MINING SCHOOLS

rehab · MINING SCHOOLS

MACKAY SCH OF MINES, NV TMJ 7-15-1930

MACKAY MINES MUSEUM DISPLAYS NEW COLLECTION

A new selection of rare radium ores and minerals, presented by Edmund S. Leaver, Director of the Rare and Precious Metals Station, U. S. Bureau of Mines, and Henry A. Doerner, research engineer, was displayed by the Mackay School of Mines Museum, at Reno, Nevada, as a feature of Mackay Day.

New types of radium ore from the Belgian Congo, which revealed the new minerals beguerelite, curlite, dewindite, and others, which are alteration products of pitchblende, are included in the collection. These are later to be shown with the carnotite ores from this country.

Different types of imberlite, a diamond formation from several mines and pits of South Africa, and associated country rocks and alluvials were shown. The many specimens of non-metallics, and gems, as well as samples of mercury ores from the new discoveries, were particularly interesting.

rehab · MACKAY SCH OF MINES HOUSES WALTHER LIBRARY TMJ 7 15 1930

JULY 15, 1930

MACKAY RESEARCH ROOM TO HOUSE WALTHER LIBRARY

On the second floor of the Mackay Building, is the Mackay Research Room, which has recently been completed. It has been fitted with open bookcases, and handsome oak furniture, and is beautifully lighted by skylights. The primary object of this room is to house the Dr. Johannes Walther Library, which Mr. Clarence H. Mackay purchased for the school last year, and which comprises between 6,000, and 7,000, volumes and separate pamphlets.

The library contains much material that is probably unobtainable now, and, according to Director J. A. Fulton, covers desert geology all over the world, more thoroughly than any other collection of books. The acquisition of this library is a great asset, not only to the school but to geologists of the country.

Mackay Science Hall, a class A building with copper roof, is fast nearing completion. It is to be equipped with all of the most modern built-in apparatus and appliances, covering the field of chemistry and physics, including colloidal and industrial chemistry.

rehab · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF MINES 7 15 1930

for JULY 15, 1930

College of Mines, University of Washington

By MILNOR ROBERTS, Dean, College of Mines, University of Washington, Seattle.

The College of Mineral Industries might be the name of this school, so diversified is the training offered.

The Pacific Northwest presents one of the greatest fields of mineral resources that can be found within the United States, and adjacent to its borders. In the few decades that have elapsed since settlements became numerous in this region, many mining fields have been discovered, but vast areas still remain in which the mineral wealth has only been glimpsed.

Good reasons exist for the slowness of the development in mining. To point out a primary one, the region is one of highly varied topography. While the Puget Sound region, the Yakima Valley, and many other areas are so rich for agricultural purposes that already they are becoming well filled, the mountainous areas are so rugged that the routes of travel are quite limited in number, and commercial transportation is often costly. In addition, the dense forests that coat the hills and mountains, and the mantle of glacial drift that overlies great areas, serve to conceal the bedrock, and make prospecting slow.

Each year sees new finds made at points widely scattered over the Northwest. In that portion of the area that lies within the United States, the discoveries are likely to be made in districts that are well known, but in Western Canada, and Alaska, there exist large regions that have not yet been closely examined, and in which the present-day finds are often of pioneer character.

The College of Mines, at the University of Washington, was established to meet the demand for young men trained to enter the field of mining, and especially the particular kinds of mining that were taking place on the North Pacific Coast, towards the close of the nineteenth century. At first, the operations of metal mining only were covered, and this division has always been the largest one in the college, but before 1900, the subject of metallurgy was added. Soon afterward the courses in coal mining were expanded, and in 1911, a professor was called to specialize in coal, iron, and steel. In 1920, when it became apparent that one of the greatest resources of the state lies in its clays, shales, and limestones, the subject of ceramics was established, and is now in thriving condition.

As already indicated, the opportunities for young graduates who are trained in the Northwest, and have familiarized themselves with the mining conditions here, are numerous and varied. In mining proper, the openings are found both in the well-established mines, many of which are world famed, and also in the field of recent discoveries.

Perhaps the situation can be indicated better by stating two examples of current events, than by general statements. These paragraphs are being written at the Sunset Copper Mine, where I am staying with a party of senior students. We motored in two hours, from the University, to Index, a railway point deep in the Cascade Mountains, and there were met by a speeder from the mine which brought us seven miles farther into the range. The prospectors who staked the Sunset Group in June, 1897, had no trail through the dense forest, and over the rugged mountains. When actual mining began, a horse-tramway with rails of timber was built for hauling out the hand-sorted ore, consisting of chalcopyrite and bornite. Later on, a logging railway was built to within one and one-half miles of the mine, which gave an opportunity for the mining company to build a branch line directly to the mine, at moderate cost. Such good fortune does not befall many mines; throughout the Northwest there are mines and districts that are so difficult to reach that operation is either costly or wholly impracticable.

