a will to work. That this was the spirit of the Club was due to its leaders. It was their spirit and they attracted around them men of the same stamp. Among those who made the Club what it was no one had larger in-low fluence than William Boyce Thompson, the vice-president and chief of financial staff. It was characteristic of him that the same financial genius that was employed in building up Nevada Consolidated, In-spiration, Magma, Texas Gulf, and as director of the Metro-politan Life and the Federal Reserve Bank, was freely placed at the service of the Club. It was equally char- acteristic that the generosity that financed the Red Cross Mission to Russia inspired the use of the Club funds for Belgian and war relief. "W. B.," as he is known to his many friends, was born at Virginia City in Alder Gulch, Mont., on May 13, 1869. His father, William Thompson, born at Cobourg, Ont., had drifted into the old Northwest and, hearing at Yankton of the gold strike at Bannack, crossed the plains on the Oregon trail in the summer of 1863, arriv-ing in Alder Gulch at the inception of a mining boom that lasted several years, during which something like $60,000,000 in gold was yielded by the placer diggings. His mother was a daughter of Maj. James R. Boyce, Sr., from Logan County, Ky., who had served under General Sterling Price of the Confederate Army. Major Boyce's ancestors were early settlers of the Old Dominion, and his grandfather had seen military service in the war for American independence. Major Boyce's mother was a descendant of the Marshall and Smith families of Westmoreland County, Va. When Thompson was eleven years old, the family moved to Butte, then a silver camp. He attended the public schools of Butte, but desiring a better education, entered Phillips Exeter Academy and later the Colum-bia School of Mines. Returning West, for a year or two he ran the Boulder Chief mine near Basin, Mont., which earned him a sobriquet, "Boulder Thompson." While here, some old ore sacks, oil-soaked, introduced him to flotation. He was also the first to leach some of the ore dumps of Butte.

Jan 4, 1928

FOLLOWING the presentation of the papers by Messrs. Mahan and Butler, the discussion printed below ensued. A. C. LANE* With particular reference to the New England con-sumer, I entirely agree with Mr. Mahan that intelli-gent marketing methods will do a good deal, but there is more than one way of improving them. For instance, coal can be shipped best to New England about this time of year-after the storms of the winter and before the movement of crops in the summer. For that reason there ought to be seasonal freight rates. This will be agreed to by most coal men if you will ask them, especially those who are connected with large concerns like the Metropolitan Coal Co., and yet they do not get seasonal freight rates partly because the railroads are afraid if they once reduce them they will never have a chance to get them back again. But it would be an improvement to have seasonal freight rates. Another thing: When we are buying in New England we want really a certain amount of heat value in our coal. There is no great advantage in our buying ash, nor is there any particular advantage in the railroad shipping ash and clogging the circulatory system of the body politic any more than clogging the circulatory system of the physical body. It would be desirable if the wholesaler, and to some extent the retailer, could guarantee the amount of ash or sell their coal on heating value. If you are interested in that you will find some interesting charts, in "Anthracite Coal Costs Analyzed," a pamphlet issued by the Anthracite Coal Consumers Association, Inc., New York City, as to rates from various and sundry points for bituminous and anthra-cite coal from the field to New York, Buffalo and Chi-cago. Here in New England they are both up against the competition of oil. About 3 or 3 1/2 bbl. oil will do the work of a ton of coal. One of my millionaire friends who is well posted on the situation is putting oil in his Commonwealth Avenue house because it is the most economical. Moreover, we can get Welsh coal from across the water (and help equalize this matter of exchange with Europe) in close competition with Penn-sylvania coal.

