The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-31

The great civilizations have grown up
exclusively in regions where coal is
found or can readily be transported by
steam engines operated by the burning
of coal; and the wheels of that civili-
cation must stop if this supply of coal
were suddenly shut off from human
use.
All this requires only TO be pointed
out to be lf-evidently recognized as
! true. But is it also true that the sup
ply of coal in the world is threatened
with early exhaustion? AS TO this,
an exact categorical answer is not so
easy. A royal commission in Great
Britain wrestled with the problem a
few years ago. instigated thereto by
the fears of Mr.. Gladstone and other
statesmen, and they reached the con-
clusion that if the increase of con-
sumption of coal that has marked the
past century were to continue I'M
abated the coal supply of Great Britain
would be utterly exhausted in about
100 years. But subsequent estimates
have shown that this alarming fore
cast must be modified, for the sudden
increase of consumption of coal has
been largely due to Watts develop
ment of the steam engine toward the
close of the last century, and the
manufacturing growth that naturally
has its limits. Hence the increase in
CONSUMPTION Vi COdl VIII lOl COHlllluC
at the rate of the past century, and
the time when the supply of British
coal will be exhausted must be ex-
tended much beyond a century, even
if no direct effort be made to con-
serve it,
AS dangers that lie more than
century in the future do not appeal TO
us with a very personal force, most
people appear to have dismissed the
1crllf Of "
from this source, and of late we have
heard very little general comment on
the possible exhaustion of coal. But a
report recently issued relative to coal
beds that lie nearer home than
Great Britain. may serve to arouse re-
newed interest in the subject here in
America. This report has to do with
the supply of anthracite coal stored
in the Pennsylvania region. Nearly
every one is aware that this region
has by far the largest store of anthra-
cite coal located at any one place hith-
erto geologically explored on the globe. |
When our forbears first recognized its |
value, in the early days of this CEN |
fury (for at first they thought anthra- |
cite coal worthless, because it seemed |
too hard to burn readily) they may
we'll have thought. the supply mex
haustible, for the area of these beds
covers almost 500 square miles. The
best estimates calculate that the
amount of coal in these beds a CEN
fury ago was about 15,000,000000 of
ions. Yet so enormous have been the
traits upon it. that, it is believed, in %
years from now, a full half of it will
nave been mined, and from that time
IN the quantity that can be mined
here annually must steadily decline.
From that time on, in the words of
he report quoted anthracite will
ease to be the controlling factor in
he industrial life of the eastern part
# the United States. and the glory of
anthracite trade will have departed" !
What this implies in the minds of the
ngineers who make this estimate will
,est be made clear by another quota
ion, which declares that the anthra- |
lite fields of Pennsylvania have given ,
lrth and prosperity to countless in I
ustries throughout the country, and /
reated wealth beside which the total $
alue of the coal produced has been as :
cthing. No other industry in this {
road land, or in all time, has ever 4
reated such magnificent results in the f
laterial prosperity of a nation as has c
ne anthracite coal trade of Pennsyl- t
ania." And this trade, be it under i
TODD. is threatened with senility and C
Not centuries hence, S
ut within the next 25 years. c
That surely is something worth n
linking about, even for the most
tactical and utilitarian and selfish of a
Should this forecast be t
ilfilled, and should the new industrial o
sources be invented or created, then 4
would seem as if the coming century o