The increasing success of the Sunset Mine and Mill, during the past 13 years of continuous operation, has drawn attention anew to the Index Mining District. During the past two seasons, especially, certain of the prospects that were staked during the nineties, have been under surveillance by scouts from several large mining companies. On the Blewett Claim, which was staked in 1890, on the wall of Trout Creek Basin, the showing of rich copper sulphides occurs in such an inaccessible spot that until recent years, not a dozen men had actually set foot on the outcrop. In 1929, a rope, 1400 feet in length, and 90 feet of ladders, were put in place to tame the perpetual ice, and the cliffs, that barred man’s progress. Men accustomed to the high altitudes of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado find it hard to realize that glaciers, alpine meadows, and finger spires can exist here in the states, at altitudes below 4,000 feet, yet all of these occur within 50 miles of Puget Sound, where the grass is green the year round, and roses often are found in bloom at Christmas time.

The surface showing of the Blewett has now attracted the attention of experienced operators from Nevada, who are proceeding in an orderly manner to explore it fully. A tractor road or trail, extending 4 miles up the valley from the Sunset Mine, is now being built through the dense forest of fir, cedar, and hemlock, with the tangled undergrowth that characterizes the timbered areas of the North Pacific Coast. The rugged slopes require the removal of many great blocks of grandiorite to allow even 5 feet of width to the trail, and the rough grades adopted are not intended for any permanent service. When the tail reaches the foot of the cliffs below the outcrop, an aerial tramway will be erected for the final climb.

The cost and the trouble of conducting explorations under such conditions have delayed the opening of many promising prospects in the Pacific Northwest. Airplanes are now being used in the north for reconnaissance, but more especially for delivering men and supplies to a central point in a district. An example of a practically new field being opened, was offered last year by the Taku River District, in Canadian territory, some 60 miles eastward from Juneau, Alaska. Although a little work had been performed there a few years ago, general attention had not been centered on the region until 1929. At the present time two large mining companies, the Alaska Juneau, and the United Eastern, have crews steadily engaged in exploring certain groups of claims. Transportation systems have been established up Taku Inlet and the river, and general prospecting is taking place over the region.

The University of Washington is composed of 14 colleges and schools, in which, are grouped 51 departments. The roster of the faculty contains 475 names, while the total enrollment of students for the past year is 11,000. The campus consists of nearly a section of land, lying on hilly ground in the northern part of Seattle, between Lakes Washington, and Union. The principal buildings, 84 in number, are built of Washington materials, the facing being rug-texture brick of varied shades.

The College of Mines confines itself to instruction directly in the subjects of mining, metallurgy, and ceramics. The courses in geology, chemistry, and physics, that prepare the student for his later technical courses, are taken in the College of Science. Drawing and surveying, as well as civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering, and shop work, are given by the College of Engineering. Other subjects, such as English, economics, business law, and various electives, are taught in other colleges of the university. This arrangement permits the giving of every course by an instructor who is a specialist in his particular field.

The technical courses are given in the mines laboratory, a large up-to-date building, designed in the Tudor Gothic style of architecture, that has been adopted for all the recent structures on the campus. The frame of the building is of steel, encased in reinforced concrete, which provides such a stiff structure that heavy machinery can be placed in the laboratories wherever desired, without much reference to the framework of the building. Its area is 57 by 162 feet, and its height 58 feet. The equipment for mining, metallurgy, ore dressing, coal washing, and ceramics, is very complete. Most of it has been installed within the past two years.

The Mines laboratory stands on the brow of a hill which slopes down to the lakes. It faces the whole university group, its nearest neighbor being Guggenheim Hall, the new home of the Department of Aeronautical Engineering. From the end and rear windows of the laboratory, is seen a wonderful panorama of residence portions of Seattle, the Lakes, the Olympic Mountains, and the Cascade Range, with Mt. Rainier dominating the skyline, and rearing its snowy cone to a height of 14,408 feet above sea-level. In the foreground are the athletic pavilions with a seating capacity of 14,000, the concrete stadium with 85,000 seats and turf fields, the university golf course, and the varsity shell house, the home of Washington crews that three times in recent years have rowed to victory on the Hudson River.

The accompanying photograph of the mines laboratory hardly conveys a correct impression of its capacity, as the ground floor lies below the terrace in the foreground, and the fourth floor is within the roof lines, yet has full height and abundant lighting by skylights. A spur track leading from the Northern Pacific Railway, to the university power house, passes near the building, and can be used for the delivery of machinery and ores. In the rear of the main building is a two-story warehouse in which ores, clays, supplies, and spare machinery is kept. On the ground floor of the warehouse is a concrete tunnel, with walls and base several feet in thickness, used for practice with drills.

An outline of the studies that cover the field would begin with the occurrence of the economic minerals in nature; this step would be followed by the methods used to mine them, then by the processes of treating them in preparation for the market. This generalized statement can be applied equally well to the metallic ores and to coals, clays, cement materials, petroleum, and the numerous other substances of a mineral nature, on which our civilization, in large degree, depends. The instruction covers not only the scientific phases of the subjects, but also the economic relations of each.

A student entering the College of Mines, registers for the freshman course that is taken in common by all students, in the several departments of engineering. In his sophomore year, he continues in the same general direction, but includes a few courses that are required only in the College of Mines. At the beginning of his junior year, he makes his choice among the five options that are offered in the College. Option I in Mining Engineering, or “straight mining” as the students call it, seems to meet the needs of more students than any other option, but those who prefer more geological training, and less of the engineering phases, choose Option II, called Geology and Mining. The third option is Metallurgical Engineering, and the fourth is Coal Mining Engineering. The last option to be introduced is Ceramic Engineering, which covers the field of the silicate industries.

