El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-12-30
Many Mines Operated at a
Loss; Little Demand from
Manufacturers and FROM
the Railroads.

washington. D. c., Dec. 3O.-The
coal output of the year was little
more than that Of 1910. in spite 'of
the fact that most of the mines IN
the Mississippi valley and the south
western states were closed down for
practically six months during 1910.
The general feeling throughout this
region in 1911 was that business was
exceptionally bad. Illinois alone Is
"a pa BILE of producing. with ner pres
ent development and equipment as
much coal as is now produced IN the
entire interior region, 1ncludlnS III
nois Indiana western Kentucky, iowa
Kansas Missouri. Arkansas Okla
800 and Texas. Illinois without
opening another mine can produce
fully 100. 600, 600 tons Of coal me mar
ket for Illinois coal can not aDso-
more than 50,00O,0OO tons, ana IN ~
Illinois alone produced 4e,OvU'oOo ,, 80
The effect of these conditions Is snON u y
in the lower prices in 1911 compaISsu
With 1910 It is estimated that the
-price of Illinois coal was cents d
ton less in 1911 than in the previous
year In Indiana the price was , cents
less and in the southwestern dlstrlct
II was from 10 to y cents less IL
5s claimed that the cost of mining mas
been increased in all portions OF the
region. ,,..,,,.
The production of coal in most OF
the Rocky mountain states decreased
in 1911 about 10 percent compares
with 1910. The reduction was uuS
primarily, first. to an unusually mitd
winter in -191O-11: second, drouth IN
the agricultural states west OF Mlssls-
sfppf river which caused large redu~-
ton in the demand for domesuc p'lt-
poses in South Dakota. Nebraska RAJ
sas. Texas and Colorado; third, a de-
creased consumption Of coal in loco
motives on account Of the REDUCED
traffic on practically all the western
railroads: and fourth, the resumption
Of coal mining operations in the cen
trail and southwestern states which
had been suspended during the strike
Of 1910
Improved Mining Methods.
In striking contrast TO the repre-
hensible practice Of shooting coal from
the solid. as eXemplified particularly
in Arkansas and Oklahoma, are the
improvements in mining methods which
have been put into effect in some OF
the Rocky mountain states, especially
in New Mexico.
on the Pacific coast conditions were
not materially different in 1911 from
what they were in. 1910. The produc-
ton of oil in California continued TO
be the dominating factor and probably
will remain so for some years to come
Coal Production in 1911.
The shipments Of anthracite reported
by A II. Armstrong, chief of the bu-
reau of anthracite statistics. for. the
Il months ended November 80. amount
ed to 63,S3S,S72 long tons, and estimat-
ing the shipments during December at
$3.50 900 tons the total for the year
was 7O,1OO,000 long tons. This eX-
ceeded the preE-inIlS hi1h record of 1897
by approximately 5000, 600 tons. The
local trade in 1911 amounted to about
1000 600 long tons, and the cOlliery
consumption amounted to about $780,
900 tons. so that the total production
was very close TO SO,1OO,OOO long tons.
or about 4.700.00O tons over the out
put Of 1910. part Of the Increase in
production is probably due to the
stocking of fuel in anticipation of
April /, 1912, when the wage agree
ments terminate but the market has
been absorbing an unusually large
tonnage and the increase in produc-
tiOn has not been chiefly artificial
Soft Coal Mining at a Loss.
On the whole the bitumiuous trade
has been demOralized and Giscourag-
ing, and much of the business was
conducted at a loss. The principal
cause for this, particularly in the east
ern states, has been the depression in
the iron trade which was more seri-