23 



Gulf of California, where the company treats the ore in its own smelt- 

 ing plant adjoining. The matte, or black copper, is sent to Europe in 

 the same vessels that bring out coke. The company gives employ- 

 ment to thousands of hands directly and indirectly, owns its own 

 steamers, and solicits workmen all along the coast. But this enter- 

 prise, large as it is, shows the progress that has been made and the 

 difficulties overcome by individuals. The country itself is arid and 

 sterile, and there is little encouragement for others to prospect, or 

 even develop, when found, apparently good prospects, owing to the 

 natural difficulties to be overcome and the vast capital necessary to 

 successfully carry on mining operations ; as success is hardly to be 

 obtained except by treating the ores on the ground, as the Boleo Com- 

 pany has done. 



At the same time the enterprising firm of Guggenheim has estab- 

 lished its works at Aguas Calientes, adding very considerably to the 

 copper product, and the increase of matte shipments from San Luis 

 Potosi and Monterey makes a large difference from former returns. 

 To judge from the official figures, the amount of copper produced in 

 1896 was not less than 22,000 metric tons, the greater production being 

 from the Boleo mines. 



Quicksilver. The production of quicksilver can only be approxi- 

 mated from imports, as the native production is far short of the re- 

 quirements of the country. In 1895 the amount imported was 818,704 

 kilos, with a value of $541,664, while during the past year the amount 

 imported was 854,526 kilos, with a value of $574,153. The only infer- 

 ence to be drawn from these figures is that the production in Mexico 

 in the past year as compared with 1895 ^ as not increased, and the 

 figures of production given in the Engineering and Mining Journal of 

 1895 may be accepted as correct for 1896. 



Coal. Fuel is perhaps the greatest and most pressing need of 

 Mexico. For centuries the population of the whole country has used 

 wood for fuel, until the most thickly inhabited portions of the country 

 are completely destitute of trees. This condition of things is a very 

 serious objection to the increase of manufacturing, as it is impossible 

 to manufacture cheaply when fuel commands a very high figure. Coal, 

 which has to be transported sometimes for thousands of miles before it 

 reaches the centre of the country, becomes very expensive. At present 

 rates the cost of wood in the City of Mexico is equal to $14 a cord, 

 while coal ranges from $16 to $22 per ton according to grade, and one 

 source of supply is the artificial fuel of compressed coal dust brought 

 from England, and in use not alone on the Veracruz Railway, but in 

 various local industries, while coal also comes from West Virginia, 

 Alabama, etc. The distances of the sources of coal supply and its 

 consequent cost led to the attempt of utilizing the peat deposits which 



