The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-08-17
Our Gray Ores

The gray hematites of Talladega county are fast enhancing in conner cial value and the day will come soon- CT than had been expected, perhaps, when these ores will be freely used in mixtures, just as the brown ones are used now. Two or three years ago, when the attention of ironmakers was called to the Talladega hematites and when the lands could be bought for a comparatively small sum, it was i'm possible to find a purchaser in this dis trict. Local mineralogists and furnace operators were skeptical, and it re- mained for a speculative investor, liv- ing a thousand miles away, to have the gray ore examined and to purchase large tract of the ore land. This far seeing man paid less than s40,000 for whati today valued at millions.
 LII. IuWlu 0. EChel, WHO WdS LOT many years the chief of the iron ore division of the United States Geolog- ical Survey, recently prepared for the Iron Trade Review an able paper on the Gray Hematites of Eastern Ala bama," and 1t is worthy of remark that this distinguished authority confirms fully an earlier report made by John Sharshall Grasty, young but esteem ed and successful southern geologist. Charles Catlett of Virginia, known as one of the greatest geologists in the United States, also made an investiga- tion of part of the tract in Talladega, and on the strength of his report the tract referred to was acquired Mr. Catlett makes important investigations in this district for the United States Steel Corporation, and when a geolo- gist of his high standing and conserva- | tive judgment in technical matters anu the estimates of young MT. Grasty agree, and when their reports are con firmed by pr. Eckel, then the most Skeptical must concede that the gray ores of Talladega are soon to come into furnace practice. In Dr. Eckel's recent paper, which, by the way, is repro duced in the Baltimore Manufacturers Record, are these paragraphs:
 It will be seen that in composition the | gray ores resemble more closely the | brown hematte than the red or Clinton ores. So far as iron and silica percentages are concerned, the Alabama gray ores 1 are far superior to the Oriskany hema- tites which have been so long used in l Virginia at Longdale, Lowmoor, Goshen, Glen Wilton, Iron Gate and Covington l furnaces. There would seem to be no req | son. therefore why the Alabama gray hematites should not find place in the trade. either for use as a mixture with | the limey red ores or TOT SIlelIllS dioHc. When operations are conducted on req sonably large scale the gray ore can be mined and cleaned for s1.10 to SIPS per | ton, equivalent to or cents per unit of contained iron.
 Taking only the better known portion of the range, it is probable that in this TO- mile section that are somewhat over 5ODO0.000 tons of ore at easily workable depths. that is. above the 15O0-foot level. About half of this total tonnage will grade above 45 per cent metallic iron, the re- mainder ranging from 45 down to S5 per cent. fair proportion of the total, say 5OO00oO tons, can probably be mined so as to grade 50 to 53 per cent iron
 All this is of interest to the iron trade. especially now since the con- sumption of metal increases at a ratio Hardly dreamed of 20 years ago.