Jan 4, 1928

By H. W. Camp

RESEARCH is defined, scientifically, as a "sys- tematic investigation of some phenomenon, and also a search for hidden treasures." Chemists tell us that the hidden treasures of petroleum are far richer than the .products which have been best known to us. However, these secrets will be discovered only through intensive and systematic, as well as scientific, industrial research. Indeed, the scope of the subject is so great that such an intensive research program should be assumed by a centralized organization supported by the petroleum industry as a whole. Such organization would assume the responsibilities for investigation of new products and development of markets for such products. Gasoline, the chief product of the petroleum industry, has become a cheap commodity. The continual un-controlled overproduction of crude petroleum, the in-tensive competitive condition in the marketing of petro-leum products and the increase of refining efficiency and installing of cracking facilities, have all combined to lower the market value of gasoline. The lower cost of gasoline has all been passed on to the purchaser in the form of lower prices so that today the most important product can scarcely be manufactured at a profit. In other fields, manufacturing industries have diversified their products when faced by a similar situation. Thus, they have been able to widen their marketing outlook. Why cannot the petroleum industry employ the same tactics ? Right now we are hearing much discussion concerning the development of a wider market for existing petro-leum products and new products for existing or prospec-tive markets. For instance, we can cite recent develop-ments for use of propane, butane, and ethylene. Butane has been found to be an efficient and inexpensive re-frigerant, especially adapted to home refrigerating sys-tems. Propane and butane fractions of natural gasoline may be shipped under pressure and may be used as a substitute for acetylene in cutting torches in connection with oxygen. There is a possibility of substituting butane for gas oil in the carbureting of coal gas, as we know that butane contains practically the gas enrich-ment as the same volume of gas oil and should prove to be a superior product for this function. Ethylene, a hydrocarbon present in cracked gases, is finding an outlet for the artificial ripening of green fruits. The following table . shows the more general use of petro-leum products as now established.

Jan 4, 1928

By W. H. Bassett

THE modern smelting and refining of copper is distinctly an American development. The present demand for sound and perfect castings for rolling is due to the development of American industry. Prac-tically every article made from sheet metal or, for that matter, from any form of metal is made by mass produc-tion methods. Faulty material disturbs the orderly sequence of operations and in addition requires expen-sive inspection and unbearable rejection of finished product. This demand, therefore, is positive and will have to be met. Some mines produce ore that can be smelted and re-fined without the electrolytic process into satisfactory copper for the wrought metal industry, and some of these ores carry small amounts of impurities that are of use in hardening and toughening the copper. Most of the copper ore mined contains impurities that must be removed and, fortunately, precious metals which are separated at the same time make this re-moval profitable. The modern electrolytic refineries have their methods so well under control that the product meets all re-quirements without question if properly fire refined and cast. The "if" in this case is important, because there is evidence of carelessness or want of control at times in the material from some of the producers. It is nec-essary that the melted cathodes should be saturated with oxide to dispose of sulfur and that the copper should then be poled to the proper pitch or set. Sometimes statements leak out to the effect that it is unnecessary to oxidize completely the molten cathodes and a little less rabbling saves poles, which are expensive. The re-sult is that the rolling mill gets porous castings and produces seamy or slivered sheets or strips. The condition of the molds, their temperature, and the temperature of the metal are all important to good copper cakes, wedges, or wire bars. Cracked, and burned molds leave rough places and porous spots. Molds which are out of shape, or cracked, make shrink-age cracks which gap open when the castings are hot-rolled. Dampness means porosity. Drops of oil mean porous or honey-combed areas. Poor or irregular dress-ing means mold wash in the castings. Cold copper or slow pouring means cold sets.

