The San Francisco call., 1897-03-14

%lTATE Mineralogist A. S. Cooper, who
1910 will assume the duties of the office
SN.gA with the coming month. has decided
20 make no changes in either the
Office or field staff of the Mining Bureau for
at least considerable time, probably few
months.
"a man would be stupid to go into such an
Office and go to making changes i'll the organ
lied working force until ne had become IA
miiiar with the work and the men," says Mr..
Cooper: al want to first become thoroughly
acquainted with the work and needs OF the
institution and If make any changes 1t VIII
be some time in the future"
One of the things that has always impaired
the efficiency of the Mining Bureau has been
the fact that it has always been TOO mucn OF a
political Institution and "pulls" rather than
executive ability, scientific attainments and
practical mining experience have placed the
men who have done the work. If there is q
State institution besides the university which
should be kept out of partisan politics it is the
Mining Bureau.
The seventy-second meeting of the American
Institute of Mining Engineers at Chicago last
month was exceptionally successful, and re-
suited in the addition of many valuable
Hspers to the literature of the mining industry.
Aese will be generally read in the published
transactions" Regarding them, member
writes:
Three papers, all OF which will be properly
illustrated when presented, exhibited in a
striking way the chief element in the recent
progress OF American mining and metallurgy,
namely, the mechanical handling of large
masses of material. l refer to Mr.. Lewis paper
on the Chicago Drainage Canal. Professor Den
toms paper on Mining Methods in Northern
Minnesota and Mr.. Sahlin's paper on the
Handling of Material at the Blast Furnace.
President Spilsbury in his address on the
progress OF the last decade did not fail to
recognize the importance OF this factor, which
has largely revolutionized practice at the mine
and the furnace"
a new and vigorous effort will be made to
pass the mineral lands bill at the extra ses-
sion ofCoDgress. Tirey L. Ford. chairman OF
the legislation committee OF the Miners Associ-
alton, viii convene the committee within two
weeks to take action, and there are stfong
hopes of success.
This bill to provide for the segregation of
the mineral sections OF the railroad lands in
California and Oregon has once passed both
houses OF Congress, it may be recalled. 1t has
had the vigorous Championship OF the Cali
fornia delegation and the hostility OF Secre :
tary Hoke Smith and of Lamoreaux, the Com
missioner of the General Land Office. In the
lower house it passed without open opposi-
ton on a viva voce vote, and in the Senate it
similarly passed with amendments.
On its return TO the House conference COM
mittee was not secured and it went to the Com
Icitlee on Public Lands, where it died because
lis friends were>not able to get it again before
the House, mainly because of the attitude of
Speaker Reed.
Mr.. Ford says that the bill as amended by
the Senate will be introduced as a new
bill, probably by Perkins in the Senate and
Barham in the House. Some of the friends of
the measure in the last Congress Will be
missed notably Dubois of Idaho, chairman of
the Senate Committee on Public Lands, and
4 Bowers in the House On the other hand it is
Axpected that the attitude of the new admin
Estration " ill be friendly to the miners.
The growth of interest in copper mining is
becoming a striking feature of the mining de-
velopment OF the Western part of America.
and the near future will undoubtedly show
large increase in the copper output OF Cali
fornia. So much more attention is being given
10 copper mining simply because the demand
is SO great, the supply so short and the price
somuch better than in past years, with pros
poets OF its remaining so for some time.
AT the close OF the year the worlds visible
supply of the metal was very low, and it is
now still lower, with very active demand.
The world is using tremendous amount of
copper these days and wants more of it every
year, as electrical construction increases. Just
now the demand from Europe is espe-
ciaIly active, and it will remain active for
some time. The increased demand from
Europe is due mainly to the rapid increase in
electrical work there and to the needs OF war