The opportunities in mining proper have already been outlined. In metallurgy, the northwest offers an attractive field by reason of its strategic location with reference to industrial development, and routes of transportation. The presence of the Tacoma smelter and refinery, one of the great copper plants of the country, the Pacific Coast Steel Works, owned by a subsidiary of the Bethlehem Steel Company, the Northwest Lead work, and numerous other plants, afford students good opportunities for study, under Prof. C. H. Corey. Incidentally, these operations provide work for both students and graduates.

Washington contains the most important coal fields west of the Rocky Mountain Region. Many of the mines are located within an hour’s drive of the university. In a recent article in the Pacific Coast Bulletin, Professor Joseph Daniels, who specializes in the subjects of coal, iron and steel, wrote as follows: “Through the courtesy of the company and its officials, students of the College of Mines make periodic visits to the mines, washeries, and briquette plant of the coal company, and to the cement plant, to see the details of practical operations, and get acquainted with new developments in mining, washing and utilization of fuels. Several graduates of the institution have been employed in the operations of the coal company.

“Both the college, and the Northwest Experiment Station, have for several years, been engaged in a cooperative investigation of problems dealing with the coal mining industry of the state. These investigations have dealt with safety; mining operations; the washing and preparation of coal; utilization in briquetting, coking, and low-temperature carbonization.”

The ceramic materials found in Washington, and adjacent regions, cover a wide variety. The plants now in operation, are producing common and face brick, building and roof tile, terra cotta, sewer pipe and drain tile, fire brick, pottery, and decorated mantel tile. From time to time, new sources of raw material are being found, and the number and variety of products is steadily increasing. Several cement plants are in operation in Washington, the newest being located in Seattle. The instruction in ceramics is given by Prof. Hewitt Wilson, who is also Ceramist for the Bureau of Mines.

Graduates of the college are now engaged in professional work throughout the Northwest, and in many other parts of the world. Of those who have been practicing long enough to have attained prominence, space allows mention of only a few:
Livingston Wernecke, for whom the camp of Wernecke, in the Mayo District, of Yukon Territory, has been named, is manager of the Treadwell-Yukon Company.
Win. Rufus Lindsay is superintendent of the mines, mill, smelter, and coke plant, of the Granby Consolidated at Anyox, on the British Columbia coast.
Russell G. Wayland, formerly general superintendent of the Alaska Treadwell group, is now assistant superintendent of the Homestake in the Black Hills.
At the Tacoma Smelter Eugene A. White is superintendent.
Norman L. Wimmler, author of a recent bulletin of the United States Bureau of Mines, on the methods and costs of placer mining in Alaska, has recently gone to Russia to become engineer in charge of gold and platinum mining for the Soviet government.

Although the state of Washington in itself offers numerous opportunities in the field of clay products and cements, some of the graduates in ceramics are found at widely scattered points. Fred T. Heath, who invented a form of hollow tile, is manager of the Heath Unit Cube Company at Cleveland, Ohio. At Glendale, California, Lee Bennett is director of research for Cladding, McBean and Company, operators of eight ceramic plants on the Pacific Coast. Fred W. Schroeder is ceramic engineer for the Corhart Refractories Company, of Louisville, Kentucky.

The United States Bureau of Mines maintains its Northwest Experiment Station at the College of Mines, and conducts its investigations in the Mines Laboratory, under the direction of Dr. H. F. Yancey, superintendent. The station has published many bulletins describing its investigations of problems that are of special importance to the Northwest. These investigations are conducted by experts of the Bureau, assisted by holders of fellowships provided by state funds. These fellowships are open to technical graduates from any standard institution. Normally the holder of a fellowship obtains his master’s degree at the end of his year of service. Applications for these fellowships are now in order.

The Arthur A. Denny Fellowship, amounting to $500 a year, is open to a graduate student who is a resident of the state. The William Mackay Scholarship, presented recently by a prominent mine operator of the state, provides a perpetual fund which yields $250 a year. This award is available to junior and senior students. A scholarship of $180 per year, is also available to upper-class students for services as assistant in the mining laboratories.

The Bureau has maintained a mine safety station at the College of Mines for the past 15 years. Students are trained by John C. Schoning, foreman of the station, in first aid, and in the practices of mine safety. A certificate is issued by the Bureau of Mines to those who complete the required course of training.

Since the days of the Klondike rush, the College of Mines has provided special instruction for mining men of experience. The plan of giving a special course for prospectors and mine operators, originated here, and has been adopted elsewhere with variations to fit the local needs. The present form of instruction consists of a Mining Institute, which is held each year, throughout the third week in January. Lectures and demonstrations are given by all the members of the regular staff, and also by a number of prominent mining engineers, and operators from the northwest. The character of the addresses given by these men is of the highest. That their unselfish efforts are appreciated is indicated by the fact that this year, 240 men were in attendance during the week. On the closing day of the session, an excursion is made to the Tacoma Smelter, where the operations are explained by the manager and the superintendent of the plant.