Jan 4, 1928

FROM the first to the last meeting of t h e Rocky Mountain Club John Hays Hammond served as president. He guided its deliberations when there were any, but that always y o u n g organization was never particularly deliberate. Youth never is. And the Club was the embodiment of the youthful spirit of the West, which considers any- thing can be done if there be but the will to do it. Ham- mond and the others came out of the West, but they, brought the West with them P and in all the far countries in which he has served his profession and in all the honorable offices in which he has served his country, he lived true to the ideals under which he was raised. A Californian, born in San Francisco in 1855, the son of an army officer, Major Richard Pindell Hammond, educated in the public schools of his native city, at Yale, and at Freiburg, he turned early and quickly to mining. He served his apprenticeship as all successful mining men do, as assayer, surveyor, as assistant in ex-aminations and later as principal, and finally as mine manager. Even in those days of beginnings, his future world-wide career was foreshadowed in that Mexico as well as California served as his training school. His first major step up the ladder was in connection with the Bunker Hill and Sullivan mine, where he served in various positions finishing as president and considerable owner. It was from this great lead mine that he was called to South Africa, where he remained a number of years and was the technical expert who guided the great enterprises of Barnato Brothers and Cecil Rhodes. The story of his activity in developing the "deeps" of the Rand and in opening Rhodesia has been often told but is always an alluring one of adventure and accomplish-ment. After his famous escape from death at Johannes-burg as a member of the Reform Committee, he went first to London and later returned to the United States representing both British and American capital in the purchase and development of great mines in all parts of the world. For some years he was general man-ager, consulting engineer, and director of the Guggen-heim Exploration Co., but of recent years he has oper-ated entirely on his own account and with marked success.

Jan 4, 1928

By P. B. Butler

IN common with others, the zinc industry found itself after the war largely over-capitalized, a condi-tion which still exists notwithstanding that Tri-State production has doubled since prewar days. This is partly due to the abnormal war demands and partly because of the war impetus given to research, a stim-ulus that because of its success has persisted (and probably will persist) constantly since then. Improved practice and metallurgy resulting from research are today responsible for an increased pro-duction in the Tri-State district of 15 per cent over the practice of five years ago, and the giant strides in this respect in the western states together with the more moderate advance in the Tri-State district has thrown out of equilibrium the more or less balanced production of before the war and production has con-sequently gained on consumption, a condition resulting in rapidly narrowing profits in the Tri-State field, where the present average cost is actually greater than the price received for our product. Despite this condition, no thinking person will de-plore the cause or means used to achieve a greater production and, as this progress is merely the economic application of intelligent thought, it follows that equal effort and thought may be expected to produce the remedy. It has been suggested that the practical application of research has resulted in less need for man-power and consequently in the lessening of employment to common labor and to engineers. I cannot think that such is the case although personally I have received more ap-plications for employment during the last two years than ever before. But when one considers the strides production of all commodities has taken, it is difficult to reconcile this immense development with the possible increase in pop-ulation especially in view of our stringent immigration laws. Whether or not improved industrial methods are responsible for the lessening of employment the ques-tion as to the wisdom of such improvement is hardly debatable. While the Tri-State district of Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri continues to be the leading factor in the zinc¬mining industry, gradually lowering prices during 1925 and 1926 and a. decided drop during 1927, have de-creased its production almost 20 per cent, this tonnage having largely been replaced by western concentrates.

Jan 4, 1928

RECORDING that the latest annual meeting was the largest and most successful ever held has be-come almost a habit, but when, as this year, the registration on the first day exceeded any other first day by two hundred, the annual dinner attracted nearly 1200, as compared with 750 at the previous largest one, and the number of technical sessions was larger than ever before, there seems no escape from so regarding it. In spite of the third day being a legal holiday (Washington's Birthday) no slackening, in attendance and interest was noted, and throughout the four days the greatest problem was to find enough meeting rooms and chairs to provide for the sessions, of which as many as twelve were in progress at one time. Solution of the problem would not have been possible (since the Engi-neering Societies building, was designed to provide only three general meeting rooms) except that a part of the eighth floor happened to be temporarily vacant. As these extra rooms will not be available next year, it may become necessary to adopt measures to keep the annual meeting down to the limit of facilities for handling it. The meeting opened on Monday with simultaneous sessions on iron and steel, geophysical prospecting, mine ventilation, non-metallic minerals, and milling, methods. The first four, which were continued after the usual recess for lunch, are reported in more detail elsewhere.

