The indicator., 1897-04-17
Mining Engineers

n correspondent writes n letter
which might be described rs very bit
ter against those gentlemen who sign
themselves mining engineers but
who are not entitled To the name. II
is true That there are dozens of men
who assume that title, who never re
ccivcd any degree from any school and
who are ignorant of engineering of any
kind. As n rule. too, the men who as
sumo it are humbugs ana imposters of
the worst kind. or course. they are
liars and n disgrace to the profession
and they bring discredit upon the title
one may well ask whether there is
any way for checking the evil. and
where the fault lies. The statement
may not he rclislicd but we believe
that it Is nevertheless true that the
fault lies with Ill" most noted and dis
iinguished men in the profession; those
who presided over the drstinies of tn"
mining schools Ii is they who first
hrough discredit upon, abused and
chcapened the title of mining engineer.
When they send ont bcurtllrss boys
with degrees asserting what every
member of the faculty knows 10 bc
false, they sci the example and it is no
wonder that II was followed
But there is II reform growing in the
technical schools in this direction,
though. So far rs we know. no mining
school has yet adopted it. Several fol
low the practice of simply asserting
that the graduate has spent term Of
years in acquiring some knowledge ~
the theory and practice of one or more
branches of engineering. After further
years of study and practice, and the ac
! quiremcut of knowledge thal cannot
bc Obtained from text books, If the
1 l.W,. 4, 1ts
time the school will confer the degree
to which such practice and study may
cntitlc him. This is far more honest
thai the usual method, because no
young graduate of Il school is either
Il civil or mining engineer in the prop
cr acccptation of the term.
There is no member of II decent fnCul-
ty in the United States who does not
know that four years spent i'll II school
cannot make Il hoy into an engineer,
All that time can do, if it is well used. is
to lay n foundation upon which the
boy can build up NOR" rapidly, and
with probable better results. than the
average boy or man could build who
had not received the school training.
Still that training is not an absolute
necessity. Whether it amount to any
| thing or not must in every case depend
W
can never make an engineer out of II
training can never prevent the student
and man of ability in the profession
from becoming II good engineer.
Most of the oldest and best known
civil engineers, who have done the
greatest work and who are honorch for
their accomplishments. are graduates
of no engineering school, save the hard
one of experience; but they are engi-
meerS for all trat. and are recognized
as such. One of the most honorcd
presidents of the American Society of
Mining Engineers WIS not !; graduate
And it is not against such men rs these
that the objections are made. 1t is
against those bundles of pretensc ana
fraud. who never handled II breaker.
who don't know n transit from II tripod
who know nothing of sincS, coSincs OF
logarithms. and who. in fact. have nev.
cr done anything like engineering but
| who claim to he engineers, that COM
| plants are made.
They are an injury to the mining bus
mess. because they find ii host of cred
ulous people who believe that any man
who processes TO he II mining engineer
must have superior Judgment about
mining matters. They influence the
| investment of money in places where
it should not be invested. and in fact
belong to bunco stCercrs and thieves.
But what can he done 10 check the
| evils Certainly 10 law can Ire
| passed making the assumption of such
| n title an offcnSe. so Ion" as the min
ing schools confer the title upon boys
| who are no better qualified to bear it.
II II reform is desired in this field, II
certainly appears as though it should
start in the profession itself. Mining
Industry.