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The regulations governing the filing of claims under the War Minerals Relief Act have been amended so as to allow claimants to file a brief with the questionnaire. It has been decided that hearings will be conducted by the War Minerals Relief Commission when good reason for such action can he shown. When justified, the Commission will conduct the hearing at a point easy of access from the mining district concerned. Applications for relief are beginning to reach the Commission in considerable volume. Thirty claims have been filed in such condition as has permitted of their formal filing with the Commission. Many others have been returned with instructions as to the information required and the procedure it is necessary to follow.' An effort was made to induce the Secretary of the Interior to open a Pacific Coast branch office of the War Minerals Relief Commission; this he has declined to do, claiming that it is impracticable to divide the work.

Jan 5, 1919

On Apr. 21, the Victory Liberty Loan was offered to the public. This Loan is made necessary by the expenditures incident to closing of the war. As in preceding Liberty Loans, an intensive campaign is being conducted, and this Committee is to obtain and record subscriptions from the Industry of which you are a part. I am sure you feel as I do in wishing the Mining Committee to make as good a showing as possible. By placing or recording your subscription through us will help your Committee to make its proper showing, and, as heretofore, your transaction can he carried out with any bank or trust company you may prefer to designate. Payment may be made in full or in six instalments. In either case, 10 per cent. will be required on or before May 10. Subscription blanks will be mailed to you as soon as available. CHARLES HAYDEN, Chairman.

Jan 5, 1919

ZAY JEFFRIES, ? Cleveland, Ohio (written discussion?).-Mr. Miller's work on the path f rupture in fusion welds is fundamental. He is to be congratulated on the thoroughness with which he outlined and executed the experimental work. Following are some observations based on the data included in the papers and elsewhere. The iron nitride needles greatly increase the elastic limit of the ferrite-nitride complex. This is proved by the fact that the elastic limit of the weld material is very much higher than the elastic limit of pure

Jan 5, 1919

It has been suggested that it would be a desirable feature in connection with the Chicago meeting of the, Institute in September to arrange for a return trip for the fuel men through the coal fields of Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania, stopping at various points and possibly touching also Kentucky. Perhaps the petroleum men would be interested in a similar trip and might join them stopping off at different points to visit these oil fields. If the members who would-be interested in such a trip will advise the Secretary before the first of June, indicating their desired stopping points, steps will be taken to perfect arrangements accordingly.

Jan 5, 1919

Organization Place _ Date 1919 American Iron and Steel Institute New York, N. Y. May National Fire Protection Association Ottawa Can. May 6-8 American Zinc Institute :.. St. Louis, Mo. May 12 American Association of Engineers Chicago, Ill. May 13-14 Natural Gas Association in America Cleveland, 0. May 20-23 American Institute of Electrical Engineers.... Lake Placid, N. Y. June 24-27 American Society for Testing Materials Atlantic City, N. J. June 24-27 American Institute of Min. and Met. Engineers Chicago, Ill. - Sept. 22-27 American Steel Treaters' Society, First Annual Convention Chicago, Ill. Sept. 22-27 National Safety Council Cleveland, U. Sept. 29-Oct. 2 American Foundrymen's Association Philadelphia, Pa. Sept. 29-Oct. 4 Institute of Metals Division, A. I. M. E Philadelphia, Pa. Sept. 29-Oct. 4 American Ry. Bridge and Building Association Cleveland, 0. Oct. 21-23 Geological Society of America Boston, Mass. Dec. 29-31

