Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1907-08-20
GOAL INDUSTRY IN
IOWA ENORMOUS
Years Output Will Amount to
100000 Tons and Yield
Is Being Increased
NEW MINES BEING OPENED.
Few Mines Have Quit Regardless Of
Claims of Operators in Effort to Scare
Purchasers and Excuse High Prices
Comparisons Showing Importance of
Industry to State.
Special to Times-Republican.

Special to Times-Republican
Des Moines, Aug, Something of
the enormity of the coal business in
Iowa can be ascertained when 1t is
realized that the products of the coal
mines of Polk county alone this year
would. If piled up, cover twelve city
blocks three stories nigh. The prod
nct of the mines of the state is some
thing over five times the total prod
uct of the mines of Polk county. and
would therefore cover sixty city blocks
800 feet square EACH with sixty-fo
streets in between. 1t would cover
farm of l75 acres TO the height of a
three-story building, and the product
of the Polk county mines alone would
cover thirty-five acres to that depth.
The product of the mines Of Polk
county this year will amount to about
100000 tons. The reports to the state
mine inspector are not all in yet, but
L.,
100000 tons, and there are already re-
ported that much with mines that will
run about 100000 tons yet to report.
The product of the entire state will be
considerably over 100000 tons.
Such colossal figures are not to be
comprehended except by comparisons,
and the attempt hers is to give the
comparisons that will enable one to get
some idea of the amount of coal that is
mined each year.
About 75 per cent Of the coal taken
out is lump coal, and it is on the basis
OF the amount of the lump coal taken
out that the miners are paid. The
screenings go to the coal company gra-
tbs. 1t costs a coal company about S1.9O
per ton of lump coal to handle the
product of its mines and put It on cars
ready for transportation to market. on
this basis there is spent in Polk coun-
ty for handling the coal product of the
county $1.995,00O a year. In addition
to this there is every year great deal
or money spent in prospecting for new
veins, sinking new shafts for new
mines AND installing machinery. The
annual expenditure in Polk county on
this alone runs into the hundreds of
of dollars, so that there is
considerable more than $4,000, 900 spent
~ FOLK county every year in wages in
ana ABOUT coal mines. The reports to
lhe state mine inspectors for last wear
showed that there were 1876 persons
during the year in the mining
OF coal, not all Of them for the full
twelve months. This means a popu1a-
ton of something like $4,000 persons
supported in Polk county by the coal
mines of the state. not includinq a
great many teamsters engaged in de-
livering coal inside the city lini,s ~
Des Moines
TO, put the yield of the coal mines
IN still a little different light, it can
De sald that the yield of the Polk
county mines placed in wagons holding
TWO and half tons each, which is the
capacity OF the big coal wagons used
In Des Moines it would take $50. 600
teams to haul the product and allowing
~ feet to the team and wagon. which
is not very liberal, they would stretch
over 2,121 miles. The product of the
entire state would stretch over five
times that distance, or 10,6O5 miles. |
For the product of Polk county this
would make string of teams seven
times across the state of Iowa from
Dubuque straight to Sioux City. And
for the state it would make a string /
Of teams IS times across the state
For Polk county alone i'm one string
the Polk county product loaded in such
wagons would stretch from Des Moines
TO New York. Roughly speaking, it |
Is 1000 miles from New York to San
Francisco and the teams hauling the !
product of the entire state would reach |
twice across the United States and
half way across again.
Added to all this 1t can be said that !
the product for another year will be
more, for there are eight |
aew mines being opened up this year
in Polk county and most all of them
will be in operation by January 1
lext. Some of them are down to
coal now and will be opened for min
ng coal in a few weeks. Many of the
mines will be enormous concerns when
once under way Over the state at
arge in the coal mine region there
Are also many more new mines being
opened.
Recently some of the coal mine oper-
ltors OF this city gave it out that peo-
Ole must buy their coal early this fall
md stock up because the price of coal
s likely to go up. and in the statement
t was claimed that many mines have
.losed UP and gone out of business.
There is scarcely a mine that has quit,
md the output of Polk county if all
Kept in the city would bury the town
n u little while. There is no excuse
n the scarcity of the coal product for
the price of coal to the pub
ic this winter.
Miss Mary Rosemond. third assist
lnt at the state library has been pro-
noted to the position of legislative
general reference assistant, authorized
~ the last legislature. and Miss Grace
'ooper formerly bookkeeper> in the
tate library, has been made third as
istant. She has just returned from