The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1906-06-20
Many Samples Have Been Unearth-
ed by ProspeCtors
CAN Be UTILIZED IN MANY WAYS
WITH BLACK SAND
IN OREGON AND WASHING.
TON ARE SUCCESSFUL.

| A number of minerals that were
| formerly supposed to be of extremely
/ rare occurrence have recently been
found in considerable quantity. The
discovery of these deposits is a strik-
| ing example of the truth that the
supply invariably responds to the de-
mand. 1t is the advance of trade
during the past five years in the manu-
featuring of various forms Of apparatus
for lighting purposes that has devel-
oped a use for metals and metallic
zirconia, thoria, yttria, and cerium,
lanthanum, and didymium oxides.
With the exception of cadmium, all
these materials are now used CONNER
cially in the manufacture of different
lamps and are obtained from the fol-
lowing minerals: Monazite, zircon,
gadolinite, columbite, and tantalite.
A brief report on the production of
these minerals during 1905 has been
written by DR.. Joseph Hyde Pratt
and will be published in the forth
coming volume of the United States
Geological Survey entitled Mineral
Resources of the United States, 1905"
Monazite is the mineral which con-
tains the oxides used in the manufac-
| ture of mantles for the Welsbach and
other incandescent gaslights. AL
sparingly at many localities through
out the United States, the Carolinas
are still the only states that are pro-
| ducing this mineral commercially.
During 1905, however, a probable new
source of supply of this mineral has
been worked out by the Investigations
that have been carried on at the con-
centrating plant Of the United States
Geological Survey at Portland Or,
which has been testing Systematically
the black sands of the Pacific slope as
to their meteorological contents. The
results of this investigation have
shown the presence of some monozite
and more zircon in many of these
sands, especially in those from Oregon
and Idaho. By using the Wtherill
magnetic separator an almost perfect
zircon and the monazite.
An interesting mineral, thorianite,
was discovered early in 1905 near
Balangoda, Ceylon, associated with
cOrundum, zOrcon, tin, topaz; spfnel,
etc According to the reports on this
mineral it is one that could be more
easily utilized as source Of thoria
than monazite, and as it has a much
higher PERCENTAGE Of this compound,
it would be much more valuable. 1t is
not improbable that this new mineral
may be found in certain localities of
the United States where tin, topaz,
zircon, and monazite are found.
There was a small production of
ZlTCOll III ISUO, Dut IiOlic VI SduoiiIllte
The tantalum minerals are in de-
mand because they contain the metal
tantalum. This is employed at the
present time in the manufacture of
very fine wire for use in the con-
struction of what is known as the
tantalum lamp. An interesting Oc-
currence of a tantalum mineral has
recently been discovered in a feldspar
quarry at Henryton, Carroll county,
Nd New Glastonbury. Conn, an old
feldspar quarry is being investigated
as to the quantity of columbite or
other tantalum mineral that may be
found in this feldspar. A mineral
from linton, S. D., gives on analysis
"A per cent of tantalic oxide and 30.5
per cent of niobic oxide.
The production of monazite, zircon,
and columbite during 1905 amounted
to 1,325,41S pounds, valued at $163,90S,
as compared with 745,999 pounds,
valued at $S5,O3S in 1904, an increase
of 6O6,419 pounds in quantity and of
s7S,S70 in value. From one-sixth to
one-f fourth of the monazite mined in
1905 was exported to Germany.