Jan 5, 1919

I. N. KNAPP, Ardmore, Pa. (written discussion *).-The writer would first call attention to the fact that the mid-Continent field was credited from 1900 to 1915 with a production of about 641,000,000 bbl. of oil with-out any burdensome water troubles being reported. In fact, the authors say the conditions were not acute until about two years ago when the unusual conditions in the deeper oil fields were first encountered. The writer disclaims any personal knowledge of the district mentioned but, from the experience he has gained in directing drilling in various fields by both the cable-tool and the rotary methods and also in plugging and cementing wells, he fails to see how the analysis of water trouble given in the paper under discussion could be of any practical assistance in solving the problems so vaguely outlined. Possibly it might induce academic discussion, if not limited to practical operating conditions. A recent bulletin of the Bureau of Mines gives definite and practical statements that can be easily understood by one skilled in the art of drilling wells and heading off water troubles. From an operating standpoint subsurface knowledge must be based on logs of completed wells. Absolutely no one can have such knowledge as that indicated in Fig. 1 of the paper in question without drilling wells, and no one can question such facts when disclosed by the drill. Under classification of water the paper states "This water (primary) cannot be exhausted from the sands, but its encroachment can often be checked and so directed that wells need not be abandoned, until most of the available oil is secured." This is a live question to the writer. A couple of years ago he had some wells drilled and found the conditions comparable with sands A and D of Fig. 1 with B and C left out; but nothing in the paper, so far as can be found, indicates how this water encroachment is or can be checked or directed particularly under the High heads named.

Jan 5, 1919

D. EPPELSHEIMER, * Middletown, Ohio.-The housing of employees has so many and so varied aspects that in order to reach even an approximately correct solution it is necessary to have in mind a few fundamental principles; but it is not possible as yet to write these housing principles in the clear and correct form that is possible with many of our natural laws. Manifestly, the problem depends first on the kind of people it is necessary to house. What is suitable for the Southern unattached negro is not suitable for the married skilled American. The influx of colored labor has affected quite a number of what were satisfactorily housed communities. The second important factor is the relative proportion of the number of employees to the total employable population of the community in which the industry is located. The employer of a hundred men in. a large city has little responsibility in the matter of housing his employees. If he employs 75 per cent. of the employable population in a community of 27,000, as is the case of the company with which the writer is connected, it means a large responsibility. In the establishment of an entirely new plant in a more or less isolated place, the responsibility becomes greater. As engineers, we design and write the specifications for the machinery to accomplish a definite purpose, and proceed to house it, provide the necessary buildings with their accessories in the way of cranes, or heating systems, or sprinkling systems, as the case may be. There is no reason why the operating force should not be built up in very much the same way: design the organization, write its specifications so that the employment department can secure the proper men, and then house that organization with just as much thought and care as is given the plant. In the plant, the various machines will work along certain definite lines and accomplish certain results; but even if we start with the proper organization it takes considerable time to get that organization working together. One of the most important elements to this end is the proper housing of the organization. A man usually spends more time at home than at work. Proper surroundings and a comfortable, convenient house of good appearance exercise an influence that cannot be denied, and an employee situated in such surroundings is far more inclined to follow the policies of his employer and take an active part in furthering them

Jan 5, 1919

J. S. UNGER,*Pittsburgh, Pit., (written discussion?).-From the subject of the paper it is natural to expect that the data presented must be results secured from an open-hearth furnace working under normal conditions, but such is not the case, as the conclusions are based on the results of laboratory tests, which do not approach service conditions. The early basic hearths were made of burnt lime, then followed burnt dolomite, bricks made of calcined dolomite and a 'binder, usually tar, and finally magnesite bricks covered with a layer of sintered magnesite. When this material became scarce, special dolomitic refractories were used. In the summary, it is claimed that magnesite low in lime, or of greatest purity, ranks first in the resistance to slaking and to corrosive slags. It is well known that neither pure lime nor magnesia has much value as a refractory. By the addition f fluxes, such as silica and iron oxide, lime is rendered inert to slaking in the same way as are the special dolomitic refractories. An example on a large scale is the ordinary basic open-hearth cinder, produced every clay, which does not slake. Pure magnesia, regardless of the lime content, is not any better fitted for a refractory than pure lime. The pure natural varieties, such as Grecian or Washington magnesites, must be burnt with sufficient silica and oxide of iron to produce a satisfactory material. Grain magnesite, either artificial or natural, is, not used in burning in a hearth in the state in which it is received. To make a satisfactory hearth, it must be made more impure by adding about 20 per cent. of basic open-hearth cinder, otherwise it will-not remain in place.

