The Alaska citizen., 1916-11-27
MINING OUTPUT
 0F FAIRBANKS
 IS S3,35O,OOO

Quartz -. ........ ...... 5O,OOO Tenderfoot, Kantishna and outly-
 ing districts ............ 75,OOO Hot Springs ...... -. -. 6OO,OOO ToloVana ......... ........ 'UU,UOo Anthony and Tungsten .... 100000
 TOTAL .. ..........S S3,35O,OOO
 This is the list of the value of the mineral products of the Fairbanks district, according to a compilation of the figures of the First National Bank, the American Bank of Alaska and the Wells-Fargo Express Co The table shows that the total pro duction during the ye@r of 1916 was in the neighborhood of S3,500,000. This amount is approximately $500, 900 less than that of last year.
 However, the business men are not discouraged by this falling off as they feel sure that the low grade ground that, up to the present time costs too much to mine, will be eX- plotted as soon as the railroad cheapens the cost of fuel. Part of the decrease in the output is due in measure to the fact that some of the owners of such property are waiting for the coming of the rail road before they try to work their ground. This, then, according to the business men and miners, explains the falling off in the production oC the minerals.
 In a way the production this year has several encouraging features.
 For instance, there has been some of the so-called dead ones among the creeks come back with a com paratively large production. A fur ther encouragement is found in the decision of some of the dredging companies from the Outside to pros pect the ground on some of the neighboring creeks.
 The great increase in the gold pro duction of the Tolovana district is one of the most encoura ging of all of the reports of this year. This year the district produced $700,000. A number of large outfits are work ing there this winter and great quantity of dirt will be taken out before spring and during the course of next summer. Conservative oper- ators estimate that the production there for 1917 will be a million and a half This coupled with the work that is being done on the older creeks will keep the amount well up years.
 The yield from the quartz mines is unusually small. This is due to the fact that the quartz operators are waiting for the completion Of the railroad. Then coal can be ship ped here and the cost of that par ticular kind of mining will be con be shipped'cwa .TedisForeegsvahdt-A siderably cheapened. Then too, since some of the Outside corporations have secured options on quartz properties the future of that mining is far from dark, Some prospecting but very little actual mining was done this season.
 In tungsten and antimony mining there is considerable increase over the production of those metals last year. This years production is $200,000. The amount that may be mined of these ores depends on the market price. During the earlier part of last year the price was high, and the miners were able to operate al profit. However, the bottom fell out of the market during the sum- mer, so that it does not pay at the present time to mine them. During the last few weeks the price has been advancing, and it may reach point where it will pay to mine again.
 During the season just past there has been a shortage of men on the creeks This has been due to the railroad construction that has been going on. This may have had some thing to do with the smaller output, as number of the operators were | forced to shut down because of that shortage.
 According to the attitude taken by the business men, there is no reason for feeling discouraged over the smaller output. There are sev' eral things that indicate that this re zion will be a good one for many years. First there is the railroad and the consequent cheapening oi fuel by the use of coal. Moreover while the road is getting here the