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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (July 29, 1906)
8 THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAN, PORTLAND. JULY 29, 1906. PORTLAND TO BE A SEGOND PITTSBURG Ore From Black Sands Will Make City Steel Center, Says Dr. Day. IRON IN OCEAN BEACHES. Experiments Conducted by Expert of United States Geological Survey Show Values May Be Extracted Easily and Cheaply. Portland a second Pittsburg. Portland a veritable hive ot Industry dotted with dozens of smelters, rolling mills, cast steel foundries. Implement factories, lo comotive works and many other manu facturing establishments of -all descrip tions which turn out steel products. Port land with Its Carnegies and Fricks. Port land with a million or more population and In Its harbor resting immense fleets of ocean-going vessels being loaded with cargoes of steel products for the Orient and all parts of the world. Portland no longer boasting of its shipments of wheat but of its enormous output of manufac tured steel. To the average person the picture Is beyond Immediate comprehension, especially when it is understood that the Northwest has made absolutely no progress In the development of the steel Industry. In fact, until lately it was not thought that there was enough steel In the whole of the West to build a mo gul, a freight engine of the type that has conquered the mountainous grades. But go talk' with Dr. David T. Day, of the United States Geological Survey, who has churge of the black sand experiments now under way at the mining pavilion at the fair grounds, and after you have been with him half an hour or more you will have no difflculty in picturing in your mind a vision even more remarkable than the one above. Vast Capital Is Ready. Dr. Day will soon be in a position, he says, to make an announcement which will mean mllliony upon millions of dol lars for the Pacific Coast. He is the authority for the statement that large and powerful financial interests are. ex pectantly awaiting the outcome of hia experiments with the view of establish ing smelters in Portland and other cities ot the Northwest close to the inexhaust ible supply of black sands. If his report is favorable to the reining of the ore at a low cost, and he is confi dent that it will be, these large concerns will establish smelters of their own. Then, if conditions are found to be as reported, a golden harvest will be poured Into the Northwest, from the Investment of which will accrue vast wealth. The men who wrest the precious metals from the black sand, which Is almost as com mon as the sand which is used in ce ment, and which can be found upon near ly every stream and river bank, will be come the steel kings of the Pacific. Much has been written relative to- the experiments of Dr. Day by which he dem onstrated that Iron ore can successfully be extracted from black sand, but now he is perfecting a process to smelt the ore with electricity. By one continuous operation he expects to convert the crude ore into refined steel at lower cost per ton than it can be done in the EM. After his experiments at the Lewis and Clark Exposition last Summer, Dr. Day announced that he had solved the prob lem of extracting the iron and the. other minerals such as gold and platinum from the black sand. This created no little stir among the steel men of the country. ' He converted the ore into steel, but there was one thing left undone, owing to the fact that he did not have time to finish his experiments, and that was the av erage cost per ton for the separation and refinement of the ore. He knew about what it would cost, but not defi nitely, and capital is not Inclined to favor anything that is not well defined. So Dr. Day is back in Portland and with his corps of experts Is determining the actual cost of the production of steel from the black rands, and upon this he says himses an era of unprecedented industrial activ ity for the whole Coast. Ton of Iron In Three of Sand. One ton of mugnetic iron, which is the finest grade, is in every three tons of black sand, such as can be had by the thousand tons near the mouth of the Co lumbia. Just think of it. One ton of iron out of every three. To persons who have seen the enormous wastes of black sand near the mouth of the Columbia Blver and along the seashore, this is an other statement that is hard to swallow. But this is what Dr. Day maintains, and what is more, he has the records and results of his experiments to substantiate what he says. Dr. Day was a busy man when seen yesterday afternoon in the very midst of his intensely Interesting experiments. He was directing the assistants in the work he has mapped out for