Jan 3, 1928

WHILE papers on cleaning coal and mining coal were presented at the iron and steel and mining methods sessions, respectively, the first general session on coal was held on Wednesday afternoon. Howard Eavenson of Pittsburgh, Pa., as chairman of the session,* reported progress by the Committee on the Valuation of Coal for Blast-Furnace Coke. A paper on blasting coal effectively and safely in Southern Illinois, by J. E. Tiffany and S. S. Lubelsky, was abstracted and commented on by Dan Harrington, of the U. S. Bureau of Mines. W. J. German commented on some conditions mentioned in the paper as unsafe or bad practices, and added to these some further ex-amples; he made a strong plea for holes to be: drilled parallel to the bedding as the easiest way to determine the proper length or depth to agree, with the depth of kerf cut. Mr. Barron called attention to proper cutting and-drilling and rate of detonation of the explosive used, as effective aids in blasting coal. Another speaker mentioned an odd case where compressed black powder or "pellet powder," had decreased accidents at a non-gaseous mine where permissible explosives had been formerly used; the permissible cracked or shattered the roof, with a resulting high accident rate from falls of roof, and pellet black powder overcame this trouble. Eugene McAuliffe of the Union Pacific Coal Co. told of difficulties in changing from black powder to permissible in Wyoming mines. J. B. Dilworth read a paper on valuation of coal prop-erties, expressing a preference for the method of capi-talizing the earning power of a property. Eli T. Con-ner of Scranton, Pa., with much experience in valuation work, stated that the method was undoubtedly good, but many times failed because of inability to forecast accurately future earnings, and further contended that total valuation -and royalty rates could generally be fixed fairly when based on similar neighboring proper-ties' rates when these had recently been established by a free bargaining. S. A. Taylor of Pittsburgh, Pa., stated that a leasehold value could be fairly established by figuring based on 10 to 20 per cent of the profit resulting from operation. The chairman read a written discussion from Henry Louis of England, called atten-tion to differences in valuation resulting from whether gross or net profit or earnings were used as a basis for capitalizing. John A. Garcia of Allen & Garcia gave a most inter-esting account of coal mining and general conditions in Russia as noted in his recent extensive visit there, which appears elsewhere in this issue. Although agree-ing with most thinking Americans that government operation is incompatible with progress, he showed that mining conditions were far from impossible in present-day Russia. Charles E. Stuart gave motion pictures of parts of the trip, with, his own comments supple-menting those of Mr. Garcia.

Jan 3, 1928

AS we contemplate the bestowal of the John Fritz medal year after year on men of wide-world dis-tinction in the various fields of engineering, men who in one way or another have given impulse and direction to the progress of mankind, the question becomes inter-esting as to what manner of man was John Fritz and what were the qualities that singled out his name to be so conspicuously associated with the world's great scientific and industrial achievements. If, as Lowell said, it is the duty of the nation to pro-duce great men, our country surely rose to her oppor-tunity when she guided and guarded the career of John Fritz. Starting life as a blacksmith with no advantages of education, without influential friends or the favor-ing accidents of fortune, he advanced steadily in use-fulness, power and respect of his fellowmen until by common consent he occupied the first place in the domain of the steel industry of this, country. The numerous honorary scientific memberships conferred upon him in this country and abroad attest the esteem in which he is held by his fellow engineers. Twenty years after his retirement from active business at the age of seventy, he lived to enjoy, as few men have been permitted to do, the fame and the friendships which he had so amply earned. His sterner qualities of industry, integrity and sterling character were re-lieved by unfailing human sympathy, humor and spon-taneous good-will toward his fellowmen. To all who

