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C.A. MITKE, *Bisbee, Ariz. (written-discussion-? ).--The advantages of the incline-slicing system have' been ably pointed out by Mr. Scott in his paper in the November, 1917, Bulletin, and also by Mr. P. B. Scotland in the Engineering & Mining Journal, Apr. 7, 1917. From the standpoint of efficiency and economy this method is far superior to the top-slice system as generally practised. However, as regards ventilation, and the danger of mine fires, it is just as necessary to use a mechanical ventilating system in mines worked by this method as it is in those worked by the horizontal top-slice system. Mechanical ventilation not only improves working conditions in top-slice stopes but, if properly designed for the particular mine in question, permits an immediate attack to he made in the event of a mine fire with a greater degree of safety to the men. In the course of time, incline top-slicing will probably take the place of the horizontal top-slicing system just as the incline cut-and-fill has superseded the horizontal cut-and-fill stoping method. While incline top-slicing has been tried in several districts on a very limited scale with inconclusive results, the Coronado is the-only large mine at which it has yet been thoroughly tested, and there it proved to be a complete success. As Mr. Scott's figures show, the tonnage has been more than doubled, with a simultaneous reduction in costs. As has been the history with all other innovations in mining, considerable hesitation will probably be shown in introducing this method in other mines. For example, when the incline cut-and-fill system was put forward as a substitute for the horizontal cut-and-fill stoping method many mining men of good repute were doubtful of its success and post-poned its introduction as long as possible, giving as their reason certain geologic conditions which would make the incline cut-and-fill impracticable. At the present time, most of the mining companies in the South-west, who in the past had used the horizontal cut-and-fill system, have already changed over, or are in the process of changing, and have proved that in the majority of cases horizontal cut-and-fill stopes can be successfully operated under the incline cut-and-fill system. Large horizontal cut-and-fill stopes can now be found in only a few exceptional cases, and

Jan 3, 1918

NEW MEMBERS The following list comprises the names of those persons who became .members during the period of Jan. 10, 1918, to Feb. 10, 1918. ANTISELL, TONER, Min. Engr.; Supt., Great Falls Mine of Maryland, Chevy Chase, R: F. D. No. 4, Washington, D. C. BAKER, RAYMOND FRANK, Geol:, The Texas Co., Producing Dept., Box 362, Tulsa, Okla. BERTON, ADRIEN, Chief Engr., Corocoro United Copper Mines, Ltd., Corocoro, Bolivia. Buck, WILMER EARLE, Met., Curtis & Co. Mfg. Co., Hamberger & Kienlein Aves., St. Louis, Mo. BUELL, WILLIAM H., Asst. Director, Experimental Station, E. I. duPont de Nemours & Co., Wilmington, Del. CARDENAS, FEDERICO F., Mgr., Cia. Minera Nazareno y Alicante, S. A., Allende, No. 112, Saltillo, Coah., Mexico. CHEVALIER, JEROME A., Pet. Geol., The Carter Oil Co.; Exchange National Bank Bldg., Tulsa, Okla. CLEAVES, DANIEL LUNT Supt., St. Joseph Lead Co., Herculaneum, Mo. CLOTHIER, GEORGE A., Resident Min. Engr., Province of British Columbia,

Jan 3, 1918

Organization Place Date 1915 American Institute of Architects Washington, D. C. April American Iron and Steel Institute New York, N. Y. May American Society for Testing Materials Atlantic City. N. J. June 25-28 New York Electrical Society New York, N. Y. June National Association of Stationary Engineers Cincinnati, 0. Sept. 9-13 National Exposition of Chemical Industries New York, N. Y. Sept. 23-28 American Chemical Society Cleveland, 0. Sept. National Petroleum Association Atlantic City, N. J. Sept.

