Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-01-28


pitfalls for use in the treatment Of can
with the National Radium Institute,
which supplied the necessary capital
amounting to 100000 to develop a
more economic method of the manufac-
ture of radium from the carnotite ores
Of the west.
The institute supplied the bureau with
the carnotite- bearing lands and the
plant and machinery and the bureau Of
fered to develop the radium making
process, being Influenced by the fact
that there were $4,000 deaths each year
in the United States from cancer. Alto
gether eight and one-ha1f grams of
$4,000 a gram. The market selling
price for radium has been from 100000
to s12o,0000 a gram.
The bureau of mines spent $4,000 in
developing this process and will receive
as its share Of the cooperative agree
ment with the institute at least 100000
worth of radium which will be used for
scientific purposes. The methods Of ex-
tracing radium that have been evolved
have been patented for the benefit OF
the people and may be used freely by
any one within the United States.
The production of manganese ore,
used in the manufacture of paints.
glass and other COM
produotion If modities, in 1916 was
$1,000 tons, which is
manganese. the greatest since
1888 and nearly three times the pro-
duction of 1915, according to experts Of
the geological survey. who have just
completed a study Of the production.
o1ff NV
MIA, Arkansas, Arizona, Georgia. vir-
ginia, Utah and Colorado. Those who
have been in charge Of collecting these
figures say that 1t is not yet posi- BILE
to state the production Of high grade
ores adapted for use in dry batteries.
but the reports indicate that 1t will ex-
coed $500 tons, and, therefore, be five
times that Of 1915.
The prices paid for manganese ore
adapted to the manufacture of ferro-
$3.50 in 1915 to $3.50 in March, 1916.
An important consequence Of the pre-
vailing high prices of manganese al
Toys was the attempt on the part OF
extent to which substitutes for man.
ganese in steel may be used has not
been determined, but experiments by
several steel works show that an alloy
of iron, carbon and titanium may be
satisfactorily used to replace part OF
the ferromanganese commonly added.
Although a number of mines in Vir-
ginia Georgia and Arkansas were re-
opened during 1916. 1t was found that
the greatest activity was among mines
in California, Arizona, Utah. New Mex
leo and other western states. This is
sa i'd to be due in part to the operation
of electric reduction plants in Cali
fornia and Washington. but more
in some of the western ore. The mac
feasibility of most western deposits
makes 1t Improbable to ship ore to
eastern makers of ferromanganese,
even at the high prices they are now
Offering for manganese ore.
Uncle Samuel's children are the larg-
est producers of raw sealskins in the
world. They are also the
Sea1skin largest consumers Of fin-
ished seal furs. This
Anous'iJ. would seem to make it
natural that they should sell their own
sealskins and dress and dye their own
furs They never have. however. We have.
in the past sent our raw sealskins to
London. We have paid London for
dressing and dyeing them, and we have
bought them back, paying duty on them
on their return and the incidental
charges due to double transportation.
This added 81 per cent to the price Of
raw skins. SO that the fur laid down in
America. ready to be made up into gar
ments. cost over one-half more than 1t
did when Ii was purchased raw.
The Department of Commerce took
the first step to end this short time
ago. when the sale of raw sealskins
took place for the first time in this
country. 1t was success. Better
prices were had than the foreign ones.
The government got more and it cost
the government less. Last year there
ket and Congress authorized withhold
ing the skins. A second sale was held.
following the success of the first one,
this time for fox skins. with even
greater success. There were buyers
from many foreign lands and the prices
were higher than ever before obtained.
Meanwhile, the Department of Com
merce has been planning to establish
the best known method of dyeing and
dressing raw sealskins in this country,
in order that the whole process from
beginning to end might be American.
This it has now succeeded in doing
Acting upon the advice of the Attor-
ney General, the department has made
a contract for limited term for the
sale of its production of sealskins at
auction to all buyers who may come
A consideration Of this contract Is that
the best process Of dyeing and dressing
sGai hiIo" IL " lEo lTaQc snail De
promptly established in this country.
This was done to prevent the deteriora-
ton of something like 5000 skins,
which the government has now in cold
storage. but means the permanent es-
tablishment of the new industry In. the
United States. 1t is expected that it
will return a greater profit to the gov
eminent on the sale of its skins, while
at the same time so reducing the ex-
penses incidental to the dyeing and
dressing that the finished fur will be
sold at lower cost to the American
consumer than heretofore
AT a sale in ST. Louis the past year,
the first sale took place of the fully
dressed, dyed and finished sealskins ever
disposed of by the government The lot
comprised 1900 skins. The prices more
than covered the cost of dyeing. dressing
and finishing, and the goods were gener-
ally approved by critical buyers. The
market value of sealskins as furs is sif-
fering from the substantial withdrawal of
the article from the market by reason of
the closed season. II and when the sale
of the furs on a commercial scale shall
be resumed, 1t is the expectation of the
trade that the prices obtained for them
will be enhanced.