California Mining Journal (PH 16-15)(August 1942) (36 pages)

Two California Mining Journal, August, 1942 What the Other Fellow Says: . WE LIKE (T Whatever the merits of the controversy over the existence or non-existence of important deposits of tin in Western America. San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors has demonstrated a commendable willingness to go to bat for the city’s neighbors. In asking for a Congressional investigation of the matter, the San Francisco Board has done something for the many mining communities whose future depends on finding new mineral development whether it be tin or other metals, to take the place of gold mining, now curtailed by priorities. If there is any disposition in Washington to overlook any of our Western mineral deposits for any reason, that should be investigated. When assured by such authorities as the president of the State Supervisors Association and the editor of a leading California mining journal that the situation constituted both a problem and an opportunity, the San Francisco Supervisors responded with alacrity. It is another manifestation of the scrappy new spirit in San Francisco, the willingness to go to bat for friends and neighbors. We like it—-WILLIAM LOSH, in Regional News Service, 5 Third St., San Francisco. BEER TRUCKS vs. MILK TRUCKS Our farmers are urged to increase produc. tion of dairy products to meet the demands of the war. When their boys, detained to do farm work, enter the armed forces of their country, these fathers do not complain, but get along as best they can. Now they are faced with a further handicap—lack of tires with which to transport their dairy products to market. They might cheerfully meet this obstacle also, but seeing beer trucks in their vicinity well equipped with tires, they need, our farmers are moved to bitter resentment, and why not?—CONGRESSMAN B, FRANK WHELCHEL, of Georgia, in the House of Rep., May 19, 1942. WOULD BLOCK ZINC DEVELOPMENT In spite of determined efforts on the part of at least three parties working together— Senator Holman in Washington, the Bonneville Administration, and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries—it appears that “forces” in Washington are determined to block the program for a Pacific Northwest electrolytic zinc smelter. A new tack is now being followed, but in the light of the present objection to approval by the Government any plant development that cannot be finished and operating by midyear, 1943, the possibility of obtaining Federal approvement of this smelter issue seems somewhat unlikely—EARL K. NIXON, Director Oregon Mines Dept. INTERESTING XSSUE There is no more interesting mining issue published than California Mining Journal. ROBERT E. HOWDEN, 81 Cowles St., Hartford, Conn. KEEP THE BALL MILL GRINDING Keep the “Bawl” Mill Grinding. I would like to shake hands with you.—RALPH BROWN, Box 518, Wilmington, Cal, China is the leading tea producing country in the world, with India, Ceylon, Java and Japan following in respective order. A Matter of Ruts Mr. J. P. Hall, Editor, Auburn, California. Dear Sir: A clipping has just been received by me relative to TIN IN CALIFORNIA and adjoining states. Im this article you are quoted as saying: “It takes a government agency a long time to get out of a rut. I charge that the Bureau of Mines is in a rut.” Boy, you hit the nail right on the head! As an engineer I wish to say that the only difference between a rut and a grave is a matter of dimension. A big wheel will make a big rut. A big man will take a big grave but a little man cannot see out over the top of either the rut or the grave. The old saying goes: “The wheel that Squeaks the loudest gets the grease,” and if you fellows will squeak loud and long enough you may get some action and attention toward developing some tin in the United States, “What the mind sees, that doth the cye bring forth.” If you keep your mind on U. S. possibilities of tin you are more likely to find tin than if you keep your mind on looking for frauds as it is quoted one of the government agents is quoted as saying, “That Burns, Ore., area is famous for frauds.” Now let us go a bit further, to keep open the brotherly attitude toward Mexico. There are tin possibilities in Durango, Mexico, There are tin possibilities on an area near Oroville, South Dakota. There are tin possibilities north of Franklin Mountains, just a short way north of El Paso. There has been plenty of looking but no digging. I have seen every tin area in the United States and I still believe we can develop some tin. I did catch a fraud one time in North Georgia on tin but that did not deter me from digging.— L. M. RICHARDS, Consulting Geologist, Benton, Arkansas. SLAB ZINC OUTPUT INCREASES Production of slab zinc of al] grades jn May totaled 79,489 tons, compared with 17,034 in April and 73,449 in May, 1941. Domestic shipments amounted to 66,737 tons, against 63,819 in April and 61,696 in May, 1941. Aevseerennnnenser Flat? We Hope Not Help us con8erve Work, Paper, Ti me and Expense by payin g your subscription promptly upon receipt of your statement, You Can Aid Us to Locate Minerals Necessary for War CALIFORNIA MINING JOURNAL, Under The Capitol Dome By A. J. A, WASHINGTON, D. C., July 15—1 am sure your readers will be very interested in the fight to secure recognition of the plan of substituting sponge iron for the fast disappearing scrap (or the scrap that disappeared several years ago when we sold practically all of it to the