Mexico weekly ledger., 1904-10-06
PAPER READ BY cHAs. L. WOODS
Before the Missouri Press Association
Wednesday, Sept. 20, 1904, on the
Missouri Mineral Exhibit at
the Worlds Fair.

OF course Missouri excels In every
thing she UNDERSTANDS, as Will the ex-
hibits Of her mind and her mines, her
factories, her fields and her farms bear
witness TO the truth OF this assertion.
But to the inquisitive thinker In TINS
age Of progressive civilization. n OF
these exhibits offer greater evidence OF
actual wealth than is presented by the
Missouri mineral picture, so to speak,
made and arranged by the artistic
hand Of DIR. Geo. e. Ladd, director OF
the Missouri School OF Mines, from the
riches of her mines.
in approaching this section OF the
Mines and Metallurgy building, the eye
Is not met with the sameness of the
ordinary Enclosure or exhibit facade
but your attention Is drawn in that d.
rection by something that indicates
movement and progress. A model
double track elevated railway sur
rounds a space OF owe eight hundred
thousand square feet, the largest al
lotment of space to any state in the
Mines and Metallurgy building; and
upon this model railway are six minia-
ture trains, constantly in motion, rep
resenting the leading systems of this
state; the Frisco, the Missouri Pacific,
the Wabash, the Iron Mountain, the
Hannibal & st. Joe, and the Chicago q
Alton. Each train is made Up Of mini
AZURE ears loaded with the mineral
products OF Missouri.
Under this railway, and as entrances
to the space, are five massive metal
finished archways, upon either side OF
which is emblazoned in letters of gold
the motto and coat Of arms Of this i'm
perial commonwealth.
Once within the enclosure, the eye
becomes fascinated with the variety OF
the riches and resources Of Missouri.
The mines Of nickel and cobalt, val
ued at 5000 per ton, and OF which Mis-
souri, is the largest producer in the
United States. are represented by pyra-
mids of ore and show case specimens.
Silver, Of which Missouri produces a
small quantity, is also exhibited here.
Plate glass sand. which is found IN
large quantities in our state, is repre-
scented by plate glass show cases and
mirrors.
Missouri is also one of he largest
lime producing states in the union, and
Of this there is a handsome exhibit.
Manganese, another important product
Of this state, is, for the frat time, pre-
sented in a Missouri mineral exhibit.
Practically all the barite that is pro
duced in the United States, is mined ia
Missouri. and of this there is a fine ex-
hlbit. The great fields of lead and
zinc, and coal and iron, are presented
on a more elaborate scale.
In the outside exhibit. or what Is
known as the mining Caleb" Mis-
souri, has a large pavilion, in which
there are many carloads Of different
ores. There is here. also, a sixty ton
ore concentrating mill in operation, as
well as a compressed air mine pump,
invented by a professor OF the Mis-
souri, School OF Mines, and which has
| been adopted by the city Of New York
| for the difficult task of cmptylng the
| Croton reservoir which is required TO
be pumped out In the shortest possible
time.
But within the space In the Mines
and M~etallurgy building the exhibits OF
| these ores are most attractively ar
ranged, and will be considered consec"
utively. The curious observer would
| probably be led to watch the working
OF the model lead and zinc ore con-
centrating mill, one-ffth the size Of
the regular mine mill. and which is be-
ing operated by students OF the Mis-
souri, School Of Mines and Metallurgy.
Lead and zinc are found in thirty-seven
counties in Missouri, and specimens
from each county are on the space, ar
ranged in pyramids SO as to attract the
attention of even the most indifferent
onlooker. There are. also, large show
cases containing innumerable beautl-
full specimens of calcite and crystals Of
lead and zinc, for which the Joplin dis
trict is especially noted.
The next moving attraction is the
| Coal Triple, which shows the method
of hosting coal from the mines,
weighing, screening, and loading same
on cars, all automatically. Authorities
on the coal industry tell us that TWEEN
ty-five thousand square miles, or about
one-third of the state, is underlain with
coal, varying in thickness from two to
six feet. This industry, vast and great,
is represented by immense Jumps of
coal, as well as show SAGE specimens
from every working mine in the state.
The iron industry, which is scarcely
second to lead, zinc and coal, will hold
your attention next, with great mas
sive pyramids of the ore and shog
case specimens Of the same, and, as
one of the active features Of this ex-
hibit, is a small magnetic separator.
operated by students of he Missouri
School OF Mines.
At n enu OF n eXniDlt IS the Of
fee of the superintendent a beautiful
pavilion, which is itself an exhibit OF
the clay products. 1t is built of press
brick, with terra Gotta columns and
cornices. and covered with a roof Of
tile. Missouri Is also noted for the
wonderful quantity OF her clays. and
from which there are manufactured
pottery, porcelain, eve pipe. common,
press and vitriaed brick, tile and all
kinds Of refractory ware and terra cot
ia. The specimens OF these clays are
shown in the exhibit.
About the center of the space stands
a pagoda with a cement basin. inside
OF which Is q representation OF an ar
tesian well. OF the mineral waters OF
the state, Of which there Ia almost an