Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1886-11-20
AMERICAN MINERALS.


the United States for the Year 1885.
The United States Geological Survey
has just published a condensed state
ment OF the amount and value Of the
mineral products of the United States
for the year 1885. 1t amounts 10 the
very respectable sum of Si2s, j2l, 300.
Comparisons are made with the product
of 1924. The noticeable features Of
this comparison is that amounts have
increased. but values decreased, owing
mineral output Tor 1882 was Si55, 2l6,-
$50 In 1888 it had fallen to Sf52, l66,-
7iS and in 1884 reached loW-water mark
at 4l3,2l4,74S. The product of 1885
al Si2S, 52l 1856 shows that the ascend
ing grade has been reached and the
product of the present year is Certain to
show u marker improeemetA, owing
to the general business revival. The
output OF coal and iron will be largely
increased, if nothing else.
The mineral productions of the coun-
try are divided by the survey, for pur-
poses of classification, into metallic and
non-metallic. OF the metallic products,
pig-iron leads the list, with total value
of SG4, 7l2, 400. Silyercomcs next, with n
coming value of S5l 800. 900, and gold
takes third place at S3l, ,S0l 900. The
value of the copper is placed at SIS
242, 399, and the lead at $40, ,fG9, 43l.
Zinc is the only remaining metal the
value of which exceeds a million, the
output being placed at 50, j39,S56 OF
the non-metallic products, bituminous
coal leads the list with a total yalua-
ton of S82,347,6tS. Pennsylvania
anthracite follows close with valua-
ton at the mines of S76, .948. Crude
petroleum, another Pennsylvania prod
uct is fourth in the list, valued at ~l9,-
l93,G ,G9i. Lime occupies third place,
| the forty million barrels produced be-
ing valued at S2O,0p0,000. Building
stone occupies fifth place at so, ,OO0,-
600. The other non metallic minerals
| the values of which reach above mil
| lion are natural gas. salt, cement,
| phosphate, limestone for ilAn tluX,
mineral waters and white zine, in the
order named. The total value of the
metallic products was SlSl, $780, 800
that of the non-metallc specified $3.50
43l ,99l, leaving an estimated inspect
| fed product of s7,500,00O.
| 1t is worthy of notice that whilC
Pennsylvania produces none Of the
precious metals, it leads all of the
States in the total value of minera
| products a long way. 1t furnished al
the anthracite coal, nearly all th'
| petroleum and natural gas, more thai
one-third of the bituminous coal
sixty per cent. OF the pi!
iron, all of the nickel, and
big share of the lime AM
building stone. 1t is impossible to com
pare the mineral products of 1888 wit
those of agriculture and manufacture
for the same year, as no accurate sta
tstie> ON these points are ayailabI
since the census wear, For 1879 th
estimated value Of all farm production
sold. consumed OF ON hand was place
, at 81, ,213, 4O2 ,j64, or more than iiy
times The value Of the minerals prJ
| duccd in 1883, The value of mauufu,
; turcd products for the same year wa
&l.019, le9,6l6. or nearly two and a ha
times as great as the mineral produC
of last wear, \ comparison of the Va
ues of the mineral and manufacture
products would, however, be miSleac
ing at any time, as the pig-iron an
some other important items would az
pear in both lists. Ii would be inter
osting to compare theyaluo of the mir
) cral products of this country with tho,
of the other nations of the earth if rel
able statistics were at hand, In the at
scnce of these it may be taken /,
granted that the United States leaC
, any of them in the total value of i
annual mineral output. but how niue
could not he told without the figures
Hi'a}eiphiG Times.