Japs). In view of the fact that the economical production of sponge iron is now in process and furthermore that the Japs are using our American originated process for its production it’s high time we quit devoting so much time to scrap drives and start using our enormous iron deposits. “Big Steel” would like to keep our minds and backs bent over picking up scrap until they can safely get over the present emergency without any new opposition process being adopted. But listen to Nathan Robertson, under date of July 7, tell about it in PM: “While the steel companies and the War Production Board (WPB) have been poohpoohing sponge iron as a substitute for increasingly scarce scrap iron, a small spongeiron plant actually has been operating in Oklahoma. “H. G. S. Anderson, an engineer who built a similar plant for the Japanese before the war, has been operating the plant at Muskogee through the recent months when the shortage of scrap in St. Louis was forcing steel companies to curtail war production. “It was called to the attention of the WPB many weeks ago by Frank J. McDevitt, WPB contract distributing manager at St. Louis, who has been trying since February to get a Sponge-iron plant in that area so that the Scullen Steel Co., and other St. Louis steel makers could keep busy. “Anderson’s plant was only a small twoand one-half ton pilot plant but it demonstrated the process he had used in building the 100-ton plant at Kuzi, Japan, which the Japanese are presumably using today to make war on America. No WPB Action “About six weeks ago, on May 26, a group of experts and Government officials visited the plant and submitted a strong recommendation that it be moved at once to St. Louis and expanded. Despite McDevitt’s reports of a serious .shortage of scrap iron in the St. Louis area, and Bureau of Mines reports that sponge iron would be an “ideal” substitute. the WPB has not yet taken action, or publicly modified its Opposition to the development of sponge-iron plants. “The report on the Muskogee trip is contained in the memorandum prepared by Harold P, Furlong, metallurgist, and Burdette G. Lewis, business specialist, in the WPB's contract distribution branch, which s now before the Senate Truman Commitee, “Furlong and Lewis have been urging for months that the WPB develop sponge-iron plants to remedy the shortage of scrap which 1s already curtailing steel production. ‘They and McDevitt were among the group which spected Anderson’s plant at Muskogee. eae Sule eee recommends that a but despite thon e St. Louis area at once. growing shortage still the only one recommendation, and the of Scrap, the Japanese are S making effective use of : . the Bur i i says it will, hag €au of Mines, which received an iati of $600,000 from Congress to * penepmation.

Two California Mining Journal, August, 1942 What the Other Fellow Says: . WE LIKE (T Whatever the merits of the controversy over the existence or non-existence of important deposits of tin in Western America. San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors has demonstrated a commendable willingness to go to bat for the city’s neighbors. In asking for a Congressional investigation of the matter, the San Francisco Board has done something for the many mining communities whose future depends on finding new mineral development whether it be tin or other metals, to take the place of gold mining, now curtailed by priorities. If there is any disposition in Washington to overlook any of our Western mineral deposits for any reason, that should be investigated. When assured by such authorities as the president of the State Supervisors Association and the editor of a leading California mining journal that the situation constituted both a problem and an opportunity, the San Francisco Supervisors responded with alacrity. It is another manifestation of the scrappy new spirit in San Francisco, the willingness to go to bat for friends and neighbors. We like it—-WILLIAM LOSH, in Regional News Service, 5 Third St., San Francisco. BEER TRUCKS vs. MILK TRUCKS Our farmers are urged to increase produc. tion of dairy products to meet the demands of the war. When their boys, detained to do farm work, enter the armed forces of their country, these fathers do not complain, but get along as best they can. Now they are faced with a further handicap—lack of tires with which to transport their dairy products to market. They might cheerfully meet this obstacle also, but seeing beer trucks in their vicinity well equipped with tires, they need, our farmers are moved to bitter resentment, and why not?—CONGRESSMAN B, FRANK WHELCHEL, of Georgia, in the House of Rep., May 19, 1942. WOULD BLOCK ZINC DEVELOPMENT In spite of determined efforts on the part of at least three parties working together— Senator Holman in Washington, the Bonneville Administration, and the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries—it appears that “forces” in Washington are determined to block the program for a Pacific Northwest electrolytic zinc smelter. A new tack is now being followed, but in the light of the present objection to approval by the Government any plant development that cannot be finished and operating by midyear, 1943, the possibility of obtaining Federal approvement of this smelter issue seems somewhat unlikely—EARL K. NIXON, Director Oregon Mines Dept. INTERESTING XSSUE There is no more interesting mining issue published than California Mining Journal. ROBERT E. HOWDEN, 81 Cowles St., Hartford, Conn. KEEP THE BALL MILL GRINDING Keep the “Bawl” Mill Grinding. I would like to shake hands with you.