Jan 5, 1919

The Canadian Mining Institute has accepted the proffered arrangement as to price of the Bulletin to members and will furnish its Bulletin to members of the A. I. M. E. at $1 per year.

Jan 5, 1919

Joseph Esrey Johnson, Jr., had already achieved rare distinction as an able metallurgist, clear thinker, brilliant author, and wise consulting engineer to bankers and operators; he had achieved the essentials of a great career when death cut short his activities on Apr. 4, 1919, in the forty-ninth year of his age. He belonged to a family of iron blast-furnace men and mine managers. His father, Major J. E. Johnson, after serving with distinction in the Army of the North, identified himself with the iron mines and blast furnace at Longdale, Va., with which he was connected during almost his entire business life. It is significant that, during those troublous times of reconstruction in the South, he enjoyed always the affection and respect of his neighbors and associates alike. From him his son obtained not only a thorough training in blast-furnace practice and iron mining, but great personal courage and force of character. His mother, who survives both her husband and sons, possesses rare intellectuality, humor and a tenderness and human sympathy which those who were privileged to know well J. E. Johnson, Jr., recognized beneath his exterior of aggressiveness and will power. In a recently published analysis of the qualities which characterize the world's great men, three traits stand out preeminently; viz., independence, courage, and intellectuality. Each of these characteristics J. E. Johnson, Jr., possessed in extraordinary degree. His early education was obtained under a private tutor at Longdale, and this circumstance probably enhanced , a natural tendency to independence of character and individuality which, however, under the control of his

Jan 5, 1919

For the benefit of those of our members who are considerable holders of securities, but owing to their isolated situations are not in-close touch with the metropolitan market and current quotations, we are publishing two very interesting graphs, showing the course of the bond and stock markets in New York over a long period. These graphs are furnished through the courtesy of the financial department of the New York Tribune.

Jan 5, 1919

The Sixty-fifth Congress was a "War Congress." Perhaps nothing else than war work should have been expected of it, but it had time and opportunity to do much more. Engineers have good reason for sorrow over the engineering legislation that died merely because there was no opportunity for a vote. The mineral resources of the public lands of the United States are, except the precious metals, locked away from development. For more than eight years there has been an attempt by both the executive and legislative departments of the nation to secure legislation which, under proper conditions and without detriment to the public interest, will open up these lands for development. After eight years of study, argument, conciliation, and compromise, Congress agreed in conference of the two Houses upon a measure satisfactory to it and to the Executive Department and the final draft was passed by the House of Representatives, but in the Senate it was talked to death by Senator LaFollette of Wisconsin. Some of its proponents plan to, reintroduce the bill identically as agreed to in conference into the 66th Congress, where it is hoped that by reason of its peculiar fate in the 65th Congress it will be regarded in the nature of unfinished business and thus receive early consideration and passage.

Jan 5, 1919

ZAY JEFFRIES,* Cleveland, Ohio (written discussion?).-The microscope has, indeed, proved a mighty tool in the study of the structures of substances. It is limited in its resolving power to the wave length of the light used for illumination. A little in resolving power can be gained by using ultraviolet rays, which can only be detected by the photographic plate. Even the highest powered microscope only permits the study of aggregates of millions of atoms. The x-ray spectrometer, on the other hand, makes it possible to study the positions of the atoms in a crystal. The positions of the atoms in over fifty crystals have now been ascertained. But in amorphous substances the x-ray spectrometer is only able to tell us that the atoms seem to have no regular arrangement; the actual arrangement and method of grouping is still a mystery. In most perfectly formed crystals and in so-called "grains" in metals, the x-ray spectrometer teaches us that colloids seem to play no role inasmuch as the atoms are arranged in regular layers rather than in random clusters. In the boundary region between crystalline grains of like as well as unlike substances and in amorphous substances like glass, it seems probable that the random clusters, or colloids, play an important role. There still remains the application of wave lengths connecting the ultraviolet and x-rays both by direct reflection or diffraction and by the ultramicroscope. In the study of substances like glass, for example, it may be possible to identify the clusters or molecules by one wave length and to study the positions of the atoms in a cluster by using a smaller wave length. Any light that can be thrown on this important unknown subject and its relation to the properties of substances is therefore very welcome, and Mr. Alexander's paper is so written as to stimulate thought and experimentation in this direction. JEROME ALEXANDER (author's reply to discussion ?).-Col. Bancroft states' that in the case of alloys, the mass is always crystalline. While this generally may be so in the case of alloys, as ordinarily met with, before the alloy reaches this state or condition, its constituent particles must be in a still more finely dispersed state. In alloys, the speed' of transition between the finely dispersed state where the phases are amorphous, and the crystalline state where the phases are of known composi-

