Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1907-10-17
GETTING SCARCE.
Phosphate Rock is Said to Be
Hard to Get.
Yet the Price Shows No Marked In.
crease.-SOme Interesting Figures
About the Industry.

interesting Figures
About the Industry.
The State says the fertilizer plant
or the Vinginia-Carolina Cbemica,
Company in Columbia, which has
been shut down all summer on ac-
count OF lack of phosphate rock
VIII probably not be in operation be-
fore the first of November Some
needed repairs are now being made
on the plant and it Will reouire at
least fifteen days to complete them.
Several years the State of South
Carolina derived handsome income
from the royalties received from the
operation of it's phosphate beds along
the coast. but business has decreased
In the past 16 years to such an ex-
tent that the revenue for the past
year is less than one-fourth what II
was in 1890. For the years named
the States revenue from this source
was as follaws. 1890, $237,149.o6:
1891, s169. .292.6S; 1892, S165,27O.-
25. During these years the ROYALTY
paid the State was $1O3 and $1.O5
per ton.
Between the years 1893 and 1900
inclusive, when the royalty had been
reduced to so cents per ton. the fig
ures were as follows: 1893. s231.-
3sS.12; 1894. $57,S27.13; 1895. s4.-
566.7o; 1896, S62.631.O1; 1897,
S42.373; 1898, $24,264.31; 1899,
1851; 1906, $S.667.
The figures for the years 1901 to
100 inclusive, when the royalty had
been reduced to % cents per ton. as
at present, the revenue was: 1901
s2S, 1902, $27.291.65: 1908.
S16,936.47; 1904. $9.73E.O1; 1906.
S7.551; 9O6,$S,667.
So, it will be seen that one of the
State governments principal sources
of revenue 16 years ago has gradual
ly dwindled until it can hardly be
considered worth while. Several
causes have brought about this con-
dition, chief of which it that large
fields of rock have been discovered
in Florida, Tennessee and Algeria
Another cause was the effects of the
disastrous coast storm of 1893
which almost wiped several of the
small towns along the coast off the
map, overturned and wrecked the
boats and dredges employed in the
digging of this phosphate rock, en-
falling great losses on the mining
companies
Practically the only phosphate
mines in the world operated on an
extensive basis were those along the
South Carolina Coast, but now both
Florida and Tennessee mine more
rock than this State OF the 2.OSO,-
957 long tons of phosphate marketed
in the United States in 1906 (valued
at $3.50 .43O Florida produced L.
304,505 long tons, valued at s3,5S5.-
57S; Tennessee produced 547,677
long tons, valued at $2,147,991, and
South Cardinals production was 223;-
675 long tons, valued at $S17,06S.
Other States, including Arkansas.
marketed 500 tons. valued at sos.
500
The use of phosphate rock is limit
ed to the manufacture of fertilizers
and chemicals containing phosphoric
acid. A distinction is made in this
State between '1and" and river"
rock; but the two are the same i'm
origin. the river" rock being simply
land" rock washed out from the
banks and deposited in depressions in
the beds of the streams
1t is the river rock from which
the State derives royalties. the
land rock being mined by compan-
les who own the land in fee simple.
This river rock is fast becoming ex~
hausted and in few years the State
will probably derive no revenue
whatever from It,