The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-03-17

yet weh known as to its limits and re-
sources, 1t seems to be more important than
All those Of the old world put together:
moreover, 1t is near the sea. in a fertile
country and in a region where iron ore
aoounds- Though much ass extensive than
the best of the American fields, it is, from
the assemblage conditions, the most impor-
tant deposit in the world. Hence much
Oh the tangle of the Chinese question.
OF the powers gains control of
tnls Shore, and of the laborious Chinese
to work it. may reckon on a mighty ad-
vantage in the race for economic predom-
nance. one which would for a time guaran-
tee its commercial supremacy on the Pa
cihc ocean.
By far the richest in coal of all the
continents is North America. In proper
ton to the area of it's haoitable lands il
has, perhaps, twice as much as any other.
1t is not unlikely that it's available store
of fossil fuel. including the oil-bearing
States, equals that of Europe and Asia
together. These stores being mainly I'm
the eastern part of the continent, and,
with the exception of asmall area in Nova
Scotia and on the Canadian Pacific coast,
within the United States, promise to give
that Nation in large measure control of
the econon ic future of the lands about the
Atlantic OF this we see the beginning in
the recent swift extension of our COM
merce. 1t is, however, TO be noted that
the method of forecasting the future of
nations by their mineral fuel no longer
seems as certain as it did twenty,
er even ten years ago, before the art
OF producing electricity from water
power and transmitting it to great
distances had been developed. 1t now APP
pears more than possible that by means of
this art the twentieth century is to see a
revolution in the ways of obtaining and
applying solar energy as great as that
which came through the steam engine. If
the use of the rainfall descending from the
land to the sea as a source of power be-
comes as general as it promises to be the
demand for coal may soon become limited
to the requirements for heating dwellings,
for propeliing ocean steamers and for
smelling ores. This will so far reduce the
tax upon mineral fuel as greatly to extend
the time during which the store will be
available. 1t will. moreover. bring about
a change in the conditions of various parts
of the world as determined by the power
~ 49, 49, AAoS q - ~ lNANN
OF reckoning on their stores of Tuned carbon
formed by ancient solar energy we shall
have to compute the amount of their rain
fall and the height through which it falls
in passing to the sea.
A POSSIBLE REVOLUTION.
On this basis the forecast of the future
industrial development Of states would be
much changed. The tropical lands. for the
$500 ~. - 49, n, orra,Farf rofn-
fall, would, so far as this resource goes,
have the foremost place. Mountain regions,
such DIS the Alps and the Himalayas, now
out of the reckoning, would be regions OF
promise. In this electrical age North Amer
lea would have TO be counted as second
to the sister continent of the south, but
area for area below none of the other great
lands.
As in the coming age of water power.
there must still be a large demand for coal
in many arts necessary to a varied manu-
featuring industry. it cannot be assumed
tina the regious without the fuel will have
an advantage to be measured by the vol
ume and fall of their streams. The quality
of a people. the climate as determining
that quality, the mineral resources OF the
land they inhabit and other conditions VIII
share in determining their success. There
is, however, good reason to believe that
this revolution will have certain important
effects. 1t will break up the excessive con-
centration of manufacturing industries into
districts near sources of coal, giving 10
regions such as Italy and Spain a chance
of Industrial life which would be otherwise
denied them. 1t will greatly diminish the
tax on the worlds store of coal and lessen
the hard life of the men VINO toll to win IT.
Best of all. it will make the chance Of
success in this world more even than they
now are, for whenever the streams go from
the hills to the sea men will hitch their
wheels to the sun of their day.
Ii space allowed it would be interesting
10 consider the possible sources of power
in the petroleum-bearing rocks and IN the
oil States, such as abound in certain re-
gions. as well as the possibility, some years
ago much discussed, Of gathering the di-
rect rays of the sun, turning them to &C
count as by means Of steam. These are
interesting possibilities, but in the present
or clearly foreseeable state of our arts it
is evident that the contest is between coal
and water power derived from rivers and
possibly from tides, with the chance THAI
are in the main to be turned by that form
OF solar energy which takes shape in tie
rainfall on Its way TO the sea.
n. 5. SHALER,
Dean of Lawrence Scientific School, Ha--
ward University.
ramhridgo Mass.