Jan 3, 1918

By William Blauvelt

Tun technical and engineering problems in the manufacture of coke are today the problems of the byproduct oven. Except in a few special localities, practically no beehive ovens have been built in the United States for the last 5 or 6 years except as renewals of old plants, and during these years the total number of beehive ovens in existence has been steadily falling. On the other hand, the number of byproduct ovens has increased from 4624 in 1911 to a total of about 7660 in operation at the end of 1917; with 2800 building, this makes a total of about 10,460 which will be in operation in 1918, or shortly thereafter. Preliminary Government estimates place the total production of coke for 1917 at 56,600,000 tons, the largest tonnage in the history of the industry. Of this 34,000,000 tons or 60 per cent. was beehive, and 22,-600,000 tons, or 40 per cent. was byproduct coke. Some time in 1918 the production of byproduct coke should pass the beehive output, and when the byproduct ovens now building are completed the total byproduct capacity will be about 40,000,000 tons of coke per. annum, which is over 70 per cent. of the record-breaking total coke production of 1917. The reasons for these changes in the coking industry are familiar to all of us, and need not be discussed here.

Jan 3, 1918

The following is an incomplete list of members and guests who called at Institute headquarters during the period Jan. 10, 1918 to Feb. 10, 1918: K. Baumgarten, San Diego, Cal. J. A. Meyerovitch, Petrograd, Russia. F. J. Brine, Toronto, Ont., Canada. C. Naramore, Washington, D. C. W. A. Castleton, Salt Lake City, Utah. Orrin P. Peterson, Wausau, Wis. J. Ross Corbin, Boyerton, Pa. William H. Rea, Pittsburgh, Pa. W. M. Corse, Buffalo, N. Y. W. Murray Sanders, Tucson, Ariz. W. A. Deane, Summitville, N. Y. Edmund F. Saxton, Philadelphia, Pa. S. E. Doak, Philadelphia, Pa. William C. Schmidt, Humboldt, Ariz. F. G. Downs, Jersey City, N. J. G. J. Sielaff, Oakland, Cal. Albert H. Fay, Washington, D. C. A. D. Sproat, Bound Brook, N. J. F. Julius Fohs, Tulsa, Okla. J. A. Stader, Joplin, Mo. A. L. Gholz, Minneapolis, Minn. A. K. Stewart, Mine La Motte, Mo. Ruger W. Hay, Easton, Pa. Geo. W. Tower, Jr., New Rochelle, N. Y. Stanley C. Herold, Pittsburgh, Pa. Henry Traphagen, Toledo, Ohio. A. A. Holland, Montreal, Canada. H. E. Treichler, Chuquicamata, Chile. T. Z. Humphrey, Anaconda, Mont. Paul M. Tyler, Fairlee, Vt. H. M. LaFollette, LaFollette, Tenn. F. R. Van Campen; Seattle, Wash. J. B. Lain, Goldfield, Nev. Thor Warner, Phoenix, Ariz. J. R. Lashbrooke, Los Angeles, Cal. Clarence Woods, Narrows, Va. W. F. Lewis, Ewen, Mich. E. N. Zern, Pittsburgh, Pa. C. E. McQuigg, New Haven, Conn. Robert J. Anderson has resigned his position as chief chemist and metallurgist of the Cleveland Metal Products Co., Cleveland, Ohio.

Jan 3, 1918

Executive SIDNEY J. JENNINGS, Chairman GEORGE D. BARRON J. E. JOHNSON, JR. EDWIN LUDLOW ROBERT M. RAYMOND Membership KARL EILERS, Chairman LEWIS W. FRANCIS J. E. JOHNSON, JR. LOUIS D. HUNTOON ARTHUR L. WALKER Finance GEORGE D. BARRON, Chairman CHARLES F. RAND BENJAMIN B. THAYER Library E. GYBBON SPILSBURY,1 Chairman ALEX C. HUMPHREYS2 GEORGE C. STONE2 J. H. JANEWAY4 BRADLEY STOUGHTON1

Jan 3, 1918

H. D. HIBBARD, Plainfield, N. J. (written discussion *).-While this valuable and timely paper may not go to the root of the matter, it deals with many of the elements and factors involved. It might be taken as the engineer's solution of the case, starting with the assumption that steel is steel, while the tendency for a rail to have transverse fissures may, and probably does, depend, in part at least, on conditions met before it reaches the track. Admitting with the author that "brittleness of fracture in all grades of steel is characteristic of fatigue tests" we may yet look farther back to find out, if possible, why some rails and some steels are more prone to have transverse fissures than others, for it has been found that rails from certain heats of steel developed these fissures under a service which

