The weekly Alaska citizen., 1918-12-30

The following is the preamble and recommendations of the committee of the Alaska Chapter of the American Mining Congress which was appoint ed to make certain investigations for the good and welfare of mining con- ditions in the interior. The commit tee was to have held a meeting on December 18th, but owing to certain conditions arising that meeting has been postponed until future date The article is published in its en- tirety that those miners living in the outlying districts may read and un- derstand just what is being done for their good and welfare by the mining congress in Fairbanks. Their findings follows:
 To tue Alaska Chapter American Min ing Congress:
 We, your committee on government aid to pWspectors. beg to transmit herewith the report of our invesLiga. uon of this question. which tor the sake of brevity contains only the unal conclusions reached, the more detailed discussion of the facts that led to the conclusions being reserved for thls letter of ransmissal.
 The beginning ot the cessation Ot prospecting in Alaska probably dates pack as lar as 1906-7. 1t will be re- calied that at that time large area Oi public lands containing coal. oil. phosphate and water sites. in the great northwest and III Alaska was withdrawn from entry. While Lnese withdrawals were not aimed specific ally at the prospector for gold. silver anu the netals usually sought by nlnl, they created much uncertainty as to what would result from the fur ILer continuance of the policy. This uncertainty was transmitted to per sons who had been in the habit of stalking and sending prospectors to <aidohn ce1SA oPAAA6S SouoAA6 O AAelA hSu decrease in the practice.
 Again. in recent years, a definite and ArAniy estaE.ished impression has arisen among men having money to invest that probably all of the great Donanzas of Alaska have been dis covered. This may, or may not, be true, but the fact that such an i'm pression exists makes 1t moro and increasingly difficult to secure the capital necessary to outfit and send prospectOrs into the hills.
 AgaIn, the custom Of paying large pclces for undeveloped claims, or even mere locations staked in the relghborhood of new discoveries, has gradually fallen into disuse. with the result that opportunities for the pros- pector to reap large and immediate rewards nas decreased enormously. such men no longer see the possi- bility of big gains to compensate them for the risk of failure and con- sequent loss of time, or tc induce them to brave the rigOrs of climate and other hardships of prospecting.
 A change, slow but nevertheless of revolutionary character. has also taken place in the carrying on of mining operations so that today they are conducted along business princi. pies which are just as sound as those for any manufacturing industry. Min ing has been reduced to a scientific ejaculation in cold dollars and cents of available tonnage, ore values, cost of mining and treatment, etc. AS a result the prospector must be able to show a margin on the right side of the ledger before capital will in- vest in his prospects or even be in. terested in 1t.
 In order to cope with the situa- tion new type of prospector is re. Quired, and the days of the old pros. pector who searched the hills with a pack and small grubstake, and with but little more than a rudimentary knowledge of minerals and mining, Is gone forever The new prospector to be even moderately successful must be sufficiently equipped by edu- cation to be able to determine the values of the lower grade ore bodies, to estimate the probable quantity of ore reserves, to determine with a fair degree of accuracy the probable cost of mining. and know something of market values. But what is of even more importance, he must have suf- hcient financial backing to enable hlm to develop his prospect to the point where he can show the proba bility of return on the investment so that he can induce capital to con. slider any proposition he may have to make.
 It is a well recognized fact that the activity of the prospector is not only an accurate index to the vlrility of the mining industry but it is also one of the most vital and essential factors for it's continuance and main. tenance. Unlike farming, where a