DEAN MILNOR ROBERTS

Milnor Roberts, dean of the College of Mining at the University of Washington, has held this post since 1901. He has been the principal factor in building up the courses in mining and metallurgy, during the period when this institution grew from a small western school to a thriving university of 11,000 students. Dean Roberts was largely instrumental in bringing the Northwestern Experiment station of the Bureau of Mines to the university.

Born in 1877 in New York City, Dean Roberts’ first contact with mining was obtained in 1890, when his family moved to Colorado Springs at the time of great mining activity in Cripple Creek. Later, he was graduated from Stanford University, and seryed for a time, as instructor in mineralogy at that institution.

Dean Roberts is the type of professor who feels that contact with the industry, itself, rather than too close absorption with the schoolwork, is essential for successful instruction of mining students. In pursuance of this idea he has made numerous mine examinations, has served as expert witness in mine litigation, and was consulting engineer during the war, for various projects in the exploitation of the so-called war minerals. He has recently been elected to the directorate of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers.

THE MINING JOURNAL

DEAN ROBERTS IS PRINCIPAL SPEAKER AT VARIOUS MEETINGS 6-30-30

Dr. Minor Roberts, Dean of the College of Mines, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, has had a busy month of June, outside of his college work. In the early part of the month, he was in Spokane, attending a meeting of the car service division of the American Railway Association, of which he has been a member for many years.

While in Spokane, Dr. Roberts addressed the Columbia section of the A. I. M. and M. E., on the subject of “The Full Breadth of the Field of Mining Engineering,” pointing out that “a mining engineer receives a very broad training, and is able by study and practice, to conduct the various affairs of a mining company, better than a man who lacks such training and experience. Oftentimes, an engineer is called upon to examine a mine and report upon it, but thereafter large expenditures, and sometimes the operation are guided, if not actually directed, by a promoter, or a capitalist, or manager, who is not fully qualified for the duties he assumes.”

Dr. Roberts spoke again at the regular monthly meeting of the Northwest Mining Association, on June 9th, on “Keeping the Good Name of Northwest Mining.” The Pacific Northwest, British Columbia, and Alaska, is an integral mining territory in which some of the world’s great mining districts have been developed. In addition to these well-known camps, there are numerous individual mines that have paid handsomely, but being situated in out-of-the-way places, they have attracted little public attention. Every year new prospects are discovered, and new properties are added to the list of producers. Although the great Northwest has had some spectacular booms, beginning with the Cariboo rush of the early days, and followed by the Alaska stampedes, the region has been singularly free from large schemes of promotion that have ended disastrously. Possibly the ruggedness of the mountain regions, and the difficulties of transportation, have hindered the prowlings of wildcats.

Within the last decade, the states of Oregon and Washington have suffered to a greater degree than is generally known to the public, through the machinations of fakers, who have reported large quantities of platinum in common rocks, especially in the dark-colored igneous rocks. When the efforts of federal and state agencies, and the mining organizations, had shown the absence of platinum from these ores, the promoters borrowed from alchemy, and changed the metal content to tin. It is now the style for these people to report tin from numerous localities in the Northwest.

It is the duty of competent mining people to use every opportunity to inform the public of the true situation, and thereby prevent the diversion of capital to worthless schemes, instead of allowing its use for exploring some of the thoroughly interesting prospects that abound in the region.

Dr. Roberts is now in New York attending the meeting of the directors of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers.

rehab · IDAHO SCHOOL OF MINES TMJ 6 30 1930

THE MINING JOURNAL

Training at the Idaho School of Mines

By W. W. STALEY, Assistant Professor of Mining, Idaho School of Mines, Moscow, Idaho.

Besides giving a thorough understanding of the basic principles of engineering the school makes every effort to develop initiative and independent study.

The Idaho School of Mines is an integral part of the University of Idaho, located at Moscow. This is fortunate because of the cultural benefits that accrue from such a contact. The students in the School of Mines have the opportunity, and are urged, to elect courses of study in the various other departments of the University.

Moscow is within easy reach of one of the largest lead-zinc mineral producing areas in the North American continent. Situated in the Coeur d’Alene region, are some of the finest equipped mines and metallurgical plants that can be found. A short distance north of the Canadian boundary, at Trail, B. C., is located the enormous plant of the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company.

Field trips in mine surveying, and geological work are taken as the occasion demands. An annual senior inspection trip embracing the Coeur d’Alene region, and lasting about two weeks, is one of the features offered in the School of Mines curricula. Frequently this inspection tour is extended to the Trail, B. C., and the Butte, Montana, districts. As a requirement for graduation, students work at least one summer at some phase of the mining industry. The operators of the nearby properties are exceedingly generous in providing this opportunity.

Recent changes in the course of study, ranks the Idaho School of Mines curricula with those of leading institutions. Thorough training is given in the underlying principles of engineering in the first two years. The geological option starts in the sophomore year, whereas the mining and metallurgical option begins in the senior year. With the specialized courses offered in the junior and senior years, is presented the manner in which the particular subject is being pursued in practice. Self-reliance and dependence on themselves, are impressed upon the budding engineers. Reports and library research are emphasized, and assignments and lectures are given, to encourage the student to dig out information.