Jan 3, 1918

Your outgoing President, following the worthy example of distinguished predecessors, submits a reckoning of his stewardship. He renders this fully realizing that without the hearty cooperation of Directors and Secretary, which he here recognizes most cordially, no President, who at best is but a passing force, can achieve markworthy results. The details as to your membership, finances, intellectual output, and,-other activities, have been submitted in the report of the Secretary.* It is enough to emphasize that during the year just expired, your organization has held two of its most successful meetings-one the largest in its history-has produced the largest number of papers, eliciting most interested discussions, has enjoyed its greatest income; and has received more than one thousand new members-passing the best previous record by more than one hundred, and exceeding the average increment of the, past five years by one third. It closes the year with 6528 members, the largest enrollment in its history. All of this might be true and yet the intellectual and social spirit, the loyalty of membership, the real life of the organization, might remain stagnant. As to these, it is for others than your speaker to testify. No comparison is feared.

Jan 3, 1918

The 27th Regiment of Engineers was organized in the Army not long ago for special mining service at the front (or, we might even say, in advance of the front). In military engineering in warfare, the "sappers and miners" are one of the ancient branches of the corps of engineers; but in modern warfare the importance of this service has been greatly magnified. The 27th Engineers is a. special mining regiment, which is being recruited from mining engineers and miners from all districts of the country, already containing representatives from all the mining states between Arizona and Montana and from the Atlantic to the Pacific Coast. Those of us who cannot go to the front should not-be content to tell the young fellows to go, and then forget them. We want the men of the 27th Engineers to know that they represent our industry and their industry; and that the industry is going to think about them and back them up. Expressing the above views, the Engineering and. Mining Journal instituted a fund for the aid of the 27th Engineers. It has already raised a considerable sum of money, and contributions are coming in fast; but there is no limit to what is wanted. This money is being spent in providing the regiment with athletic equipment, both outdoor and indoor; with games for the barracks; with cigarettes and smoking tobacco; with contributions to the funds of the several companies that the men raise among themselves. It is contemplated, moreover, that there will be need to extend aid and comfort to some of the families whom the men have left behind. Contributions of books, sweaters and other knitted articles are also being received.

Jan 3, 1918

By Chas Fettke

DURING the summer of 1916, while on a visit to the United States Agricultural Experiment Station at Mayaguez, Porto Rico, the writers were told by D. W. May, the director, that an occurrence of manganese ore had been reported from the mesa southeast of Mayaguez. A visit to the locality showed that the mesa is covered by a mantle of bright red soil resting upon serpentine. Here and there over its surface concretionary masses of limonite have been washed out of this soil. These were FIG. I.-MAYAGUEZ FROM NORTHWEST END OF MESA. apparently mistaken for manganese ore. On account of the similarity of this occurrence to the extensive iron deposits of northeastern Cuba, it was thought that a brief description based upon a two days' reconnaissance survey of the area would be of scientific interest. Mayaguez is on the west coast of Porto Rico, at Mayaguez Bay, which is the third in importance of the harbors of the island. The city itself is about ¾ mile inland on the low-lying plain at the mouth of the

Jan 3, 1918

No. 275. Chemist, assayer, and precipitate smelter, also an experienced shift man; both for a cyanide plant in Peru. Salary £30 Sterling per month; two years' contract and all traveling and living expenses. No. 276. Metallurgist; experienced in reducing tungsten ores and preparing metallic tungsten and tungsten alloys. No. 277. Draftsman and transitman for coal mine work in Middle West. Salary $125 per month. No. 278. Metallurgical engineer familiar with microscopic work and experienced in making microscopic photographs; with some experience in heat treating of alloy steels. No. 279. The Trench Warfare Section of the Ordnance Department desires to get in touch with young men over draft age, or in deferred draft classification, who are physically sound, who can. become candidates for commissions; earning capacity of at least $1700 a year. Must have good character, some business experience, university training, and some technical skill. Application should be made to Captain Hudson Millar, 1800 Virginia Avenue, Washington, D. C,. Three original letters of recommendation from American citizens must be furnished. An appli-

