The weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Craig County, Okla.) 1905-1913, 1911-11-17
LARGE VALUES IN SLATE.

Production For 1910 Over se,ooo,ooo
According to Figures of The United
States Geological Survey-More than
Three Quarter Million Dollar In
crease over 1909.
The value of the slate produced in
the United States in 1910 amounted TO
Sc, ,236,759, compared with S5,441, AIS
lin 1909, an increase of $795,S41, ac-
'cording to A. T. Coons, in a report
just published by the United States
geological survey.
The increase in the production of
slate for all uses was general in 1870
There were strikes in some regions,
notably in Virginia, and there were
many slides in the Quarries and some
quarry accidents.
Ten states contributed to the COM
mercial slate output, Pennsylvania and
Vermont being much the heaviest pro-
ducers. About IS per cent of the
value of the slate produced last year
was in that used for roofing, the out
put being ,26O621 squares, valued at
I$4,S44664. A square" represents a
sufficient number of pieces of slate to
cover 100 square feet of roof, with al
lowance generally for a 3-inch lap.
The production represented therefore
over 125,O00.OOO square feet of roofing.
Slate mill stock was produced in
1910 to the value of $50S461 Mill
stock includes blackboards, school
states, flooring, wainsoting, watts, tiles,
sinks, laundry tubs, grave vaults, san
itary ware, refrigerator shelves, flour
bins, dough troughs, electrical switch
boards, mantels, hearths, well caps.
and billiard, laboratory, kitchen, and
other table tops. This material is
made in the form of slabs, from
inch to inches or more thick
Methods of Avoiding Slate Waste.
More than usual attention has lately
been given to the use of the waste
material from slate quarries, which
amounts to about 80 per cent of the
slate quarried. This waste has until
recently always been regarded as a
useless and expensive but unavoid-
liable product of the quarry. Within
the last few years, however, it has
been suggested that the quarrymen
instead of trying to find use for SO
large quantity of waste material
might devise some means to avoid
waste through better methods of quar-
rying. At the present time it is the
general practice of slate quarrymen to
blast out heavy irregular masses OF
rock instead of employing such ma
chinery as might obtain blocks of stone
better fitted for use for roofing or in
mills.
Applying Modern Machinery.
During the last two years some
quarries have been opened for the spe
cial purpose of getting out stone witt
modern machinery and working up the
slate in such a way as to obtain from
, it all possible material of value. The
slate quarries in this country are al
worked from the surface, being strip
, ped on top and thus worked down tc
the slate from above Some expert
t ments are, however, being made il
working the slate from below will
modern machinery and using the waste
r slate to fill up holes left by the re
moval of the good slate.
r A Pennsylvania firm has been max
2 ing from waste slate a roofing for fla
roofs or roofs with but slight in
+ cline. Such roofing is no longer IL
an experimental stage but has beel
used successfully on large buildings
+ such as factories, train sheds, offic
buildings, power houses, apartment
q houses, and private dwellings
A copy of the report may be OF
Q tanned on application to the Directo
r of the Geological Survey at Washing
Y ton, d. c.