The School of Mines, and the state at large, is especially fortunate in having as Dean, A. W. Fahrenwald. Mr. Fahrenwald needs no introduction. His work in ore dressing and flotation is known wherever mining properties are in operation. Under his direction, experimental work and research are being carried on continuously, with many contributions to our knowledge in the ore dressing field of metallurgy. All members of the School of Mines faculty are required to carry on research work in their respective fields.

The School of Mines offers one graduate fellowship in geology, and the Idaho Bureau of Mines and Geology offers three fellowships, one in geology, and two in metallurgy. In recent years, attention has been devoted to metallurgical investigations. Senior students, as a requirement for graduation, are assigned research problems in their respective fields. These assignments usually run through two semesters. The seniors attempt to work out the underlying principles of a problem in such a way that this foundation can later be used in research of an advanced character. Much of this undergraduate research has led to very interesting and valuable conclusions.

At present the following major research is being carried on: In the field of ball milling, the experiments on the relation of reduction in size to ball load, feed load, ball size, mill size (diameter and length), and power measurements, have brought to light some exceptionally interesting information. The results of this work are proving of real value to the milling industry. The second major problem was to determine the effect of fine grinding, and pulp dilution, on recovery, in the flotation process. Data on the effect of slimes and pulp dilution, indicate a possible explanation of some present mill problems.

Other flotation problems such as the flotation of oxidized lead-silver ores, manganese ores, nickel ores, copper ores, and gold ores have been studied. In the undergraduate field, students are investigating surface production, elutriation, and surface tension. With the problem of new surfaces produced in grinding, two methods are being pursued: The dissolution with hydrofluoric acid methods is being investigated, and the procedure of counting grains is receiving attention. The latter shows some very interesting results.

For elutriation tests, a very ingenious price of apparatus has been devised. With this elutriator, a large number of products can be obtained in a very short time. These products are obtained in a manner that permits quick and accurate weighing. The usual drawbacks of elutriation have been reduced to a minimum.

Through a co-operative arrangement between the university, the Idaho Bureau of Mines and Geology and the U. S. Bureau of Mines, a Bureau of Mines field office is located at Moscow. That their joint efforts are closely harmonized is shown by the results produced.

The metallurgical laboratories are exceptionally well equipped for research in ore dressing and flotation. New apparatus is being continually designed and installed, among which various sizes and types for sizing, classifying, screening, crushing, and concentrating are available. Variable speed laboratory ball mills of several types are at hand. One of these is completely mounted on ball bearings, and gives very accurate measurements on power consumption. A small rake classifier operates in closed circuit with one of the mills.

At the Idaho School of Mines, effort constantly is made to develop initiative and independent study. This makes for maximum interest and output in all school activities.

rehab · OREGON SCHOOL OF MINES TMJ 8 15 1930

School of Mines,
Oregon State College
By I H. HANCE, Dean of the School of Mines, Corvallis, Oregon.
Enthusiastic students, a well-trained faculty, and adequate plant facilities have brought a high degree of success to graduates of the school.

At one time Oregon’s annual output of mineral wealth placed the state among our foremost contributors. Today her position is less conspicuous. Geological processes and other natural phenomena recognize no civil boundaries. Similarly, the training of young men for the efficient development of our mineral resources, is an international problem, and fortunately is not limited to locations close to mines, quarries, or smelters. The most important factors are good material for students, and adequate plant facilities with an enthusiastic and well-trained faculty.

In 1900, Oregon State College, Corvallis, Oregon, offered work leading to a B. S. degree in mining engineering. In 1918 a new, three story Mines Building, our present home, was completed. During this period of 80 years, Oregon State College has been training men who have gone to nearly every land where mineral production has been initiated, and most of these engineers have left such records, or are now making them, that exploration companies who have tried our product want more.

What are some of the reasons for the large measure of success attained by these men? Perhaps one definition of a university describes the case. An enthusiastic student and a real teacher are the prime essentials. The other details are trimmings, desirable but of lesser importance. Oregon State College has a record of men who have instilled their enthusiasm and high purpose, into some fine specimens of young American manhood. The results are natural.
Present curricula are the outgrowth of years of experience, both here, and in other colleges and universities. Our boys are more or less hand picked. In small groups, intimate personal contacts are possible. We get to know our freshmen. During that year, we aim to accomplish two things in addition to certain classroom requirements. Some students elect work in the School of Mines with little appreciation of the physical and mental requirements. Some of them are unsuited to the rigors and hardships of an engineering life. These we study and endeavor to guide into work
they are better suited for. The others we try to inoculate with some of the fundamentals of engineering.

Most of our boys are self supporting. We like that kind. Before they graduate, they have learned to put into practice many things invaluable to an engineer.

Work in our School of Mines, is planned for several contrasted groups: (1) Majors in applied geology, and this may be further divided into those who choose fuel, non-metallic or metallic mineral resources; (2) Mining engineering, or the exploitation of a deposit; (8) Metallurgy, the preparation of such raw material for human use, and this is further classified into ore dressing, pyro-metallurgy, etc.; (4) Oil production, a relatively new field, for the man trained in geologic and engineering principles; (5) Geology as a cultural and broadening subject.

