Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1938-08-21
One of Richest Prizes of Spain
Awaits Conqueror of Almaden
If Mussonis Lesions Storm City, II Duce Will
Have Command of Two-Thirds World Supply
of One of Wars Essential Materials.
By Fletcher F. kbeH.


~ NE of the richest prizes of the Iber-
ian Peninsula has been at stake
during the last week. The insur-
gent army of the Spanish South
west, under Gen. Gonzalo Queipo de Llano.
has been locked in desperate struggle with
Gen. Jose Miaja's Loyalists defending the
road to Almaden At times it has been the
major action of the two-year-old civil way
What is at Almaden? Why do the 10y
alists defend it so doggedy? Why have the
Fascists returned so determinedly to nurl
men and steel at the little town of $4,000?
This is the second general assault of the
war upon the place, the first having been
bloodily repulsed year ago
Treasure is the answer, as it so often has
been in wars through the ages and likely
will be in wars through the future. The
treasure OF Almaden is metallic, as SO many
treasures are-but 1t is also liquid, in
quite literal sense, as few metals are
Few?
Only one.
"Almaden" Means Mercury.
To mining men the world over the word
Almaden is synonymous with mercury for
the richest deposits of the element in the
world are there. Mercury, that strange
white metal which alone is fluid at ordi-
nary temperatures, a property winning for
1t the name Of the Greeks wing footed
messenger Of the gods. As it looks like
molten silver, it also has another descrip-
tive name-quicksilver, quick" being used
in the old sense of live"
Its uses are many. Even savages, in
areas where it occurs, employ its red ore,
c1nnabar, to make war paint. More civ
illzed peoples use it in Observation-Disclosures
OF mercury, calomel and mercurochrome
contain tin power boilers, in a wide
range OF laboratory apparatus. Miners use
1t in the amalgamation and recovery of
sgold and silver. for those metals soak it up
like sponges. John @. Citizen sees it most
often in his thermometers
Still, these uses must be of only passing
interest to the insurgent attackers, even
though sale of the metal at its present price
OF around 81 pound can supply handsome
replenlshment of war chests. The element
has grimmer and, to war-minded ma
tons, more important employment.
No Mercury, No Ammunition,
Mercuric illuminate is the sine qua non
OF modern war. illuminate, or thunder
ate" If the Latin be more English is the
highly explosive power which, set off by
percussion, in turn fires the gunpowder
behind cartridge or artillery shell Gray,
sandy, crystalline, 1t Is made by dissolving
mercury in nitric acid and adding alcohol.
There Is at present no substitute for it. Sill
yer illuminate is more explosive and chem
- ically would serve, but its obvious high cost
precludes its use. What chemists of a
nation cut off from all mercury supplies
might evolve as an alternative is one of the
1mponderables but the extreme statement
might be made that, in the present state
OF mans knowledge. that nation shortly
would find itself unable to fire shot.
The Spanish insurgents then, want AL
MAIDEN, the richest source of this aide to
Mars. just as ardently as the government
wants to keep 1t. But they are playing for
= even higher stakes than the Loyalists.
stakes that concern the United States and
every other world power. If Almaden in
Spain is the premier mercury resource of
the world, 1dria in Italy, with some other
deposits in that country, is the second. All
other mines are tertiary to these two great
ones. And if Mussolinis Fascist legions
storm into Almaden, II Duce will have COM
mand Of two-thirds perhaps three-fourths,
OF the world supply of one of wars most
essential materials.
italian Production Climbs
Mercury is bottled and sold in standard
76-pound iron TASKS. In 1885, the last year
In which, because of the Spanish War,
complete world production figures are
available, Almaden produced $3.50 TASKS
and 1dria 28,19l out of total of 100, 1893 for
the world. The United States was in third
place with 1888. r. B. Miller, who COM
piles the statistics for the Bureau of Mines,
has been unable to ascertain totals for
1895 and 1887 because of the absence of
figures from Spain. 1t is noteworthy, how
ever, that Italian production leaped to
1912 TASKS in 1896 and 66,777 in 1897.
This was In response to heavy demand
from rearming nations, in part fearful that
Spain would be unable to continue supply
aiiS tAic Uulh Vi WOIlu requirements. n. M.
Meyer of the bureau believes it likely that,
even should the Spanish War cease, Italy
Will continue for some time to be RESPONSE
BILE for the larger part of world production.
In case Mussolini controls Almaden and
1dria, and should become involved in
conflict making it to his advantage to keep
their resources to himself, where could the
rest of the world turn? Great Britain. for
instance, is one of the chief mercury
consuming countries and yet produces only
an insignificant part of her requirements
from her own mines.
Other Deposits Scattered.
The remaining one-fourth or one-third
OF the world supply that the Fascists would
not control is widely scattered Mercury,
while not true precious metal does not
occur In many places, comparatively speak
ing. Gold itself is more widely dissem.
mated. Yet quicksilver is found in Russia.