them, and he was everywhere superintending the carrying out of his orders, even down to the min utest details. There are about 15 men employed by Dr. Day, and he has no trouble keeping them busy. Part of them were running the concentrating tables upon which the Ingredients which com pose the black sands were being separated preparatory to the operation of the smelter. Others were operating the mag netic separator from which nothing but the pure iron la extracted from the sands, and stilt others were grouped about the two small Bmelters which are being placed In readiness. One of the ame'iters was used last Summer, but the second one, wlHch is connected with the tlrst, is a refining plant in which the steel will receive its last treatment and from wjiich it will be turned out into the moid in commercial form. Dr. Day's Tremendous Energy. Dr. Day was as busy as he could be. One minute he was at the smelters, and the next 60 seconds would find him care fully scanning the residue of the concen trating tables, careful that nothing should escape his observation. It could be seen that he is a man of remarkable energy and persevering to a marked degree. He looks like a man who would labor all his life to accomplish one great work and never know what it was to give up hope. In his- eyes there Is the unmistakable brightness of an enthusiast, taut neverthe less they possess those cool and calcu lating qualities which denote their owner to be a man of practical sense. When seen yesterday he was most willing to talk about his experiments and what he hoped to do, and from his enthusiasm It was plainly evident that Ills whole life Is wrapped up in the work he is now pur suing. "There Is the key to the greatest In dustry the Coast has or will ever know," and Dr. Day motioned to a pile of Iron ore near by which aggregated about 15 tons. The ore, which was almost pure and ready for the smelter, was piled upon the floor of the pavilion and in barrels. "That Is the largest quantity of mag netic iron ore ever gotten together in the Wept, and you can hardly stand here and realize wiat It means for the Pacific DR. DAVID T. 'i'l .- ' "Srt ""mat-' w r-, -.-n- mrprx-i i ,'.. -- fyrfts''vr'mr v i ," m pu.i'i.iwyrwj Coast," continued Dr. Day. "Last Sum mer I demonstrated that this ore coulcl be converted Into steel, and If it were treated even In blast furnaces it would pay a fairly good profit. With blast fur naces this ore can be turned into steel at a cost of from J20 to J30 per ton, and such steel Is worth all the way from J30 to J200 a ton. The great demand now is for structural steel, which Is of low grade. It Is a very simple process to separate the iron and other mineral? from the black sands. It can be done on sev eral different types of concentrating tables. Results of Last Summer's Work. "Last Summer we made two batches of steel. One was very brittle and of poor quality, but the second lot proved to be splendid material. It was of such high grade that knife blactes could be made from It Tou must remember that we did not have a refining smelter. We did not ascertain the exact average cost of pro ducing a ton of steel. "Now we are installing a refining smelter. We shall run the liquid uncooled from the first smelter Into the refining smelter, from which It will be taken in commercial form. From all indications and as near as we can calculate It will cost from 5 to $18 per ton by the new process If it Is a complete success, and I most assuredly believe that it will be. "Then the Pacific Coast will be made. The West will supply its own market. Think what that means. Hundreds of steel factories and Immense smelters will rise up and the . cities will grow like magic. It is almost beyond belief when you stop to think what this new industry means for the Coast. All of the locomo tives used In the West can be built here, and your works will be enabled to turn out all the steel rails for the new rail roads. "It Is true that the steel trust will try to underbid you, but you will have no trouble in meeting their prices. In fact, you will be In a position to turn out steel much cheaper than the steel trust, but because of the long haul it will always control the Eastern markets, the same as the people of the Coast will be able to control the Western market. "The city that takes the initiative steps BOCK IS SENTENCED Business Agent of Sailors' Union Gets Six Years. SAYS TRIAL WAS UNFAIR Convicted of Assault on Walter Safer la Attack on Nonunion Sailors of Steamer Johan Poulsen Night of June 15. Charles Bock, agent for the Sailors' Union, was yesterday sentenced to six years in the penitentiary by Judge Gan tenbein Bock 'was found guilty of having as saulted Walter -Safer, a