Western news and the Libby times. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1920-1933, 1932-07-21
MERCURY DEPOSITS
FOUND IN ARKANSAS
Metal Is Now Employed in
a Thousand Ways.

shington.-Dlscovery OF deposits
| OF mercury in Arkansas adds another
important metal to that states list OF
mineral resources.
New domestic mercury deposits
are important because more mercury
! Is used In the United States than In
any other country, and more than one
third of the domestic consumption now
must be imported from Europe" says
bulletin from the National Geo
graphic society.
Mercury has been known for at
least $500 years. but its wide use is
q development OF recent centuries. To
day il is employed in about a thousand
ways.
"A thin stream OF the silvery liquid
metal sealed In glass thermometer
tube has long been mans aid in de
termining temperatures. in barome-
tiers. weather forecasters depend upon
II to foreteK changes in weather; In
atimeters, 1t aids aviators to deter
mine how high they are flying; and
IHuIiHe engineers use II III HtteiS "
estimate the flow OF water.
Mercury often does Its best work
where man least expects 1t. The life
OF many a sleeping voyager is guarded
by huge lighthouse beacons that re-
volve on floating mercury bearings.
and many toothaches have been avoid
ed by gold or silver amalgam teeth
filings made possible by mercury. The
life OF dry batteries is prolonged be-
cause mercury protects their zinc
plates.
Aids Beauty, Cleans Boilers.
The golfer plays on velvety greens
and the farmer harvests healthy crops
because a small quantity of mercury,
mixed with fertilizers, kills insects
that attack plant roots The ship own
er cleans the scale from the boilers OF
his ships with mercury and covers
the bulls with paint containing mer-
curry because ii thwarts the rapid
growth OF barnacles. When fashion
DEGREES that felt hats should be map
py, the hat manufacturer produces the
desired effect with mercury.
I'm many ways the metal loses its
identity in various kinds OF mixtures.
II is in milady's rouge box and lip
stick case where II Is available to
produce synthetic pink cheeks and red
lips. The 'silvered' mirror into which
she peers to apply her cosmetics lis In
reality, a 'mercuried' mirror
About one-third Of the worlds sup
ply Of mercury Is used in the drug
and chemical Industries. 1t helps TO
produce soda used in The manufacture
Of artificial silk and is AN ingredient
Of some dyes.
1T is mercury that produces the
green lights and helps TO produce the
blue lights in colored light advertIs-
Ing signs. Because II is dependable
in maintaining even temperature dur
Ing oil distilllng operations, It Is an
important tool Of the oil industry.
"As q safe. dependable detonator for
explosives, 1t was one OF the so-called
war minerals during the World war.
In peace times its decorating uses are
legion. II helps to blast tunnels
through mountains and gouge cuts for
railroads and highways. RACES tree
stumps and stones to clear land for
many purposes. loosens limestone,
granite and barble from quarries for
new buildings. and dislodges minerals
from mines.
Spain Chief Source.
Radio programs are ampllfied In
American living rooms by radio tubes
in the manufacture Of which mercury
had part, and many electrical de-
vices used In modern buildings were
produced with the aid Of mercury. One
OF the most outstanding recently de-
veloped uses OF mercury is in power
plants. The new plant uses mercury
yap0r instead of steam.
Now and then mercury Is found In
It's liquid metal state but more often
Ii appears in red mercnry-snlphur
ore called cinnabar. from which the
metal Is extracted by roasting
process
Mercury Is known TO exist on every
continent hut most of the worlds sup
ply comes from Spain and Italy, with
Spain leading in production. The
mines which give Italy second rank
among mercury producing countries
are situated near Trieste and in Tus-
cany The United States Is third on
the mercury production list, with Cali
fornia leading the mercury staies
which include Oregon, Nevada. Wash
ingion, Texas and Arizona. The
metal also Is mined in Alaska. Mexico.
Canada. China Russia. Czechoslovakia,
Austria. Algeria. Japan, Rumana, New
Zealand and Australia. Peru once was
an important South American source
OF mercury but production ceased sew
eral years ago"