Newport daily independent., 1905-04-08
PENNSYLVANIA ANTHRACITE
Tornage of Last Year Exceeded by Six Million Tons That of Any
 Previous Year.


 The year 1903 stands as the high- water mark of prosperity in the anthracite coal trade, as the tonnage for that year exceeded by more than 6,000,000 tons that of any previous year, and the demand for coal was so good as to make it possible to dispose of the product at prices which brought a fair return to all con- cerned in the industry. Some signiti- cant figures in connection with the production of Pennsylvania anthras cite during 1903 have been collected by MT. William w. Ruley, special agent of the United States geological Survey, and will be included in MT. ton of coal in 1903, which is regular feature of the surveys annual volume on the mineral resources of the United States.
 At the commencement of 1903 there was practically no anthracite in stock. as the amount which had been mined after the strike of 1902 had gone
 
 could be mined during the first three months of 1903 was in immediate de mand.
 With the opening of navigation and . reduction in price on April 1. dealers at all points endeavored to lay in an ample supply of coal to meet their fall and winter requirements. This made . brisk demand for the product dur ing the spring and summer months, with the resultant accumulation ot stocks in dealers hands. The early arrival of cold weather, however, and the prolonged severity of the winter created an unusually brisk demand for coal.
 In connection with the large pro- duction, 1t is interesting to note the increase in the shipments of the small sizes of coal during 1903 over those o1 previous years. This is especially noteworthy on account of the opinion generally expressed at the close of thu anthracite strike, that bituminouA coal had largely supplanted anthre cite for steam purposes, and would continue to hold this trade to tn exclusion of the small sizes of the lat ter product. On the contrary, how. ever, the consumption of these smalles sizes of coal increased BAGS, ,e94 tons iE 1903 over 1901. It would seem that the only cause which would seriously affect the prosperity of the anthracite business ts the general condition os the entire country. AS long as the people at large are able to buy anthro cite, 1t will not want . market
 It is also of interest to note aa increase of 15 cents in the avsrasa value DOT ton for coal at the minsa The total production was 66,361, ,7u tons. valued at $152. .o36. .44s. The aves. age price per ton was 32.60; she num- Der of men employed was 150, ,4S3, ane the average number of days that each man worked was 206.
 Tables are given in the report whics shows tho production by counties foi the years 1902 and 1908: also the ship. msnts of anthracite and the propor. ton of sizes shipped. A tabular ar. rangement of the various sections a the anthracite fields Is given, with [ list of ten railroads that enter the tor. Fitory.
 Tho anthracite fields comprise n area of somewhat over 4SO sQuars miles, and are located in the eastern middle part of the state, in the coun. ties Of Carbon, Columbia Lacks wanna, Luzerne. NorthumbsrlaAA. 6chuylk1ll and Susquehanna. ThaD srs classed under three general divf. olons. namely. tho Wyoming, LshigA end Schuylkill rsgions. Gsologtcslly thsy are divided into fields er basizA which are again sUbd1vidsd into dt0e tgicts.
 Tho B9n1ce 1eld, in Sullivan oouop V, is lot included in any of these n. tieas. The classification of the pfoA. ast Of this deld h . mattsr of soms contention. The fracture of tho coal and soo0 ef its cAAracterisQcs aRs mors like those of some bitumiAow of semlanthracite coals than stri& anthracite, but on account of its hish percentage of fixed carbon and low percentage of moisture it is classed e anthracite by the second PeanS31- vania geological survsy, and tho egodzet b 90 included in tlQs rp0t