The Sentinel=record. (Hot Springs, Ark.) 1900-current, 1914-09-27
RADIOACTIVE BATHS
NOW IN DEMAND
FREDERICK HASKINS IN SURVEY
OF THE FIELD FINDS WE HAVE
A MONOPOLY.
The Opportunity 10 Exploit the Radium
Baths of Hot Springs Further Emph-
ASKED in Communication.

dSlNeu III communicated.
That the United States, during the
war period has practically a mono,
poly on the radium product and that
the radium baths will be in demand in
this country is the deduction of Fred
ericlI j. Haskins in a communication
in the CHICAGO Daily News.
That Hot Springs has the natural
radioactive waters to supply such
ba'hs is omitted in reference, the az
ticle dealing with artificial radium
baths Who'll y, and emphasizing further
the necessity OF exploiting widely the
radioactive properties of the hot wa
ters of the Arkansas Hot Springs.
nhe article is of the greatest inter,
est relative to the development OF this
resort and is as follows;
The scene OF radiam production
shifts from The laboratories Of Europe
to the laboratories Of the United
States. Radium supremacy and rich
er home supply CT this rare mineral
are ameng the spoils falling to the
share of our neutrality.
War has stopped the export Of our
radium bearing ores. These ores mus.
now be worked at home, with a conse-
quent anger supply Of the wonderful
metal foc American hospitals Ihysi
clans and research laboratories. The
Trice of radum will also doubtless he
| lowered by home production, erahlins
our physicians to Investigate all the
/ secrets OF its curative properties
| Hitherto Europe has sold us cur raii
UNI with a reckless disregard for our
rate a pound or so CT rad.um would
about offset our whole export.
"The worlds riches known rad!um
1 source is within 'ne United States,
The carno tie ores, mined in Utah and
Colorado and ccntainitg ,le uranium
oxide from witch r1dium is extracted.
have supplied EgTcpc with a great
part Of it's supply According to the
/ figures Of the bureau of mines, car
notite ores carrying 2S.8 tons OF urani
um oxide were produced in 1912 ami
practically the entire amount was ey-
/ ported, Ii was estimated that radirm
equivalent to 1l43 grams OF anhyd.
rcus radium bromide Cou have been
obtained from tia exported ore. In
1913 radium approximately equiYalenc
to rs grams of anhydrous radium
bromide was ihipped in the ore, to be
recovered b. foreign producers.
while this country possesses tae
laleest known supply Of radium bear
ing minerals, it's production OF rad'uu
salts is small. With the exception Of
. ore mined and used by two American
D. films, practically every pound is sent
, abroad. There has been some aeita,
b ton Tor the holding CT these ores at
home, or for government ownership
! and supervision Of their production
A bin, initiated by the secretary OF tho
, interior, which provides for the wish
diawal of radirm lands is still pend
, ing in congress.
! In general, however, Americans
. have shown little interest in these de.
3 posits, which have not yet boon dur i.
Gated in so far as quantity goes in
q any part of the word The on y other
large deposits of radium bearing Gro
known are those in Austria. The Aus
tran government has considered them
2 of enoueh Importance to take entire
charge Of them. Tfese mines ere
found in ST Jcachimsthal Badium
bearing minerals also are found at Jo-
hanngeorgenstadt. Marienherg, Fret
berg and Schneeberg in SaNony, .,
Bohemia, in Portugal and in South
Australia.
During 1913 the total production
of radium from ores other than Am
erican carnotite was between 6.5 and
rs grams Of radium bromide, a slight
increase over 1912 Nevertheless, the
American ores AGAIN yielded moro
than two-thirds of the worlds supply.
Hair Of the total supply eff radium in
existence at The present time has been
furnished by American ores during
the asst three years, and yet the Unit.
ed States has far less than it's share
Of the refined product There are now
at least four American plants in posi-.
ton to undertake the extraction OF
rad,um from American ores.
"The European production Of ram.
um fer this year probably viii be al
most nil.
1.-THE value OF rad.um depends main
w upon the establishment Of its ef-
fcacy as a means for combating GER
tain diseases. The metal is used in
scientific research and in medicine,
and, to a slight extent, industriaily
in such ways as the coating Of wa.ca
faces that they may be read in the
dark. The remarkable minera, how
ever. win largely maintain its com