The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-12-11

south. she produces more than one tenth of the iron ore of the Oniteo states. and her production though only m It's infancy, is already 40 per cent. cneaper than the average. The oe- posits include all the commercial varie- ties. red. brown and grey ore. black hand and clay iron stone; the other ore neids are valuable particularly the brown ore of which Alabama produces nearly one-third of the total Of the United States, but the red ore fields are the remarkable fields, indeed. the most remarkable fields in the world, in quan- tity practically inexhaustible. literally mountains of ore. The seams running as high as five in number with thickness running as high as thirty feet, In quality metallic iron running from about 35 per cent to 55 per cent, large part of 1t being self-fuxing. though soft ore is easily available to mix with the hard ore when needed Tor huxing. Surveys showing that where ore falls off in richness. 1t be- comes better for fuxing.
 Will Dominate in Iron.
 The most remarkable of all the re- markable features of these ore fields Is their proximity to coking coal fields and fluxing limestones In places. they eAA v AitCLdiiy dlOuSSIu6 ol CoSh OshSt' Nothing is plainer than that nature has marked Alabama to dominate the iron market of the world. We already con- trol the market in pig iron. but we should not be content until we con- trol the steel market and ultimately the articles manufactured from steel. With these natural advantages cited aboce. and with the advance of proximity to tide water and to the canal, we should be ashamed to admit that Pennsylvania. West Virginia or any other State can ultimately compete with us in the great coming iron mar kets of the Pacific. indeed of the world.
 If Alabama, stands high in cotton. higher in iron. she stands highest in the other great staple coal. The coal fields cover about $500 square miles, all bituminous coal with seams run ming up to IS feet in thickness. several seams in some places aggregating as high as 75 feet, vast quantities lying near the surface. outcropping over large areas. permitting cheaper than anywhere else in the world. The out put is already about twelve million tons per year and the supply is literally inexhaustible. estimated to exceed thirty-five billions of tons.
 When 1t Is remembered that each one of the three coal fields. Warrior, Coosa and Cahaba is traversed by a river that can be made navigable to the Gulf, 1t Is clear that Alabama is destined to sup ply not only the coaling stations for the worlds commerce that is to go through the canal. but the coal for the mighty commerce of the Pacific. Indeed, Pennsylvania and West Virginia and the other coal fields cannot enter the race beyond tide water. Alabama will dominate not only the land markets, but the coal markets of the Pacific and of the world.
 The list of Alabama's matchless en- downents is not yet ended.
 Reference was made above to the presence of limestone in the region of coal and iron. Alabama has marvel ous supplies of limestone. chalk. clay and shale suitable for the manufacture of Portland cement. Hard limestones extend over large areas in North Ala bama in close proximity to the clay and shale required in mixture and close to the coal mines insuring cheap ma terials and fuel and therefore low cost of manufacture.
 The greatest deposits, however, are the soft limestones of Central and South Alabama. known as the Selma Chalk, and the St. Stephens Limestone. The St. Stephens limestone is wide and like the limestone in the northern part of tho State possesses many advantages However. the Selma chalk is most re- markable, indeed. one of the most re- markable limestone deposits in the world extending practically across the State from east to west, about fifteen to twenty-five miles wide and 1000 feet deep. The composition varies in the different depths, but practically all points are suitable for Portland cement, one-third of the depth being practically ideal in composition, while the clay needed for mixing Is found practically everywhere in the imme- diate vicinity
 Alabama thus. for quantity could supply the earth. Mars. Venus. Nep- tune and the rest of the solar system for a thousand years.
 When 1t Is remembered that three navigable rivers run through these three formations and come down from the cold fields above to bring cheap fuel and to pass on to the gulf to carry the finished product to tide water, when 1t is recalled that this Alabama lime stone is softer than the limestone of the North and therefore cheaper and pulverized. and Is dryer than the marls of the West, and therefore require less fuel, while the location is a thousand miles nearer the Panama Canal than any competiting field, when all of these advantages are recalled. we, of Ala bana. should be ashamed to admit for an instant that anybody could compete with us for the cement market of the world.
 Cement of Alabama.
 Coming down to the present moment, Alabama should proceed to secure the order for the bulk of the cement, proba- bly, thirty to forty million barrels that will be consumed in the construction of the canal and then be prepared to take the market of the West coast of South America as soon as the canal Is completed, proceeding there steadily to capture the general markets of the Pacific and of the world.
 Besides standing first in marvellous natural resources. Alabama should be- come the seat of the empire for manu- featuring power the first requisite must be derived from water or fuel. Ala bama has large water power, and as seen above Is alone in the world for supplying coal as cheap fuel
 The raw materials come next. Our investigation above discloses the fact that here Alabama stands at the top, whether for products of field, mine, or forest, especially for the materials for the great cotton mill industries that i1 ct