Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1904-02-12
NEED A METALLURGIST.
The Office Would be Of lnestima able
Value.

Value.
Some time ago the Appeal advocat-
ed the appointment of State Meta
irrgist Some Of the rapers commented
q ne proposition favorably, while the
White Pine News agreed that it was
a good scheme, yet it wanted the ap-
pointee to be in the eastern part Of
the State, where It claimed the mining
was centered. This is as it may pe,
and not question of disputes, but the
fact remains that the State is in need
Of such an officer, and more so every
day.
Take the present development Of
mines and mining and it shows for
itself what demand there would be
for man who is competent to CLASH
fy and judge rock
Probably the item that demands this
action more than any other is the dis
covery of radium, or uranium ores u
Utah. Utah is a sister State She has
what we have; the same ores; the
same class of mines and her territory
and climate is almost twin. Ifsradi-
UNI can be developed in that State.
then it can be found in Nevada. Take
the following for instance. How many
miners understand it? and yet it is
from a scientific paper that it is in
tended to enlighten the miner in his
search for the wonderful metal Of
uranium or any of it's component parts
Originally radium was obtained from
the uranium mineral pitchblende, and
at the present tine uranium mines fur
nish most of the material But the lat
est researches show that radium oc-
ours in association with numerous Ct
her minerals, and dispersed in many
localities througout the world These
minerals are distinctly radioactive,
and. although radium has not been pro-
ven to be in all of them, their ardio-
active properties are most probably
due to it's presence. Uranium, pitch
blende, clevite, alunite, sipylite, COM
pounds of thorium, orangite, monazite
xenotime, aeschynite, fergusonite, sa-
marskite, niobite, tantalite, polycrase,
euxenite, columbite, carbonite
After you read this you don't know
where you are at Hand it to the aver
age miner and he can't tell one class
ificatiOn from the the other, and yet
the metal is quoted at thousands If
dollars pennyweight. Had the State
metallurgist who could classify the
ores. there is a likelihood that Nevada
could produce radium and plenty Ct
it. The thing that sticks the miner and
prospectors is classification. They de-
pend on the simple tests, such as acid
and horning, and should they have a
piece of uranium, they would pitch it
over the dump as useless. 1t is safe
proposition to state there is not half a
dozen men in this State who could tell
uranium from sandstone, simply be-
cause they do not know it and are IN.
acquainted with the color, weight or
general aspect.
1t is SO with hundred other metals
that are thrown away every day. They
are not valued as the prospector does
not know the value. There is only one
way to regulate this. Appoint State
Metallurgist, not at the State Univec-
sity, where ore samples lay for half
year for a test, but in this city or
any other point where he can attend
to the matter, and free of charge to
the miner and prospector Nevada is
essentially mineral state and when
such an appointment is made there
will be mines and minerals developed
that would pay for his salary a dozen
times over. The next Legislature
should see that the State has a man
that is of the best in this line if It
takes salary equal to the Governors.