Jan 3, 1928

By Lloyd Jones

THE strip industry made rapid strides in regard to both width and gage until about 1922, when the maximum width was about 20 in. In the hot mills, strips of thin gages in wide widths could be pro-duced, but only at a sacrifice of length of coil, con-siderable increase in power, and decreased tonnage out-put on the min. Hot mills, like the Bray sheet mill and the modern strip and skelp mills, demonstrated that . wider strip could readily be rolled, if such a product was desired. The strip manufacturers were really limited in width, not by the hot strip, but by the cold rolling of wide strip. This factor was roll pressure. The diameter of rolls increased as the width of strip increased. For cold rolling strip 20 in. wide, cold rolls were approximately 20 in. diameter. As the rolls became larger, the arc of contact between the rolls and the strip increased approximately, according to the formula, b=\/Rd where b = the width of contact R = roll radius d = total reduction Now the crushing strength of cold steel of low carbon varies from 70,000 to 100,000 lb. per sq. in. With each succeeding pass the crushing strength increases and may approach 250,000 lb., according to the total reduction. The total reduction in cold rolling of low-carbon steel will range from 40 to 70 per cent of the original thickness, usually in about three or four passes. On this basis, assuming a reduction of 20 per cent in one pass, the crushing strength of steel assumed at 120,000 lb., we have a total pressure between rolls, which (assuming that the rolls do not deform) equals: Roll Strip Strip Diameter, Width, Thickness, In. In. In. Pounds 10 10 0.100 380,000 20 20 0.100 1,080,000 30 36 0.100 2,375,000 42 50 0.100 3,900,000 These figures are approximate, but you will note that in increasing the width five times, or 50 in., the total pressure between the rolls increased approximately ten times. In other words, the pressure per inch of width increased from 38,000 to 78,000 lb. for the same per-centage of reduction.

Jan 3, 1928

GEORGE OTIS SMITH, the Institute's new presi-dent, continues the long tradition of close asso-ciation between the organization and economic geology. Several preceding presidents have been eco-nomic geologists, and a gen-erous share of space in the TRANSACTIONS has always been devoted to that subject, one of critical importance to the miner as well as the seeker for ore. Mr. Smith has long served the Institute, hav-ing been a director since 1921 and first vice-president since 1927. He was born in Hodg-don, Me., on Feb. 22, 1871, and graduated at Colby College, where he took his A.B. and A.M. He did graduate work at Johns Hopkins, where he re-ceived a Ph.D. in 1896. Meanwhile he had engaged in field geological work in Michi-gan, Utah and Washington with the Geological Survey. In 1896 he joined the regular staff of that organization, be-coming director in 1907. He has been with the Survey con-tinuously since he first joined, with the exception of one year when he was furloughed to serve as a member of the U. S. Coal Commission. His special interest for many years has been in the eco-nomic aspects, in the larger sense, of the mineral in-dustry, matters that are necessarily the subject of strong differences of opinion, but which he has dis-cussed with good temper though with full adherence to his strong con-victions.

Jan 3, 1928

By Joseph Hays

MORE years ago than I care to admit I conferred the title of "combustion engineer? upon my-self since nobody else would confer it. I thought at the time, and for some, years thereafter, that my field was limited to the precincts where the fuel was being burned, but I found that I could stand in the door of the furnace room and hear distressed heat units calling for help all over the plant. Some of them were over-worked, others were compelled to do useless work, and still others, anxious to render a proper account of themselves, were not permitted to do any sort of work at all and were utterly wasted. The combustion engineer has something to do at that interesting occasion when the heat unit is being born in the furnace, but his responsibility does not end there. He must follow the little fellow throughout the entire period of its hectic existence in the plant and see that it gets a fair chance and a square deal everywhere. I fear that the general impression of the combustion engineer's duties is much as mine was in the beginning; that his job is limited to the implements and processes incident to the specific operation of converting fuel into active, heat energy and of applying it to the boiler, the still, or what-not, with the least possible waste. But is it not true that a heat unit saved in a remote corner of the plant means just as much to the fuel account as another saved at the furnace? And if nobody else is looking after the heat units out on the range why should the combustion engineer spend all of his time hanging around the corral? If combustion engineer is not a broad enough title to cover the man in charge of a general heat unit rescue campaign call him any-thing else you please. The job is all that counts. The name means nothing. A skunk by any other name would smell as bad. The greatest field I have ever found for general "heat rescue" work is the oil refinery. In refining we first put heat into the oil and then take it away from the vapor. The greatest heat losses occur during the cooling operation, but there are losses, many of them preventable, either wholly or partly, at every step of the several processes in oil refining.

Jan 3, 1928