The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1915-11-06
NOW EXAMINING
ASBESTOS LANDS
STATE MINE INSPECTOR r. N.
BELL TO KAMIAH TO VIEW
STATE OWNED DEPOSITS
Mr.. Bell Gave Highly Instructive
Talk to Students and Faculty Of
Engineering College Friday

Mr.. Bell came in from Boise Thurs
day night and yesterday morning was
a guest of the faculty Of the engineer
ing college and at the request of Dean
Little delivered a splendid address to
faculty and students on the mineral
resources of the state, their variety,
widespread distribution and the ex-
cellent opportunities for engineering
endeavor they present to the present
and future students of the university.
A thorough examination of the as
bestos deposits of the Clearwater
country in the vicinity of Kamiah will
be made by Robert N. Bell, state mine
inspector, who left for Kamiah to-
day to make an investigation at the
request of the state land board The
asbestos deposits, which are owned
by the state, are said to be among the
most valuable in the northwest. The
state has already leased portion of
the lands and application has been
made for additional acreage by KAN
iah people. 1t is understood that the
state has adopted a policy of home
manufacture in the handling of the
product, the leases containing a
clause preventing the leesees from
having the product manufactured for
commercial use outside of the" state.
Mr.. Bell emphasized the Importance
of the Occur d'Alene district with
it's quarter of billion dollars
worth of mineral production in a
quarter of a century, and expressed
the opinion that the history yet to be
written of the Coeur d'Alene district
would discount it's great record of the
past and that new mineral discover
les would continue to be made, as de-
velopment progressed in that famous
mining field, and maintain its record
as an active industrial center indef-
initely, in his address at the college.
Mr. Bell described number of the
remote districts of the state and their
extensive resources of low grade
and the opportunities for extensive
mining and milling operations along
those lines. He also described the in
terest manifested in the Idaho exhibit
at the San Francisco exposition, Oh
rare mineral substances including
Tungsten Molybdinum, cObalt-nickle,
and mercury ores and the non-metal-
lie minerals including asbestos, Port
land cement, coal, clay, Tripoli stone,
and fertalizer minerals, including pot
ach, nitrogen, and phosphate rocks, the
latter mineral he described as occur
ing in exhaustless beds Aof the finest
quality, in the southeastern Idaho
counties, and which he considers sus-
ceptible of renewing and conserving
the primary fertility of the soil of the
entire United States, and potentially
the richest mineral asset of the state,
susceptible of proving an industrial
basis to Idaho of equal value and ,
volume that its coal resources have
proven to Pennsylvania. \
Mr.. Bell referred to the present
policy of the national government in
its effort to permenantly aleniate two :
thirds of the area of the state from .
local control under the guise OF con-
servation, and emphasized the neces-
sity of uniform protest against the :
of the federal authorities to
confiscate the commonwealth of our
people and invaluable revenue pro-
ducing assets of their natural re- 7
other than agriculture which
now bears such an undue share of the !.
burdens of taxation. :,
Mr.. Bell was shown through the ;,
various departments of the state uni = =
versity and expressed himself as
aighly pleased with its splendid :,
equipment and the complete oppor-
unities afforded it's students. He was
especially interested in the mining, :
and engineering depart :,
nents and believes the short course !,
,fered free to prospectors, should and =
will, be highly appreciated and at :,
ended. s :,