The Wrangell sentinel., 1933-09-01


 gone so far last spring as to make inquiries as to whether he could travel directly from Seattle by air plane. His informant told him there was no regular service. so he post poned the journey but told MT. and Mrs. Watle he would make it be- ore long.
 The Delegates office has been deluged with questions from Alaska about the new Treasury regulations regarding the exportation of gold. Last week the Treasury announced that unsmelted ore, concentrates, precipitates and unretorted anal gams might be exported.
 It was said in this column last week that no definitions of those terms had been made, and it was very difficult to tell just how far the new ruling goes. That state ment still holds good.
 
 No, exact information is obtain able from the Treasury It has been hinted hare that the courts may possibly be called upon to establish definitions. It may be said that sev- eral of the larger mining companies have asked the Treasury to make the situation clearer Those com panies, with representatives in direct contact with Washington official dom, are apparently in the dark no less than the isolated Alaska miner.
 If definitions commonly employed in the mining industry were used. it would seem that about the only gold not exportable would be that obtained from smelting processes. However, the question is whether such definitions are to be made.
 It was learned today that the Cana dian cabinet can be expected to is sue an order within the next day or so allowing importation of gold ores, etc. mined in the United States which means American miners will be able to obtain the going world price for their products. Of course if that ruling is made American producers can ship ore to Canada for smelting. That would seem to be discriminatory against American smelters and subject to correction.
 As the situation now stands, 1t would appear that a dredge operat- or who puts the mercury, sand and gold through a retorting process to refine the gold to more or less pure state could not then export 1t because it would be a retorted anal gam. But the individual or company operating a quatrz mine where the ore was free milling could ship out the concentrates for export without questin. That again, would seem to be unjust discrimination.
 In view of that this question was put to a responsible Treasury of fial on behalf of the Delegate: would not the world concentrates be applicable to sand, quicksilver, and gold, or sand and gold, obtained as a result of placer operation fully as much as to concentrates derived form processing free milling ore.
 The official declined to commit himself officially, but he did say he saw no reason why the above con- struction should not be good. If that interpretation is followed, then, the placer operator could place himself in the highly favorable position of exporter merely by shipping the cleanup as taken from the boxes without separating the gold from the sand or quicksilver.
 Because of the present uncertain ty, it is advised, if some clarifcation is not made within short time, that Alaska miners apply to the Collec- or of Customs for exact rulings. In that event the Treasury Department would probably have to make exact definitions, something which 1t ap- pears loath to do now. Its present attitude is taken, not because it wishes to raise uncertainties, but because it wishes to test each step carefully and view each operation with the idea of the good of the en-