Jan 5, 1919

Selected bibliographies of the Iron Resources of the World and the Coal Resources of the World have' been prepared by the Engineering Societies Library for the National Research Council from the most prominent. American, English and foreign books and periodicals. The bibliograpies are intended as a guide to the literature giving economic

Jan 5, 1919

The work of Americanism is getting under way slowly but surely. The purpose of the Auxiliary is to build for all time and it therefore wishes to lay its foundations securely, feeling that the true understanding and adoption of the ideals of Americanism are the safeguards of our country from the perils of anarchy, and the bond of union between labor, brains, and capital. We hope to have reports from several directors to print next month and here append the report of the Director for the New York Section, Mrs. W. Y. Westervelt.

Jan 5, 1919

Dr. George Ferdinand Becker, a prominent geologist, connected with the United States Geological Survey since 1879, died at his home in Washington, D. C., Apr. 21, at the age of seventy-two.

Jan 5, 1919

J. A. Mathews,* Syracuse, N. Y. (written discussion?).-It is interesting to note how frequently we hear of some process that is going to revolutionize the tool-steel business. I don't know why it is, but every one seems to have it in for us poor tool-steel men. About 15 years ago, a good-sized plant was built in Syracuse for the manufacture of cast tools of malleable iron. The promoter of the scheme claimed to have a secret, process that had been given to him by a tramp to whom he gave a lift along a dusty road. The widows and orphans invested liberally in the securities of the company without consulting the men established in the machine-tool business in Syracuse. About two years later, when the sheriff's sale occurred, the secret, which was carried on the books of the company as an asset valued at $2,000,000, brought $15 at auction. A little later another concern started on the theory of replacing scrap high-speed steel with new high-speed steel tools made therefrom. All the tool-steel companies have made a practice of purchasing high-speed

Jan 5, 1919

General Aurelio Blanquet,* the best known of living Mexican soldiers, formerly the trusted friend of Porfirio Diaz and organizer of the old Federal Guard of Mexico City, who as a sergeant commanded the squad that executed sentence on Emperor Maximilian, and. more recently was Minister of War in the Cabinet of Victoriano Huerta, landed in Mexico early in April and joined the forces of Felix Diaz. His landing in the state of Vera Cruz, it was stated, was for the definite purpose of aiding the movement now under way to overthrow Venustiano Carranza and to place in power a government that will be "pro-Ally" in its sympathies and will promulgate and enforce laws that will guarantee the rights of life and property in Mexico. The New York Tinges says of the revolution editorially: "Whatever may be the success of General Aurelio Blanquet's attempt to overthrow the Carranza Government in Mexico, admiration cannot be withheld from the General's publicity manager. No enterprise awning at the overthrow of a Government ever had more favorable and widespread advertising. Felix Diaz, whom Blanquet is going to reinforce, supersede, or overthrow, as the case may be-Mexican precedent in these matters offers opportunity for considerable speculation-has been conducting his revolution, at the old stand for some time, but without much success. But, says General Blanquet's representative, the landing of Blanquet will send a thrill to the heart of every true republican.' Meanwhile a biographical booklet is published, adorned with photo¬graphs illustrating the General's record, including such varied matters as the General in favor, receiving a decoration from Victoriano Huerta, and the General in exile, feeding the birds in Central Park."