nonunion sailor, on board the Johan Poulsen, with a re volver on the night of June 15. When asked If he had anything to say -Bock said that the proceedings against him, up to the time they reached the State Circuit Court, were unfair, and it was plain that witnesses were against him. R. Cititon and Ed Mendenhall, attorneys for Bock, were granted time until Sep tember 1, to file a bill of exceptions. As in the motion for a new trial, which was denied by Judge Gantenbein Wednesday, particular stress will be laid on the con tention that the grand jury that Indicted Bock was an illegal body. XO DIVORCE FOR ERICKSON'S Judge Gantenbein Decides Neither Party Substantiated Charges. . The divorce suit brought by Carrie Erickson against Eric Erickson and the cross-complaint filed by the husband were both thrown out of court by Judge Gant enbein yesterday, each party to pay then own costs. The couple was married in Cla- County. Kan.. S3 years ago. Mrs. Erickson is employed as a domestic In Portland, and the husband owns a farm at Eugene. The wife charged cruel and inhuman treatment, and in the cross complaint Erickson charged his wife with infidelity. The trial of the case lasted two days. Judge Gantenbein held that neither side had been able to sustain al legations made In their complaints. Sues to Collect on Note. Frank A. Sweeney has brought suit In the State Circuit Court to recover $1C00 from E. P. Caldwell, alleged to be due on a promissory note. The complaint recites j that Caldwell had purchased 100 shares of DAY, HIS ELECTRIC SMELTER I, w-V K'. '"i'.'.v - " : c " - , -- " i I . - . " : . in developing .this industry will probably become the great steel-producing center of the Coast. There is no reason why Portland should not be that city, and I think it will be. Of course, these outside parties will establish some large smelters, but the citizens of the different towns should get in and boost things. "What promises Portland such a great future in this line is that It is situated comparatively near the source of supply. At the mouth of the Columbia River here Is a sufficient quantity of black sands to run smelters for many, many years. the capital stock of the Morgan Mercan tile Company, giving a note for $1000 in payment. The note was not paid, and was purchased by Sweeney, who -had been engaged with Caldwell in several real estate transactions. Probate Court Affairs. Johanna Deckenbach, widow of the late Jacob Deckenbach, has petitioned the County Court for letters of administra tion on the estate, which is valued at $3983. County Judge Webster yesterday filed an order confirming administrator's sale of realty in the matter of the estate of Daisy Shogren Fliedner, deceased. Letters of administration were "ordered issued to C. W. Pallett on the estate of the late Mary E. Davis, bonds being fixed in the sum of $4000. Harry E. Northrup was appointed ad ministrator of the estate of Horace Gove, deceased, by County Judge Webster yes terday. Bonds were fixed in the sum of $600. ' To Build Line to Sandy River. M. F. Donohoe, Dan J. Malarkey and Charlotte Ohle have filed articles of incor poration In the office of the County Clerk for the Portland & Sandy River Electric Company. The company will acquire and build electric roads, boy and sell real estate, etc The capital stock is fixed at $100,000, and Portland is named as the head office. Alleged Shoplifter Arraigned. Corlnne C adman was arrigned before Judge Gantenbein, in the State Circuit Court, yesterday on an information charg ing her with the larceny of several belts and shirtwaists from a local .department store. She pleaded not guilty. She will be tried at the September term of court. Discuss Feeding of Prisoners'. County Judge Webster and Commis sioners Llghtner and Barnes discussed the matter of feeding county prisoners at a cost of less than. 17 cents per meal at an executive session yesterday forenoon. All phases of the matter were discussed, but no conclusion was reached. Boy Held on Serious Charge. George Austin. 