Gilpin observer., 1914-01-29
RADluM ORES RAREsT MINED

which has so large a hold on public
attention and at the same time has
SO small total monetary value as
the Uranium minerals. This interest,
is, of course, due not to the miner
ais as such, nor to the uranium they
contain, but to the accompanying ra-
mum. Heretofore the interest in ra-
dium, though lively, has been large
ly academic, on account of the mar
velous qualities it displays when
compared with better-known 'ele-
ments. Toward the end of 1918, how
ever, public. interest became almost
feverish, owing to the apparent cures.
of cancer wrought by the applica-
tion of the gamma rays given off by
radium.
Uranium minerals were produced
in commercial quantity in the Unit
ed States in 1913, as shown by pre-
liminary statistics gathered by Frank
L. Hess, one of the United States
Geological Survey, only in Colorado
and Utah, and, although during the
year some pitchblende was mined in
Colorado in the Belcher and Calhoun
mines, only few pounds were sold,
though so dry tons of low-grade mat
erial carrying 1.49 per cent uranium
oxide (U3OS) was shipped to France
from the Kirk mine. This had been
mined in previous year. Carnotite,
a yellow powdery or waxy mineral,
found in the sandstones of the high
plateau between the Rocky Noun
tains of Colorado and the San Rafael
Swell of Utah, south of the Book
Cliffs. furnished the whole produc-
ton.
Carnotite, as the word is ordinari-
ly used, is a potash or lime uranium
vanadate. Several vanadium miner
ais occur with the carnotite, so that
in mining for uranium a great deal
of vanadium is also obtained. At
Newmire, San Miguel County, Colo,
Ii
elite, occurs practically free from ura-
mum and is worked for vanadium
alone.
The total mine shipments of ura-
mum and vanadium, as shown by
preliminary figures, were equal to
2,14O tons Of dry Uranium oxide. The
vanadium in carnotite ores shipped,
together with that which is estimat-
ed to have been produced from the
Newmire district. was equivalent TO
914 tons Of vanadium oxide. These
quantities are equal to about 1928
tons of metallic uranium and 412 tons
of metallic vanadium.
The Bureau of Mines has determin-
ed that carnotite carries about 900
or even little more OF the theoret-
ical quantity of radium in equilibrium
with uranium, which, according to
Rutherford ("Radioactive substances
and their radiations," p. 16). is equal
to about l gram in 5000 Kilograms
of uranium. Assuming that 9O9c of
the radium is recoverable, this would
give in the output of 1913 an equiv
alent Of about $40 grams of metal
lie radium. or 1910 grams of hydrous
raidum bromide. worth, at $120 a mil
ligram of metallic radium, about ST.
O55,0O0. The total value of the carno-
tite ores sold was about $4,000.
which represents the uranium value
only, as little was paid for the vana-
dium content and the figures for
these receipts are not yet in hand.
The production of the year was the
largest ever made. according to the
Geological Survey figures. that for
1912 being equivalent to 26 short
tons of uranium oxide (22 tons Of the
metaD, and that for 1911 being equiv
alent to So tons of uranium oxide
(21.2 tons Of the metaD-an increase
of nearly so per cent for 1913.
A prominent feature Of uranium
and vanadium production during the
year was the change in method Of
payment by American buyers, who
no longer paid for the vanadium con-
tent in the ore, but bought 1t on the
basis OF the uranium oxide content
alone, though they received payment
for the vanadium content abroad.
However, the miner received more
or less compensation in higher
price for the uranium oxide he sold
Prices varied greatly and returns to
the Survey show that the price per
pound for contained uranium oxide
ranged from 81 for ores carrying O.6