The United States: Her Mineral Resources 335 



later it was $2,000,000, in 1897 it na d 

 crossed the $10,000,000 mark, and in 

 1900 had risen to $18,000,000. Butte, 

 in Montana, was a silver camp of some 

 importance 20 3'ears ago, when copper 

 was discovered and the district sud- 

 denly loomed up with exports by the 

 ship cargo of 30 per cent ores to the 

 astounded smelters of Swansea, Wales. 

 When Leadville's great reserves of 

 oxidized silver-lead ores began to show 

 signs of exhaustion, the Cceur d'Alene 

 Count}-, in Idaho, rose to more than fill 

 the gap. 



Again and again we have faced the 

 possibility that our petroleum supply 

 would ultimatel}' fail us ; yet as the 

 derricks fell into ruins in one field they 

 rose like magic in others, the most 

 startling recent instance being the 

 opening of the California and Texas 

 fields. 



Some uneasiness has been felt as to 

 the future of the Lake iron ore supply. 

 The Marquette district was in full de- 

 velopment when the Menominee was 

 opened out. Then came in rapid suc- 

 cession the Gogebic and the Vermilion 

 ranges, and finally, as the climax of all, 

 the Mesaba range. Again and again 

 the prediction was made that the old 

 Marquette range would show evidences 

 of exhaustion, and yet year after year 

 new mines have taken the place of old 

 ones. New reserves are being opened 

 up in all the districts until this genera- 

 tion may well dismiss any fears of future 

 supplies, even taking into consideration 

 that the demands are rapidly increasing 

 year after year. 



As for our resources of coal, the most 

 important of our minerals, we are not 

 likely to have a Coal Exhaustion Com- 

 mission, like that of our British friends, 

 for centuries to come. 



Our record of feverish activity is one of 

 which we have every reason to be proud, 

 but it must be acknowledged that it 

 has been accompanied by serious abuses. 

 In the rush to get rich we have delib- 



erately followed the principle that it 

 pays to waste. Within certain limits 

 that may be economically justifiable. 

 In a new country, without adequate 

 transportation facilities, high labor, and 

 difficult surroundings, it is possible only 

 to select the best and the richest, but 

 unfortunately in mining that process of 

 selection in most cases practically ren- 

 ders unavailable for the future that 

 which has been rejected. Much of it 

 is forever lost to the world, and what 

 can be saved at a later date can be re- 

 covered only at a greatly increased cost. 

 In the early days of our mining we 

 have been unskillful, and even toda3 T 

 we are robbing nature's storehouses of 

 treasure, often destroying more than 

 we utilize. At one time, not so many 

 years since, barely one-third of the an- 

 thracite coal in our beds finally reached 

 the consumer. The other two-thirds 

 were lost in mining and in preparation 

 for market. 



It is characteristic of a great many of 

 the mineral deposits that the mass of the 

 ore, particularly with growing depth, 

 is low in grade, the useful mineral be- 

 ing disseminated in relatively large 

 quantities of barren rock. Very often 

 the rich ore occurs only in streaks and 

 pockets, which constitute a minor per- 

 centage in the total amount of valuable 

 material. In hunting for them the 

 poorer material is rejected, although 

 it may be close to the border line of 

 profitable extraction. With improved 

 economic conditions there is greater 

 opportunity, and with greater skill and a 

 broader comprehension there is a grow- 

 ing tendency among managers to rely 

 more and more upon a moderate return 

 on the large bodies of poor ore, accept- 

 ing the occasional bonanza as a welcome 

 addition to revenue. The reckless hunt 

 for rich streaks is giving way to sys- 

 tematic utilization of a maximum of 

 the deposits. It may not be as merry 

 and exciting a life, but it is certainly a 

 longer one and happier one. There has 



