Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1904-02-22
BRIQUETTES COMING TO FRONT.
Coal Experts OF the Geological Survey Pre-
diets General Use OF Briquettes in the
Next Five Years.
PRICE FIVE CENTS.

from sawdust, coaldust, peat, and Il
various forms of waste or earthly mat
ter, with mineral oil. :;s
''Smokeless briquettes made Of fine
divided coal or other carbonaceous ma
terial, and binder made from butchers
waste. 49,. i, .$
Compressed artificial fuel, consist
ing of mixture of coal ashes, saw
dust, sand, parafin wax, and sodium
nitrate.s @+'& .s E
Artificial fuel, consisting of coal
dust, screenings, or waste, sawdust,
rosin, sour beer, and molasses, com
pressed. #@< 5.:E@as*., K. ~.
"Soms Of these schemes are, of
course, chimerical, thought do not care
to say which 5 .zIs
Mr.. Parker has been making study
of the history of the coal mining in
dustry in the United States. The most
complete record of coal production is
that Of the anthracite region of Penn
sylvania, from which shipments began
in 1920. The records of this output
have been carefully collected and pre-
served. The earliest account of pro-
duction in that region occurred in
1914, when an output of twenty-five
short tons was reported to have been
obtained. Between that year and
1920 about 800 tons were taken out of
those Pennsylvania mines. From
1914 to the close of 1902 the total pro-
duction of Pennsylvania anthracite
has amounted to 1864, 100000 short
tons, which would be approximately
one ton Of hard coal for every human
being now living on the face of the
earth.
| The bituminous coal output has nSt
been so faithfully recorded. One ALL
thority states that $4,000 short tons
were produced in 1922. It is certain
that the earliest bituminous working
was in the Richmond basin of Vir-
ginia and that for many years its out
put exceeded that Of the Pennsylvania
anthracite. This was the case until
1929. The Richmond basin continued
to be worked vigorously until 1882,
when it began to decline, and by 1850
had almost disappeared. The develop
ment of the Piedmont regnion. then in
the old state of Virginia, did not begin
until 1855, about the time that it was
successfully invaded by the Baltimore
and Ohio Railroad and the Chesapeake
and Ohio Canal, which had then
reached as far inland as Cumberland.
The Pocahontas region was not OPP
ened until 1882, and the Wise county
field until 1891.
The early records of Pennsylvania
bituminous productions are very de-
fective. The first information is con-
tanned in the census Of 1910, which
showed a production of 464,S26 short
tons, although it is certain that soft
coal was produced in western Pennsyl
vania before that time. Subsequent
estimates in the census and elsewhere
show very rapid increase.
The earliest western statistics of
coal mining are those of Illinois. 1t
is there recorded that coal was mined
in Jackson in 1910, on the Big Muddy
river, and the mine was worked by
drift along the outcrop in the bluffs.
A fatboat was there loaded with it for
shipment to New Orleans. In 1888 it
is recorded in the old journals that
about 100000 bushels of coal were
mined in St. Clair county and hauled
by wagon to St. Louis. Singularly
enough, western coal seems to be more
historic than eastern. Father Henne-
pin, in 1879, almost a hundred years
before the Pennsylvania coal was dis
covered, knew Of the existence of COM
bustible coal and marked its presence
on the map which illustrated his jour
ney. He points out a coal mine on
the Illinois river. near the present site
of Ottawa.
West of the Mississippi the earliest
productions are reported in Missouri
and Iowa in about 1910. The first coal
discovered on the Pacific was in Wash
ington, in 1852. and the first mine was
opened in Whatcom in 1854. Ship
ments from there to San Francisco BY
water continued until 1870. when the
Seattle. Renton. and Talbot mines
were opened. Although California has
never taken ..'igh -ars, a. . d. Il. lr,-z
dr cip4 state, It had an output Of 5000
tons in 1861 This Increased until
1874 when the maximum output 81 the
ll}state was obtained, Since then the
1 Industry has been rather irregular