The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1909-07-24

Editor The Mining World: The sue
cess that has attended the several
correspondence schools of this eoun-
try, seems to point the way for the
study of mining and metallurgy, by
young men who, with no further edu-
cational basis than high school di-
ploma, and more frequently, with
nothing beyond grammar school
foundation, find themselves compeli-
ed to solve the problem of making
living. In your excellent article on
this subject, you point out clearly
that no field presents greater oppor-
tunities to the ambitious youth than
mining, and your remarks on Min
Ing Education Out of College are di-
rectly to the point The question stlIl
remains, however. in what way can
our young men best acquire the edu-
cation necessary to fit themselves
for the responsible and lucrative
positions connected with mining, ali
of which require special skill. and
HlDTt OF ItsS tEIHtiNdl hiloNtNttSNS'
The practical end can of course be
learned in the mine, but when all is
acquired that can be in this way. the
best that may be expected is a posi-
ton OF shift boss. or mine foreman.
The character of the rocks and their
possible association with mineral de-
posiUs. will undoubtedly be learned
by the intelligent and obserEant min
er, but something more than this is
necessary to fill the scope of ambi-
ton The miner learns what he sees
in the mine in which he is working,
but of the underlying causes which
familiar, he can know little, unless
his practical labors and observations
are supplemented by hard and dill
gent study.
There are doubtless many men who
have achieved success in this direc-
ton by single handed effort, and all
mining men know of such men who
have reached commanding positions
III Llt ooS
side aid of any kind. But these are
exceptions. The rule in all branches
of technical education is that even
those most ambitious of complete sue
text books, which any one can buy,
but by the explanations and other
aids that can ouly be given by train
ed teachers and it would therefore
the working student the opportunity
for improvement is to establish con.
nection between him and the Schools
of Mines in operation in so many of
our states.
The correspondence schools have
paved the way for this connection
They have shown how the studies
can be carried on, how examinations
are conducted, and what is demand
ed before a diploma is granted, and
the hundreds of successful profes-
sional men in every branch of scien-
tifie culture attest the value of these
schools. To successfully carry out
the suggestions of your editorial on
this subject, it is only necessary to
adopt the system which has proved
its adaptability to existing conditions
There are very few of our older
and larger mining towns which are
not provided with libraries, in which
may be found all of the technical
works necessary for systematic
course of study of mining and metal
lurgy. In most of these libraries
there are cabinets of minerals, min
eral-bearing, and n-mineral-bearing
rocks characteristic of the district.
Such cabinets will give the student
an opportunity for comparing the
written descriptions of the books
with the rocks and minerals them
Clerk of the District court, Max