16 years of age, was ar raigned before Judge Gantenbein yester day on an information charging him with a statutory crime against Jennie Taylor, a 13-year-old girl. He pleaded not guilty and was remanded to jail to await trial. Shavers Withdraw Divorce Suit. Attorney Ward appeared before Judge Gantenbein yesterday and announced that Mr. and Mrs. David Shaver had patched up their differences and the di vorce suit filed two weeks ago by the wife was dismissed. Tb Best Diarrboea Kennedy. "I have used Chamberlain's CoUcv Chol era and Diarrhoea Remedy, and consider it the best remedy of the kind on the mar ket," says W. F. Mayes, a prominent mer chant of Walllsville Texas. This remedy always effects a quick cure and is pleas ant to take. Every family should keep it at hand during the Summer months. For sale by aU druggists. AND AN OREGON BLACK There are immense banks of this sand which will average one -ton or iron ore to every three tons of sand, Astoria will probably be made a large city, but Port land will no doubt be the Pittsburg of the Coast. Black sand is found all along the coast. It Is very abundant and rich in nearly all placer diggings. "Fuel Is so high in this part of the country or blast furnaces could be used to splendid advantage. But water power is easy to obtain, so I decided to endea vor to see if the smelting and refining could not be done with electricity. There Is plenty of water power available In and BOARD ACCEPTS BID McPherson Gets Large Heat ing Contract. HOT-AIR SYSTEM ADOPTED Matter Which Caused Stormy Ses sion of the Board of Education Is Amicably Settled Action Is Unanimous. After discussing for more than two hours the bids submitted on the heating plant for the East Side High School, the Board of Education yesterday awarded the contract to W. G. McPherson & Co. The bid of this firm is the only one pro viding for the Installation of a hot-air system, the remainder being for steam or hot-water plants. The McPherson bid is for $16,450. Before the" contract was awarded to W. G. McPherson & Co., a long discussion en sued in which the merits of the various systems were thoroughly discussed and explained by representatives , of the bid ders who were present. When the vote was taken the members were unanimously in favor of the hot-air system. The bids submitted were as follows: W. G. McPherson & Co., $16,450: J. C. Bayer Company. $17,500; Brady & Sherrett, $28. 871; Gardner & Kendall Heating Com pany, $20,300; J. F. Shea, $16,438; the Peck Hammond Company, Cincinnati, $23,294; J. M. Abbott, Seattle, $15,990. The contract for this heating plant has been a bone of 'contention for some time. Bids were previously advertised for and submitted, but when the board came to act upon them it was charged that the specifications which had been sent out dis criminated unfairly in favor of W. G. Mc Pherson & Co. After a stormy session, during which many personalities were exchanged between the directors, the bids were rejected and a readvertisement or dered, with the provision that each bid der was to submit his own specifications.' In the meeting yesterday the action was harmonious, and, although the discussion was long, there was no recurrence of the former personalities. It was decided that the hot-air system was the best for the money, and it was accepted. Many Attend Sweet Pea Display. The sweet pea display of the school girls of Multnomah County in the City Hall closed yesterday afternoon. It was en tirely successful and reflected credit upon the girls who furnished the flowers and the Oregon Congress ot Mothers, under whose auspices it was held. Many people SAND BEACH around Portland. Before long I will know how successful I have been, and I most j firmly believe that everything will come out Just as planned. And Dr. Day talked on and on, as he piloted his visitor about the pavilion. He is full of information, and it seems as though he could talk for months upon his experiments and still have something new to describe. Meanwhile, he and those who surround him in his efforts are long ing for the arrival of the not far distant day when their smelters will be running in full blast, spelling for them, they hope, fame and fortune. attended to Inspect the beautiful masses of flowers while they decorated the third floor corridors of the City Hall. SALARY 0F$1 00,000. Caruso, the eminent Italian tenor, re ceived over $100,000 for his work in grand opera last season. Come in and hear his wonderful voice on the talking machine. Largest and most complete stock of Victor and Colum bia grand opera records at lowest prices. Kilers Piano House. THE MODERNTALK MACHINE The greatest opportunity for study as well as unlimited entertainment is fur nished by the modern talking or singing machine. Victors, Columbias and all lat est and standard records are sold by Eil ers Piano House, entrance 853 Washing ton street. The Continental Fire Insurance Company " One Hundred and Fifth Semi-Annual Statement ASSETS. State, Municipal, Railroad, Bonds and Stocks .$12,693,140.00 Real Estate 1,160,000.00 Loans on Bond and Mortgage. . . . 13,850.00 Premiums in course of collection . 1,14,163.13 Interest, Dividends and Rents . accrued. . . . 101,445.05 Cash on deposit and in office. ... 