Douglas Island news., 1906-10-31
Mining Industry n Alaska

0uEtrY Tn AlaSbd uuIluS NiiS pAoV NS cade is attested by the increase in the value of it's annual output from $2, ,40O,- 600 in 1895 to over Sl5,000,OO0 in 1905. The gold production of 1905, according to the recently published report of Alfred H. Brooks, of the United States geological survey, concerning the inves- tigations made by the survey during 1905, showed an increase of probably 60 per cent. over that of 1904. It is very likely that over 90 per cent. of this increase came from the Fairbanks placers. Nearly all the other districts except some on Seward peninsula en- larged their output. No exact figures are yet available, but on the basis of most reliable data, Mir. Brooks esti- mates that the production of the Pacific coastal belt amounted to s3,40O,OOO, that of the Copper river and Cook Inlet region to s5,OOO,OOO, the output of the Yukon basin to s6,SOO,OOO, and that of the Seward peninsula to 54,5O0,0Oo. Un- der the heading "Pacific coastal belt" is included the output of the lodes and placer mines of Southeastern Alaska and the bench diggings to the east as we'll as that of the Apollo Consolidated on Unga island The production of the Sunrise district of Cook inlet and of the Copper river district are grouped together and come entirely from placer. In the Yukon basin are included the Forty-mile, Birch creek, Fairbanks, Rampant and Koyukuk placer districts. The output of Seward peninsula Is practically all from placers, though one lode mine has been in operation for several years. The estimate of the output for 1905 is based on the data gathered by deld parties of the geolog- ical survey, as the statistics from the mint are not yet available.
 An important factor in the advance ment of Alaska's mineral industry during the last decade is the great re- duction in mining costs which has taken place during this period. The pioneer miners of the Yukon could not afford to handle gravel averaging less than SlO or S15 to the cubic yard. In the same district good wages can now be made, even by crude methods, in extracting gold from pay streak aver aging less than 5 to the cubic yard. In Seward peninsula gravels running less than B to the cubic yard can i'll many localities be handled at profit by the man working only with the pick and shovel. In some of the interior districts and in parts of Seward penin- suIa even present costs can be reduced to less than 30 cents to the cubic yard by introducing machinery or the use of water under pressure. Nor is there reason to believe that this is the limit in the reduction of costs. la lode min ing the reduction of costs has been analogous, though not by any means as striking, nor are exact general fig ures available. It is thus evident that the prosperity of the mining industry must be measured not only by the in- crease of output, but also by the in crease in net returns from mining ventures.
 The value of the copper ore produc- tion has shown very marked increase, the total shipments of copper ore in 1905 being more than double those of 1904. This will bring the value of the annual copper production of Alaska up to over s6O0OOO. The annual produc- ton of silver incidental to mining for other ores is about slOO,O0O.
 Work has been continued on the tin deposits, but these are not yet on productive basis. The coal fields, though extensive, have been but little exploited, the entire production for 1905 being probably less than 1000 tons. Prospecting for coal has been very ac- tive in the Controller bay region and in the Mantanuska valley, The only other developed mining industry is marble quarrying, which, according to the returns of the customs officials, has shown an exported production of about S3,OOO in value.
 Notable advances have been made in three mining regions, and practically all the others have shown a healthy growth. In Southeastern Alaska the copper deposits of Prince of Wales is- land have reached a productive stage, and auriferous lode mining in the Ju-