The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1903-12-24
STATISTICS OF BRICKS.

To count the bricks made in this
great country, with its more than
three million square miles and its
eighty millions of people, ready to
help themselves to any convenient
clay bank, seems like one of those
medieval tasks imposed by wicked
fairy on some spellbound victim as
the price of deliverance. To be sure,
it takes time and money and patience
even now-the cooperation of many
producers, the skill of numerous sta
tistical agents, the assistance of the
locomotive, the mail bag and the tel
egraph wire-but the task, gigantic
and yet minute, is accomplished year
after year, just as the enchanted
princess in the fairy tale always sue
ceeds in gathering all the four-leaf
clovers in the world or enumerating
the blades of grass in meadow.
That this is true is made known by
the fact that the United States Geo
logical Survey has ready for distribu'
,tion a chart that shows the quantity
value of the clay products of the
tied States in 1902 as distributed
throughout the several states. This
chart was compiled by Mr.. Jefferson
Middleton under the supervision OF
DR.. David T. Day, chief of the Divis
ion of Mining and Mineral Resources
The total value of our clay pro
ducts in 1902 amounted to $122,169,
531. Ohio is the banner state of the
Union in point of production, leading
off with $A,249,74S worth of goods
Pennsylvania, with credit of SIT,
833, 3,425, is next in line, and little New
Jersey follows, with $12,613,263 tc
her name. Illinois comes next, with
clay products to the value of $9,881,
$40, and New York follows closely
with value of $s,41f,113. The last
on the list is Wyoming, with pro
duction valued at $22,150.
These clay products are of various
kinds. They include common brick
front brick, vitrified paving brick
fancy or ornamental brick, and fire
brick, as well as stove lining, drain
tile, sewer. pipe, ornamental terra
Gotta, fire proofing, tile, pottery ant
miscellaneous clay products.
A little over 40 per cent of the to
tai value of clay products is in com
mon brick. The production of bricl
of that class in 1902 amounted to 8,
475,067 thousand brick, having &
value of $4S,SS5, ,S69 They brough
an average price of $5.77 per thous
and. Ohio, which stood first in value
of clay products, yields to Pennsylva
MIA, Illinois and New York in tn,
value of its product Of common brick
In point of quantity New York, which
produced 1,061,712 thousand common
brick, takes precedenceo yer all thu
others. A corresponding decrease IL
price ist therefore, shown, New Yorl
brick averaging only $4.73 per thous
and as against $501 in Illinois, and
$5.74 in ohia, and $640 in Pennsyl
vania.
The quantity of front brick pro
duced in the country amounted tt
45S,391 thousand, valued at $5,318,
00S, or $11.60 per thousand. OF vitri
fed brick there were 617,192 thous
and, valued at $5,744,530, or 1881 pc
thousand The value of fancy or or
namental brick amounted to $S06,45
of fire brick to $11,970,511, of stov,
lining to $630,924, of drain-tile to So,
5o6,7S7, Of sewer pipe to $7,174. 1872
Of ornamental terra Gotta to S3.526,
906, of fire proofng to $3,175, ,593, ,anc
of tile to s3,622,S6S. The value o
miscellaneous clay products amount
ed to s3,67S,742. These included