—RALPH BROWN, Box 518, Wilmington, Cal, China is the leading tea producing country in the world, with India, Ceylon, Java and Japan following in respective order. A Matter of Ruts Mr. J. P. Hall, Editor, Auburn, California. Dear Sir: A clipping has just been received by me relative to TIN IN CALIFORNIA and adjoining states. Im this article you are quoted as saying: “It takes a government agency a long time to get out of a rut. I charge that the Bureau of Mines is in a rut.” Boy, you hit the nail right on the head! As an engineer I wish to say that the only difference between a rut and a grave is a matter of dimension. A big wheel will make a big rut. A big man will take a big grave but a little man cannot see out over the top of either the rut or the grave. The old saying goes: “The wheel that Squeaks the loudest gets the grease,” and if you fellows will squeak loud and long enough you may get some action and attention toward developing some tin in the United States, “What the mind sees, that doth the cye bring forth.” If you keep your mind on U. S. possibilities of tin you are more likely to find tin than if you keep your mind on looking for frauds as it is quoted one of the government agents is quoted as saying, “That Burns, Ore., area is famous for frauds.” Now let us go a bit further, to keep open the brotherly attitude toward Mexico. There are tin possibilities in Durango, Mexico, There are tin possibilities on an area

near Oroville, South Dakota. There are tin possibilities north of Franklin Mountains, just a short way north of El Paso. There has been plenty of looking but no digging. I have seen every tin area in the United States and I still believe we can develop some tin. I did catch a fraud one time in North Georgia on tin but that did not deter me from digging.— L. M. RICHARDS, Consulting Geologist, Benton, Arkansas. SLAB ZINC OUTPUT INCREASES Production of slab zinc of al] grades jn May totaled 79,489 tons, compared with 17,034 in April and 73,449 in May, 1941. Domestic shipments amounted to 66,737 tons, against 63,819 in April and 61,696 in May, 1941. Aevseerennnnenser Flat? We Hope Not Help us con8erve Work, Paper, Ti me and Expense by payin g your subscription promptly upon receipt of your statement, You Can Aid Us to Locate Minerals Necessary for War CALIFORNIA MINING JOURNAL, Under The Capitol Dome By A. J. A, WASHINGTON, D. C., July 15—1 am sure your readers will be very interested in the fight to secure recognition of the plan of substituting sponge iron for the fast disappearing scrap (or the scrap that disappeared several years ago when we sold practically all of it to the Japs). In view of the fact that the economical production of sponge iron is now in process and furthermore that the Japs are using our American originated process for its production it’s high time we quit devoting so much time to scrap drives and start using our enormous iron deposits. “Big Steel” would like to keep our minds and backs bent over picking up scrap until they can safely get over the present emergency without any new opposition process being adopted. But listen to Nathan Robertson, under date of July 7, tell about it in PM: “While the steel companies and the War Production Board (WPB) have been poohpoohing sponge iron as a substitute for increasingly scarce scrap iron, a small spongeiron plant actually has been operating in Oklahoma. “H. G. S. Anderson, an engineer who built a similar plant for the Japanese before the war, has been operating the plant at Muskogee through the recent months when the shortage of scrap in St. Louis was forcing steel companies to curtail war production. “It was called to the attention of the WPB many weeks ago by Frank J. McDevitt, WPB contract distributing manager at St. Louis, who has been trying since February to get a Sponge-iron plant in that area so that the Scullen Steel Co., and other St. Louis steel makers could keep busy. “Anderson’s plant was only a small twoand one-half ton pilot plant but it demonstrated the process he had used in building the 100-ton plant at Kuzi, Japan, which the Japanese are presumably using today to make war on America. No WPB Action “About six weeks ago, on May 26, a group of experts and Government officials visited the plant and submitted a strong recommendation that it be moved at once to St. Louis and expanded. Despite McDevitt’s reports of a serious .shortage of scrap iron in the St. Louis area, and Bureau of Mines reports that sponge iron would be an “ideal” substitute. the WPB has not yet taken action, or publicly modified its Opposition to the development of sponge-iron plants. “The report on the Muskogee trip is contained in the memorandum prepared by Harold P, Furlong, metallurgist, and Burdette G. Lewis, business specialist, in the WPB's contract distribution branch, which s now before the Senate Truman Commitee, “Furlong and Lewis have been urging for months that the WPB develop sponge-iron plants to remedy the shortage of scrap which 1s already curtailing steel production. ‘They and McDevitt were among the group which spected Anderson’s plant at Muskogee. eae Sule eee recommends that a but despite thon e St. Louis area at once. growing shortage still the only one recommendation, and the of Scrap, the Japanese are S making effective use of : . the Bur i i says it will, hag €au of Mines, which received an iati of $600,000 from Congress to * penepmation.