The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-03-29

meter. which Is just about one-third of an inche square. were covered over with chemically pure radium, it would lose only about one one hundred and fifty thousandth of q grain In weight in 1,0O0,0 ,0O0 years. How tedious the task in getting raium Is shown by the fact that there IS more gold in sea water than there IS radium in pitch blende or uranium resi- due.
 Gallium Is the rarest of metals, if rad ium be excepted. It is worth $6S0O per pound, or nearly 229 times as much as gold. The melting point of this metal IS below ST degrees. so that 1t will melt when held in the hand. It was diseoy- cred by French chemist in lSlo, and was named in honor of France.
 The next rarest metal is vanadium. It is valued at $10,7S0 per pound. It Is closely allied to arsenic, phosphorus, and nitrogen in it's general chemical De- havlor. It Is used to make salts, one or which In turn ammonium metaVandate, is used to make amaline black dye and vanadium ink Vanadium is said to be present in small quantities in nearly all clays, but it's most abundant source is vanadiate of lead, found in Scotland, Peru and Chili. The next most valuable metal known is rubidium. It is valued at $9S0O a pound, though few Of our ac- quaintances have bought that much late ly. It is soft as wax even at low tenn peratures When thrown in water 1t de- composes that fluid with the evolution of hydrogen, which takes fire because of the heat produced in the reaction Rubi- dium is widely diffused in nature, but occurs in such small quantities as to make it extremely rare After rubidium on the scale of valuable metals comes thorium. Its value is SS33O per pound. A compound of this element, thoria, Is used in the manufacture of incandescent gas mantles, and gives them the white brilllancy they possess. It is found prin- cipally in North Carolina and Brazil. Glucinium is valued at $5SOO per pound. It is used in chemistry as the base Of several salts.
 There are three metals-calcium, lan- thanum, and lithiun-which are each valued at $4900 a pound. Calcium has a hardness about equal to that of gold In solution 1t is that element which makes water hard. It's presence is illustrated by the deposits which form in the tea kettles of milady's household It may be obtained by passing powerful current Of voltaic electricity through fused chloride of calcium, when the metal separates into minute globules. 1t is a yei!owish- white metal, and may ba rolled into sheets or hammered Into leaves. To be kept bright it has to be emmersed In naptha Lanthanum Is said to have little practical value, however great US monetary worth. Linthium is the light est of metals, outranking even aluminium in that particular. Its specific gravity Is but little more than half that of water.
 Another group indium, tantalum, yttrium and didymium-are valued al $4410 per pound. Indium is of rare oc- curence and not of as great importance as it's value would indicate. In this case, as well as in that of most of the other metals mentioned, the value is fixed by the cost of obtaining it rather than by any demand for 1t. The same Is true or the other three of the $4410 class.
 Strontium is worth S4200 pound. It's salts are used in the making of nfe- works and the refining of sugar. Many lives have been lost in both the making and preserving of fireworks into Which the salts of stront1um enter. It is freely liable to spontaneous combustion. Arium and erbium are each said to be worth s3675 per pound, though the daily news papers do not as a rule carry market quotations on them. Ruthenium is worth s2e95 per pound and the niobium and rhodium are each worth $245O per pound.
 Barium is worth s1960 per pound. Bar ium hydrate is made in large quantities at Niagara Falls by electrolysis of the soluble salts of barium. It is used ex- tensively in sugar refining, and is said to be superior to lime for that purpose. It is also said to be valuable in the pre- yention of scale in boilers caused by the calcium deposits from water. The ar tificial sulphate of barium Is widely used in "permanent white paint, making 1t retain Its lustre for long time.
 Titanium is valued at s1l02 per pound.