1,939,788.32 Total Assets. ROUNXREE & DIAMOND SAYS DISASTER IS ONLY W INCIDENT Effects of Earthquake Not Vital to Stanford, De clares Dr. Jordan. LETTER TO LOCAL ALUMNI President of 'University Describes the Damage, and Announces Work Under -Way for Re building Structures. The following letter was sent by Presl c!;nt David Starr Jordan, of Iceland Stan ford. Jr., University in the form of a greeting to the Portland Stanford Alumni Club on the occasion of their annual meeting several weeks ago. The letter was read at that meeting by Dr. Otis B. Wright, then president of the local club. With the permission of President Jordan, It has been given out for publication by Forrest S. Fisher, now president of the Portland club: Dr. Jordan's Letter. Please bear my salutations to the Port land and Oregon alumni and my Best wishes for a plevsant dinner at their an nual meeting. For my part, 1 am to report this: The Inner quadrangle has received scarcely a scratch from the earthquake. The two dormitories ' were injured mainly by the falling chimneys, and both of them are nearly in order, so that they will be en tirely ready when the term begins, Au gust 23. The solid masonry of the Inner quaclrangle and of Enclna seem to make those buildings entirely earthquake-proof as they are at present. Roble Hall and the old museum, which are of reinforced concrete, suffered less than any other buildings In this neighborhood of their size. Only the falling chimneys In Roble Hall rendered repairs necessary. The four buildings in the front of the outer quadrangle, the Library and As sembly Hall, Physiology and Zoology buildings, are steel-reinforced with ex pensively built roofs, and they are prac tically intact; the only injury of any con seauence has come from the fall of bricks from the firewalls in the old library, it Is necessary to take these firewalls down and also to remove all the plastering on which these bricks fell. This work Is al ready well under way. The Chemistry building was considera bly inlured. although none of the appara tus and little material was destroyed. It would cost but little to patch up the building and make- it as good as it was before, but we wish to make it earth-ouake-nroof. and to that end It will be necessary to make some rather extensive. changes in the way of strengtnening me walls. This will be ane by the end of August, as a large force Is about to he DUt upon It. The same statement in part applies to the Physics building, but the whole inte rior half and the basement are unharmed and these can be used for classes, while the work on the roof and weakened side will be pushed Just as rapidly as possible. It is Intended to make this and other buildings earthquake-proof In the future. This Involves considerable additional ex pense, which will be necessary for this purpose. The conditions are much the same in the History building and in the building occupied by engineering offices, but we can get along for the present without the use of the upper floors of these buildings, and the lower floors are untouched ex cept for broken plastering. Some of the Ehopp were Injured, and the powerhouse partly broken down by the fall of the great chimney. These re pairs will be made at once, a staff of men being engaged for them. These Buildings Wrecked. The Geology building was very badly wrecked, and will have to be largely re built. We shall not attempt to touch this for the present Summer. The build ing has never been in use, not being quite finished. The new Library Is practically a total wreck, only the steel dome being Intact. It is probable that when a new library Is built It will be the center of another quadrangle and not an outside building, though this has not been finally decided. The Gymnasium has its upper floor practically wrecked. The roof is largely Intact, and will probably be lowered so that the building will have a first story and basement. It will then be extended backward, pavilion fashion, so that the handball court and similar things will be In the open air. This extension will very likely be made of wood. No action has been taken on this matter, this simply being my own judgment as to what will probably be favorably, considered. The additions to the museum were bad July 1, 1906 , .