During the first two years all students take essentially the same work which includes a rigorous training in chemistry and mathematics, and a good introduction to geology, mineralogy, and physics. By this time the student generally is able to make a wise choice between geology, mining, metallurgy, and oil production. Some of the students who come to us, have had excellent high school training. Others are very immature, and some have had only meager high school advantages. Hence, it is necessary to deal with many varieties, and these, in different stages of development. Education, either in or out of the classroom, includes the process of learning to use tools skillfully. These tools may be material or intellectual. Some of the tools an engineer uses are mathematics, chemistry, physics, and geology. Our students first build a solid foundation of this material. Then our laboratory and field courses, and more advanced lectures, teach them the application of these tools to certain types of problems. Courses in English, economics, business administration, and civics, are required, and a student is urged to elect other courses such as history, botany, zoology, astronomy, commerce, public speaking, sociology, psychology, modern languages, music and art, and thus broaden his interests and appreciation.

Two contracted types of curricula are found in our technical schools today, one which holds the student to subjects parallel with, or very close, to the specialty chosen, another which gives the student a solid foundation in fundamentals and their use, and then builds around this, as much general and cultural material as possible. The first method aims to turn out men who are really skillful and proficient in one or more phases of their specialty. The other curriculum hopes to produce a student who is well trained in the use of the intellectual tools he should need, who has a broad appreciation of human problems, but who may not be an expert in any phase of his chosen specialty. He needs an apprenticeship in practical work to develop automatic facility and speed. The School of Mines at Oregon State College favors the second type of educational procedure. To be specific, we are less interested in turning out a man who, at graduation time, can make 50 to 100 chemical determinations a day for smelting work, than to give them a man who knows something about physical and organic chemistry in addition to qualitative and quantitative chemistry, and some mineralogy and petrology, but who, at graduation time, may require a whole day to complete five or six chemical determinations. We believe that in time, the second type of student will do more for the smelting industry than the first type may be expected to. Our graduates may not be expert mine surveyors to start with, but they have had all the theory and practice they need, to handle any surveying problem to be expected, and in addition, they have been trained to observe intelligently, and to appreciate many of their surroundings, whatever these may be, and independent, thoughtful observation at a smelter or mine is a valuable adjunct.

Our majors in geology get a thorough training in mathematics and chemistry and then apply it in surveying and assaying. Some appreciation of mining and metallurgical problems is most essential in economic geology, and our students have this advantage. All of our engineering students are brought together in the elementary geology. Hence, engineering principles and applications are related to general theory.

When a man graduates from Oregon State College School of Mines, his training, both academic and field, has prepared him to take up at once and with facility, work at geological mapping, assaying, mine surveying, ore dressing, and metallurgical laboratory testing. The specific problem may be new, but its proper attack and successful solution by him may be expected.

As yet our efforts are concentrated on undergraduate work. The possibilities in this field are still but partially developed in all of our schools. We urge some of our graduates to continue their schoolwork elsewhere, depending upon the individual and his choice. Provincialism in an engineer is a handicap. Wide range of pasturage is desirable. Our faculty in its academic training is cosmopolitan. So it is also in its teaching and practical experience. In our own classrooms the students may thus touch north and south, east and west. A broad appreciation with fewer prejudices may be expected as a result.

Plant and equipment referred to before as desirable trimmings, are important, though secondary. Our laboratories enable the student to get acquainted on a laboratory scale with practically any type of problem. Government maps and reports, and abundant rock material are available for the geological studies. In the undergraduate courses the student may become familiar with a microscopic study of minerals, rocks and ores. In other laboratories the student is taught to try out and apply theoretical principles, and under conditions such as may be expected in a mine, mill or smelter. Independent thought and action are stimulated as soon as the student is sufficiently mature.

Oregon State College has strong schools in general, and chemical engineering, forestry, commerce, and business administration, home economics, pharmacy, and agriculture, and from these, as well as from our courses in basic arts and sciences, the School of Mines student has unique opportunity for election.

From a climatic standpoint, Western Oregon is especially favored. Our average winter is mild, and the average summer is free from heat extremes. As one would expect, the Willamette Valley has a climate modified slightly from the oceanic type because we are only 50 miles from the Pacific Coast, where the prevailing winds are from the west. Rarely does inclement weather keep one indoors and even more rarely does warm weather affect our school year work, or even that of our summer school. A 60-mile drive takes one to the Pacific Coast. 100 miles takes one into the Cascade Mountains, and for those who may not already know it, the Oregon coast and Oregon Cascades are famous among the wonderlands of America. Inspirational recreational advantages are more important beneficent influences in the human program than many people realize, and this is especially true of the adolescent period.

What about mining opportunities in Oregon and elsewhere? Our present day civilization is absolutely dependent upon a continuing supply of raw minerals and their wise use. The application of geology to finding new supplies and in recognizing their values is thus imperative. Geographical exploration can scarcely be expected to open up new domains as fast as we need new mineral reserves. Hence our continuation along present lines calls for improved methods for finding new supplies in regions already partly explored, and, second, for better methods of extraction and preparation, which would permit us to use deposits now considered not commercial. Our work in the School of Mines is intended to prepare students to tackle just such problems, and to assist in their adequate solution, whether their field of endeavor is here in Oregon or in remote corners of the earth.

