Bisbee daily review., 1910-03-20

DdstO upon Ndiut ioi NHc Coai Ai the ground of sLSO per ton and a cost of mining of $l.40. Since the contrace provides for the sale of coal to the proposed railway at $l75 per ton. we think that s1S0 is really the value in the car and nos in the gsound We also doubt greatly whether coa lean be mined in the Boring river field at an average price of S140 per ton. Certainly 1t costs more than that in Washington and British Columbia where condi- tions are more favorable. A working profit of 70 cents per ton at the mine does not seem likely even un6er the most favorable conditions as 10 out put. As a matter of fact, conditions are not now favorable for a large out put of Alaskan coal. Puget Sound coals can certainly be mined and de- livered to udewater as cheaply if notcheaper than, can those farther north There is as yet no adequate evidence that these fields are inca pable of supplying the market. and the companies now in the business already have what coal trade there Is on the coass By the time local coal is all mined the effect of com petition of Eastern coal brought in through the Panama Canal will have to be taken into account. That does not now seem likely to be important. but it is oae element in an uncertain situation
 For the present fuel costs in the Pacific States are fixed by oil pro duction and not by coal. Existing contracts call for delivery in Alaska at S5 cents per barrel; equivalent to coal at s3 per ton. Petroleum is delivered to California coast points at 70 cents per barrel, the charge being made up of 50 cents for the oil and a 20-cent pipeline charge. From coast delivery points it can be sent to almost any point of consump- ton at a further charge of 9 cents per barrel. and at these prices every one concerned is making money rap idly.
 While the tendency is toward higher at even lower rates the industry would be profitable Oil now is in fact so cheap that only about half the power used around SanFrancis- co Bay comes form the hydro-electric companies, though they sell to the distributing companies at a rate of approximately a half cent per horse power hour So long as oil is avail able in quantity there will be no big
 A most important question is how long the oilfields will continue to re spond 10 the demand Careful esti- mates covering this point have been made by number of well-informed oil producers. Neglecting possible discoveries of new oil regions, con corning which many are highly pessi- mistic and saking into account the districts now producing. with others likely to be found in the same gen erral region. tf1e estimates give a min imum of 30 to 50 years before serious exhaustion need be feared. At pres ent all such estimates are necessarily uncertain, and those given are mere ly the best available. Remembering that money at per cent. compound interest doubles in fifteen years. it will be seen that the present value of Alaskan coal which can probably only be mined and sold advantageously thirty to fif.y years in the future. is not large The conservation of the Alaskan coal itself is one of the mat ters which need trouble us little. It is the conservation Of future public rights in the coal which is important There is plenty of time to study the situation and reach a satisfactory con clusion. Coal to he amount needed for present development may well be leased on nominal terms, or. if need be- given away-provided the re- serves for thefuture be left free. On the other hand. the problem of the development of Alaska is a present one. Large capital IS necessary to carry through railway and other en- terprises. Adequate return on this must be assured or the money will not be forthcoming. Public opinion will sanction a liberal policy designed 10 meet the present wants of the ter ri.ory in the line of development. The real popular objection to 'syndi- cat control is not to giving adequae ! returns on present investments, but to mortgaging the future by heavy discounting of prof.s.