$17,049,386.50 AGENTS 241 Stark Street, Corner ly injured, but were unfinished, and will not be needed for some time. We shall, therefore, simply clear away the wreck age, leaving the rest to the future. The arch will be taken down next week. It is practically a total wreck. It would cost more to save any part of It than it would to build it anew. When rebuilt, it will be of a different form, harmonizing more closely with the other buildings and very much tower. The alumni ot Stanford In Washing ton and New York have formed a committee to raise money for the rfc building of the arch or possibly o some other structure. Tjhls not s mucn that the university needs th money but that It needs the good wil and effort ot all Its alumni. It Is to be remembered that "the Income of the university has not been reduced in any degree, that the buildings most in jured have never been in use, with the exception of the church, and wniie tnis will set us back somewhat, there is no permanent Injury to the university lnvloved In the loss of these buildings. If any of them fail in being earthquake proof, it is Just as well to know It now. and so far as I am concerned, I wouia rather not hand over any weak build ings to fall under, my successor. Plans for Restoration. The restoration of these buildings la In the hands of a committee of the en gineering faculty, which has full power to act and to do everything that is necessary for the permanence and solidity of their work. This committee is composed of Professors Marx, du rand and Wing. Mr. Hodges has ten dered his resignation and such archi tects as may be needed in the future will be chosen with, the advice and ap proval of these most competent engi neers. After all. the earthquake has been, as it were, only an Incident in the day s work and not in any way so dangerous and so expensive as was the suit against which we struggled from 1S93 to 1396, nor is it again as bad as was the staggering Indebted ness which ensued after the Govern ment suit had been won. It is not strange, therefore, that we who are on the ground ' feel very optimistic over the situation. We can see our way through. I had occasion to say to the students gathered on the ground at Enclna just after the earthquake that "we have said a good many times it is men and not buildings which make a university. The mountain has called the bluff and it is for us now to make good. Tribute to Alumni. I am glad to see the activity among the alumni; the strongest reason we have for existing and the greatest en couragement we have as teachers in our work are in the character and In fluence of the alumni. There are now 240O of them: they are scattered all over the I'nltcd States and I have never been in a foreign country where I did not meet Borne of them. They are growlnar now older and more Influen tial and It-Is in them and their life that the university of the past exists. . The university as the men of the 90 s knew it is all intact and without a scratch. For the rest, we will build more solidly in the future. I have said nothing about the church. . We feel the loss of that beautiful building more than anything else. It will be restored substantially as It was before, except that whatever form the tower may take, it will be built of steel and in the solidest fashion possi ble. The great mosaic on the front said to be the finest of its kind In the world will be restored Just the same as it was, but the wall behind It will be double guarded with steel and not left as it was before, an unsupported wall of brick and stone to be thrown down bv the concussion of a falling spire. The organ was uninjured, the mosaics and stained glass winoows within the church were all unharmed, the injuries being mainly the falling of the front and the breaking of the roof through the stones which came down from the tower. BRUIN ARRESTS A- ROBBER Man Charged With Choking Woman Into Insensibility. John Gish, a burly ruffian, who Is said to earn a living by robbing disor derly worden, was arrested yesterday forenoon by Captain Bruin. The cap ture was the result of a clever piece of detective, work on Bruin's part. While walking north on Fourth street yesterday forenoon the officer saw a man half running in the opposite di rection. He followed and while so do ing was informed by a patrolman that someone had Just choked a Fourth street woman into insensibility, and robbed her. Captain Bruin arrested the man. The suspect gave his name as John Gish and was locked up on a charge of rob bery. IF YOU WOULD SATISFY Yourself as to the merits of the Mutual Benefit Life Insurance Co. of New Jersey read the articles on life insurance now running In McClure's Magazine. August Issue now out. The Mutual Benefit Is the leading annual-dividend company. The new business of the Oregon agency for the first half of this year exceeds that of any previous year. A. 3. ROTH WELL, State Agent, LIABILITIES. Reserve for unearned premiums on policies in force .$ 6,491,335.17 Reserve for losses in process of adjustment, including all un paid San Francisco liabilities. . 1,702,830.97 Reserve for Commissions, Taxes and all other claims. ; 182,200.42 Reserve for Contingencies 150,000.00 Surplus to Policyholders 8,523,019.94 Capital. .- $1,000,000.00 Net Surplus.... 7,523,019.94 $8,523,019.94 $17,049,386.50 Second