Jan 3, 1918

By Stanislaus Skowronski

THE melting of cathode copper, usually containing 99.98+ per cent. Cu, would appear to be a simple matter. Owing to the well known affinity of copper for sulphur, however, so much sulphur is absorbed by the copper during the operation that a long and expensive refining process is required to remove it, and the final product is inferior in purity and lower in electrical conductivity than the original cathode copper. The furnace operation, as now conducted, includes the following stages: 1. Charging the cathodes into the furnace. 2. Melting the cathodes. 3. Oxidizing period-saturating the copper with cuprous sub-oxide and bringing the metal to the condition known as "set copper;" this is now done by blowing air into the molten bath of metal. 4. Reduction period, otherwise known as "poling," whereby the oxygen previously added is removed by covering the molten bath completely with coke or charcoal and introducing large poles of green wood; this reduces the cuprous sub-oxide, bringing the copper to the "tough pitch" stage ready for casting. 5. Casting Period. Many experiments have been made to obviate the long periods of oxidation and subsequent reduction, with no success. While the copper first, cast will be good, as indicated by the set surface of the bars, it is impossible to hold it to the "tough pitch" condition, and long before the whole charge has been poured the copper will become "overpoled," entailing numerous difficulties. Sulphur has always been blamed by the furnace men as the reason why this refining process is necessary, yet the literature on the subject does not sufficiently emphasize how small a proportion of sulphur will ruin copper for practical purposes.

Jan 3, 1918

BURKE BAKER, Philadelphia, Pa. (written discussion*).-The small briquetting plant of the American Briquet Co., at 25th Street and Washington Ave., Philadelphia, was built primarily as a demonstration plant. Its output per hour is 4 tons of 2-oz. briquets, which have been retailed in the, vicinity during the year the plant has been in operation. They have proved very acceptable for use in ranges, heaters and grates in-home, and in steam heating plants in apartment houses and hotels. They have not been sold for power purposes, although satisfactory tests have been made in. this field. Anthracite silt is used and is shipped direct from breaker or washery, the only preparation it receives being the removal f excess moisture by means of a Ruggles-Coles rotary dryer. Care is taken, however, to purchase silt containing less than 18 per cent. ash. The method is covered by U. S. Patent No. 941454, issued to Chas. E. Hite, and is known as the "emulsion process." The binder, which is the, basis of the patent, is composed. of 0.5 per cent. cornstarch or wheat flour; 1 per cent. asphaltum or hydrolene, and 6.5 per cent. water, on the weight of coal dust. It is prepared in a tank equipped with paddle agitators and heated by steam jets. The starch and water are first made into a paste by being brought to the boiling point with live steam; the melted asphaltum is then introduced and thoroughly beaten into the paste by the agitators. This rapid stirring breaks. the hot asphaltum into minute particles which are distributed through the paste, producing a smooth chemical emulsion. This emulsion, when dried, is not soluble in water. The binder is mixed with the dry coal dust in a horizontal paddle mixer, 8 per cent. binder to the weight of coal being used. The resultant plastic mass is then discharged into the press, which is of the simple roll type. Since the binder is a liquid and is not sticky or gummy until