Mineral output in Oregon is confined largely to the non-metallics, the total annual value of which runs about $6,500,000. When more detailed geological study has been given those areas that have already produced considerable amounts of gold, silver, mercury, copper and iron, a more intelligent attempt may be made to develop the likely areas- In geological phenomena, Oregon’s variety ranges from sea level types, to those found above the snow line; from humid to desert conditions. Igneous and sedimentary rocks of all the common groups are present and metamorphism in moderate, and profound stages, may he studied here. Oregon is on the hinge line between the North American Continent and the Pacific Ocean, and exhibits a remarkable variety of natural phenomena. Problems in physiography, glaciation, structure, metamorphism, paleontology, paleo-botany, economic geology (metals, non-metals and fuels), and hydrology, invite study. More of this work must be done before an economic development of our known and suspected mineral wealth can be hoped for. The ground to be covered is almost unlimited, the climatic conditions for collecting and studying the material are most favorable, and the anticipated expansion in the near future is believed to mean attractive opportunities. Oregon State College School of Mines welcomes young men and women who are interested in the exploration for and the development of mineral resource wealth, wherever it may be.

rehab · UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING TMJ 6 15 1930

JUNE 15, 1930

Engineering at the University of Wyoming

By J. R. GUTIERAS, Professor of Mining Engineering, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming.

With its enormous reserves of coal, petroleum, metallics and non-metailics, Wyoming is
especially interested in the activities of its College of Engineering.

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The University of Wyoming at Laramie —“The Top o’ the World”—has recently erected a number of magnificent buildings on its spacious campus. Notable among these is the new Engineering Building, housing the departments comprising the College of Engineering.

The instructional work at the University of Wyoming is divided among five colleges: Liberal arts, agriculture, engineering, education, and the law school. The College of Engineering includes the departments of mining, civil, electrical, and mechanical engineering. A four-year course of study in one of these departments leads to the appropriate bachelor’s degree, the corresponding professional degree being conferred after five years of practical experience.

The department of mining engineering, in attempting to include within its curriculum the vast array of subject matter that is usually considered pertinent, offers optional courses of study along three major lines: mining engineering, a broad curriculum including metal and coal mining;
metallurgical engineering and petroleum engineering. No attempt is made to revolutionize established principles of engineering education, the aim being rather to chart a compromise course between the Scylla of “mere technology” and the Charybdis of the “Platte River” type of course — all breadth, without sufficient depth to be useful.

We consider our students fortunate in finding themselves upon a campus offering instruction in many interesting and valuable related subjects, in commerce and in languages. Contrary to many mining schools, we have no mine in which the students learn the fundamentals of underground surveying. Instead, we use our net work of steam tunnels connecting the various campus buildings.

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One of our recent graduates, writing back from his first experience in an Arizona mine, observes, “All that is lacking to make it just like a mine is a small stream of copper water running down your neck.” With this “lab” the students carry the meridian underground by one-shaft, or two-shaft, methods, locate the various stopes (buildings) and set lines for underground connections.

Long recognized as containing huge deposits of coal, Wyoming has recently learned from USGS appraisals that she still contains nearly as much coal, as all the coal that has ever been mined in the United States. Petroleum and natural gas resources are also well known, petroleum constituting the second great mineral asset of the state. Precious metal mining in Wyoming has a varied history revolving mainly about the scattered gold diggings of former years, and the platinum discoveries in the old Rambler Mine and other workings in the Centennial District. The largest metallic mining enterprise in Wyoming is the Sunrise Mine, which furnishes 50,000 tons of iron ore a month, to the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company’s furnaces at Pueblo, Colorado.

Among the state’s non-metallic mineral resources, much activity is being evidenced in the field of refractories. Abrasive and ceramic materials are also receiving considerable attention. Large deposits of leucite bearing rocks, assaying 10 percent potassium oxide, give promise of future usefulness if and when a commercial method shall have been developed to extract the potash in a valuable form.

The problems involved in the development of many of these resources, constitute a real challenge to the department of mining engineering of the University of Wyoming. One of the important functions of the department, is the administration of the State Assay Service. This includes mainly:

1. Identification of rocks, minerals and mineral products, their fields of usefulness, markets, etc.
2. The assay of ores.
3. Coal analysis.
4. Ore testing.

The ore dressing laboratory has recently been equipped with the most modern apparatus obtainable for the testing of ores. Every effort is made to establish contacts between the assay service, and industrial enterprises engaged in the development of the mineral resources of Wyoming. It is in this laboratory that the students become acquainted with testing methods, and flow sheets, in their attempt to determine the most advantageous treatment for a definite ore.

To supplement their classroom work, senior students take an inspection trip, usually to the Salt Lake City District, for the purpose of studying modern equipment and methods of operation. Inspection trips are also made to the Union Pacific coal mines at Rock Springs, probably the most efficiently equipped in the United States. The Salt Creek oil fields, and others, in Wyoming, as well as many mining and industrial undertakings in nearby Colorado afford additional opportunity to supplement bookwork with field practice.

Recent graduates are engaged in mining work in all of our western mining states, and in Mexico, South America, and Africa. The boys are unusually good physical specimens, and invariably prove satisfactory to the industry. They seem to be in increasing demand, this year’s graduating class being practically all placed, in spite of the prevailing adverse economic conditions.