Jan 3, 1918

MARCEL R. DALY (written discussion+).-I have read with great interest Mr. W . Van Der Gracht's discussion of my paper and I fail to see where his theory contradicts mine on any fundamental point. My contention is that petroliferous accumulations are generally coincident with diastrophic deformations, synchronous with them and essentially a result of them. This implies that the causes which have led to the distortion of the strata, whatever these causes may be (thrusts, torsion, etc.), have also led to the concentration and accumulation of the hydrocarbons existing in the strata at that time. It is in this respect that both set of phenomena may be said to be related in space and in time and that we may speak of an identity of causes. It is evident that no concentration of the hydrocarbons could take place where these hydrocarbons would not exist. But whenever they do so exist, deformation will tend to concentrate them; and whenever they are found to be concentrated (or accumulated) the cause of their accumulation will have to be traced directly to distortion. I have tried to show, in some previous papers,' the probable sequence of such a mechanical process in the simple case of a series of parallel, superposed, horizontal and homogeneous layers, individually uniform in thickness, but variable in composition and resistance; and I have pointed out that the general results so obtained would harmonize with some striking features recognized in the field. But I have also stated that conditions being much more complicated in nature than in the theoretical instance considered above, a complex superposition of effects would. have to be expected as a general rule, though the leading principle would remain the same. Mr. Van der Gracht admits that the motion of the primary oil, when it has been formed, and its accumulation in adequately porous containers, if any, that would be mostly found on the front edge of the original geosynclines, would be due to the action of the mountain-building forces. Our agreement on this point seems to be complete. But Mr. Van der Gracht wants also the formation of the bituminous matter in its primary form to be coincident only with the earliest phase of the uplift, viz., after the slow geanticlinal upheaval has been completed, and the accumulation

Jan 3, 1918

COLUMBIA SECTION Holds four sessions during year. Annual meeting in September or October. S. S. FOWLER, Chairman, J. C. HAAS, Vice-Chairman, LYNDON K. ARMSTRONG, Secretary-Treasurer, 720 Peyton Bldg., Spokane, Wash. W. H. LINNEY, J. F. MCCARTHY. A special meeting of the officers of the Columbia Section was held in Spokane, Wash., Jan. 10, 1918, for the purpose of organizing and nominating members to the principal committees of the Section. Present: J. C. Haas, Vice-chairman; W. H. Linney, Past Chairman; and L. K. Armstrong, Secretary. J. F. McCarthy, Wallace, Idaho, was appointed fifth member of the Executive Committee. The following were appointed to the Membership Committee: R. M. Betts; for Oregon; W. J. Hall, for Idaho; J. M. Porter, for Washington. A member for British Columbia will be appointed later. The following were appointed to the Committee on Papers: Prof. F. A. Thomson, Moscow, Idaho; Prof. L. 0. Howard, Pullman, Wash.; H. S. Lee, Rye Valley, Ore. A fourth member, representing British Columbia, is to be appointed later. The following members were appointed representatives on the Executive Committee of the Spokane Engineering and Technical Association: J. C. Haas, W. H. Linney, F. A. Ross, L. K. Armstrong. The Treasurer reported a deficit, resulting from the participation of the Section at the Northwest Mining Convention in 1916. It was recommended that the Institute be petitioned to make good this deficit, in addition to the usual annual allowance. The members of the committee who were present expressed their desire to be of greater service in the present war, and discussed at some length the possible means of carrying out their desires. It was later decided to reopen the subject at a subsequent meeting of the Section, or to present it to the Executive Committee of the Spokane Engineering and Technical Association for discussion and cooperative action. L. K. ARMSTRONG, Secretary.

Jan 3, 1918

In a letter to the Secretary, Sir Robert A. Hadfield encloses a statement of the terms and conditions under which his prize is to be awarded by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and also a table comparing the hardness of a large variety of steels, examined both by Brinell and by scleroscope methods, together with the tensile and compressive strength of the same specimens. The conditions for the award of the prize are as follows: SIR ROBERT HADFIELD PRIZE For a new Method of Determining the Hardness of Metals 1. Sir Robert A. Hadfield, D. Sc., D. Met., F. R. S., Vice-President, has placed in the hands of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers the suns of £200, which, with any income therefrom, may he awarded at the discretion of the Council of the Institution as a prize or as prizes, for the description of a new and accurate method of determining the hardness of metals, especially of metals of a high degree of hardness. 2. The ordinary tests of hardness, such as are described in the report of the Hard-ness Tests Research Committee (Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engi=neers, 1916, pages 677 to 778), which should he consulted by competitors, fail to some extent when the hardness of the material exceeds about 600 to 800 Brinell. What is

Jan 3, 1918

W. R. Ingalls made an oral address on the subject of the 27th Engineers, and it was resolved that notice of the needs of the Association of the 27th Engineers be communicated to the members through the Bulletin. Robert W. Hunt was appointed representative of the Institute on the Commission of Award of the Washington Medal of the Western Society of Engineers. The budget for the year 1918 was adopted. The report of the Library Committee for the year 1917 was accepted. An appropriation of $50 to the Treasurer's clerk was made. The appointment of the tellers made at the last meeting of the Board was confirmed.

Jan 3, 1918

By Ira N. Holli

A meeting of Engineering Council was held on Thursday, Jan. 22, 1918, at the Engineering Societies Building, New York. Present: Chairman Ira N. Hollis (A. S. M. E.); Dr. Charles Warren Hunt, Alex. C. Humphreys and F. H. Newell (A. S. C. E.); B. B. Lawrence and .J. Parke Charming (A. I. M. E.); Charles Whiting Baker, D. S. Jacobus, and George, J. Foran (A. S. M. E.) ; H. W. Buck, E. W. Rice, Jr., N. A. Carle, C. E. Skinner and Comfort A. Adams (A. I. E. E.) ; Clemens Herschel and Calvert Townley (United Engineering Society); also, by invitation, D. W. Brunton, Chairman, War Committee of Technical Societies of Engineering Council. Of the several actions taken at this meeting, the following are selected as being of most general interest. Chairman-Baker-presented a resolution on the conduct of the war, to which objections were made. It was referred to a special-committee; Charles Whiting Baker, Charles Warren Hunt, and Calvert Townley, for re-drafting and presentation later in the meeting. The revised resolution submitted by this committee led to further discussion and as no agreement could he reached, the matter was laid on the table.

Jan 3, 1918

The annual meeting of the Mining and Metallurgical Society of America was held on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 1918, at the Engineers' Club, New York, to elect officers and councillors for the ensuing year, to receive the reports of its retiring officers, and for the transaction of any business which might properly be considered. As usual, the meeting was divided into two sessions; the first, more properly the business session, was called to order at 2:30 p.m., with an attendance of 17 members; the second session took place at 8:30 p. m., immediately following an informal dinner, at which 40 guests and members participated. The latter was particularly interesting because it gave the meeting an opportunity to absorb first-hand information regarding the present crisis in Russia. Messrs. F. W. Draper and J. P. Hutchins, the latter a member and long resident in Russia, were the speakers of the evening.

Jan 3, 1918

The following is an incomplete list of members and guests who. called at Institute headquarters during the period Dec. 10, 1917 to Jan. 10, , 1918: A. A. Arluck, Camp Merritt, N. J. W. Spencer Hutchinson, Boston, Mass. C. L. Bruns, Santiago de Cuba. William F. Jahn, New York, N. Y. Henry C. Carr, New York, N. Y. C. H. James, Tucson, Ariz. L. J. Charles, Santa Fe, N. M. Charles Janin, San Francisco, Cal. W. A. Deane, Waxhaw, N. C. Joseph T. Kupferstein, Shreveport, Pa. P. St. John Dixon, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Richard Lamb, New York, N. Y. M. C. Drake, Marquette, Mich. Walter R. Malm, San Francisco, Cal. F. W. Draper, Petrograd, Russia. W. H. Nash, Buffalo, N. Y. Paul W. Gaebelein, Boise, Idaho. Edmund Newton, Minneapolis, Minn. H. F. E. Gamm, Rutherford, N. J. Guy C. Riddell, Port Pirie, South Australia. C. A. Grabill, El Paso, Tex. Williams A. Simkins, San Francisco, Cal. William H. Hampton, New York, N. Y. Henry B. Smith, Northampton, Mass. R. M. Henderson, Brackenridge, Colo. H. E. Smith, Chicago, Ill. Geo. B. Holderer, Northpines, Ont., H: C. Spaulding, Washington, D. C. Canada. Y. Wakabayashi, Tokyo, Japan. H. H. Howry, Camp Upton. N. Y. A. P. Watt, Mine La Motte, Mo. L. Douglas Anderson", superintendent of the Midvale, Utah, smeltery of the United States Smelting Co., has been appointed manager of smelteries for the company at Salt Lake City, Utah.

Jan 2, 1918