Unfortunately, the office of the State Geologist of Wyoming is at Cheyenne, but the Petroleum Research Station of the U. S. Bureau of Mines, is located on the university campus; and it should be stated that the department of mining engineering greatly appreciates the cordial spirit of cooperation extended it by these two valuable allies, as well as by other departments of the university.

rehab · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA MS TMJ 8 30 1930

for AUGUST 30, 1930

College of Mining, University of California
By FRANK H. PROBERT, Dean, College of Mining, University of California.

Founded almost 70 years ago, the mining department of this university is now housed
in the imposing Hearst Memorial Mining Building.

At Berkeley, California, as an integral part of the University of California, the Department of Mining and Metallurgy, major division of the College of Mining, is housed in the magnificent Hearst Memorial Mining Building. It may be worth noting that the state university, probably the largest and most diversified institution of higher learning in the world, had its beginning in the recognition of the importance of the mining industry, for at the first session of the state legislature, even before the Constitution of California was written, and became law, notice of intention to establish and endow a state university to be known as Collegio de Mineria, was served upon the assembly at San Jose, and its charter assigns to the Regents, the special care and protection of the colleges of mining, of agriculture and the mechanical arts. For nigh 70 years, the integrity of the College of Mining has been preserved; it has a rich and enviable record of tradition, accomplishment and useful purpose.

The imposing Hearst Memorial Mining Building, the beneficent gift of Mrs. Phoebe Apperson Hearst, is a spacious, four-story, granite structure, exclusively set apart for instruction and investigation of problems in the field of mineral exploitation. In addition to the general offices, lecture rooms, commodious club room for mining students, and the department library of 10,000 volumes, supplementing the University Library of over 750,000 books, each member of the faculty has, adjoining his private study, a suite of laboratories, well equipped for instruction in the particular phase of the industry entrusted to him - thus there are divisions for surveying and drafting, the mechanisms of mining, assaying, metallurgy, advanced pyro- and hydro-metallurgy, mineral concentration, the technology of oil and gas.

Machine, pipefitting, and carpenter shops, with a corps of able assistants, serve all divisions. It is the policy of the administration to provide the best equipment, and to keep abreast of current developments, in return for which the best is expected from staff and students. The Lawson Adit, driven into the Berkeley Hills nearby, affords excellent opportunity for original training in mine surveying, the breaking, and maintenance of ground, ventilation, and mine rescue.

PIC Memorial Tablet, Hearst Memorial Mining Building

Admission to the university in regular status, is conditioned on the recommendation of the principal of an accredited high school, or by passing the College Entrance Board examinations. As part of, or in addition to, the standard credits, an entering freshman should have knowledge of plane geometry, algebraic theory, trigonometry, chemistry, physics, and mechanical drawing, otherwise he may find it difficult to meet the degree requirements in the normal span of college life, which at California, is four years. The study load is heavy, the courses somewhat rigid, and sequential. Many, from choice or necessity, take a longer time, finding mental recreation in other subjects beside the specialized professional work. Four options within the curriculum are available, metallurgy, economic geology, mining, or petroleum technology. Of the 120 students enrolled in the college, about 90 percent are equally divided in the last two options. Differentiation of study programs begins in the sophomore year. A nice balance of dissertation, laboratory work, and assignment, is maintained in an effort to encourage self-thinking, self-reliance, resourcefulness and accuracy. No claim is made that the college graduates a finished product; it offers to the purposeful and diligent a kit of mental tools, a knowledge of their application, and an appreciation of the importance, complexity, and scope of the mineral
industry. Neither artisan nor automaton find welcome here, manual dexterity is altogether subordinate to a reasoned intelligence.

PIC Hearst Memorial Mining Building, University of California

Geological field trips, visits to plants and shops, are conducted under faculty supervision, while every student is required to work at least one full summer in mine, mill, smelter, or oil field, before his senior year. Operating companies throughout the western states, have been generous, in affording the young men the opportunity to get practical experience, and, incidentally, but of great importance, to earn a few dollars.

The College of Mining attracts students from all parts of the world, fully one-tenth being aliens from beyond the boundaries of the American continent, a tribute perhaps to the high repute in which the college is held, a recognition of the internationalism of mining. And as it draws, so does it dispel. To the far corners of the Earth, the graduates quickly scatter, the demand for trained men far exceeding the available supply.

In the State of California the liquid and gaseous fuels constitute 80 percent of the gross value of the total mineral output, hence much thought, time, and money, have been given to the petroleum engineering option; still there is nothing provincial in the curriculum, no one aspect of mining is unduly stressed, unless it be the economics of the industry. Mining is done for profit; technique without knowledge of all other factors is of little avail. The purpose of the College of Mining, is to give to its students a foundation upon which to build, a knowledge of current practices, a vision of future possibilities. It hears and heeds the voice of industrial progress, and the goals are that it will meet the challenge of changing conditions.

MINING SCHOOLS

MACKAY SCH OF MINES HOUSES WALTHER LIBRARY TMJ 7 15 1930

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON COLLEGE OF MINES 7 15 1930

IDAHO SCHOOL OF MINES TMJ 6 30 1930

OREGON SCHOOL OF MINES TMJ 8 15 1930

UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING TMJ 6 15 1930

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA MS TMJ 8 30 1930