Jan 5, 1919

The following is an incomplete list of members and guests who called at Institute headquarters during. the period Mar. 10, 1919,. to Apr. 10, 1919. F. T. Agthe, Hannibal, Mo. Jay Lonergan,. Denver, Colo. W. F. Almy, Canada. R. R. London, Cebu, P. I. P. G. Bandy, Mexico. W. D. Mainwaring, Philadelphia, Pa. H. R. Bank, Humboldt, Ariz. _ W. G. Mitchell, Montreal, Can. Alan M. Bateman, New Haven, Conn. Francis Nicholson, Joplin, Mo. C. A. Brooks, Lead, S. Dak: C. H. Palmer, Los Angeles, Calif. Louis J. Brunel, Oakland, Calif. D. A. Powell, Columbus, Ohio. W. Burns, Sante Fe, N. M. W. H. Reber, Dallas, Tex. J. B. Carlock, Major, 1st Gas Regt. Capt. J. B. Richards, Spokane, Wash. Louis S. Cates, Hayden, Ariz. T. C. Roberts, E. Orange, N. J. W. M. Corse, Mansfield, Ohio Max Roesler, Washington, D. C. E. 0. Daue, Philadelphia, Pa. C. 0. Sanford, Los-Angeles, Calif. John Davenport, W. Norfolk, Va. Gustave Sessinghaus, Denver, Colo. James T. Dixon, London, England, . E. H. Shriver, Milford Center, Ohio. S. K. Dahl, Messina, Transvaal, S. Af. H. M. Spoor. W. G. Eberhardt, Tucson, Ariz. W. H. Staver, New York. H. S. Emlaw, Grant Haven, Mich. D. B. Sterrett, Washington, D. C. I. W. Farrand, Camp Merritt. W. G. Swart, Duluth, Minn. Oscar Gotsch, Jr., St. Louis, Mo. A. W. Stickney, London, England. James 0. Greenan, Oakland, Calif. E. C. Templeton, Downey, Calif. Gilbert Hart, Philadelphia, Pa. . . R. T. Walker, Pioche, Nev. K. L. Hsueh, China. A. T. Ward, Bellefonte, Pa. Zay Jeffries, Cleveland, Ohio. Joel H. Watkins, Washington, D. C. R. W. Kern, Verde, Ariz. J. Wertheimer, Cleveland, Ohio. H. D..Kinney, Easton, Pa. C. R. Wilfley, Ouray, Colo. E. L. Lasier, Washington, D. C. J. P. Wood, Engrs., U. S. A. Carl Zapffe, Brainerd, Minn. Leland D. Adams has left the employ of the Weedon Mining Co., Ltd., at Montreal, Quebec, and is going to Oakland, Calif., where his address will be 1180 Mandana Boulevard.

Jan 5, 1919

On request of the Commissioner of Education, a small group of administrative professors of engineering and commerce from higher institutions near St. Louis met in conference with the Specialist in Commercial Education of the Bureau of Education on Feb. 22, for the purpose of discussing ways and means whereby the business of our country may be furthered through increased opportunity in our higher institutions for the preparation of engineers with business training. One or more representatives were present at this conference from the University of Minnesota, University of Illinois, Washington -University, University of Missouri, University of Iowa, Iowa State College, University of Kansas. It was recommended at this conference: First, That the Commissioner of Education appoint immediately a committee to consider commercial engineering in its various aspects and to prepare and approve one or more curricula in commercial and industrial engineering that can be recommended by the Bureau of Education for adoption in our colleges and universities. It was suggested that the committee consider the following curricula plans: First, That a minimum number of hours in business training be required in all engineering courses. Second, That a curriculum providing for a minimum of fifteen to thirty units in business economics be incorporated in all engineering courses and offered on an elective basis. Third, That a curriculum in commercial or industrial engineering, permitting full and proper emphasis upon engineering subjects, be offered in the School of Commerce with degree to be given in that school. Fourth, That a five-year combined engineering and commercial course he prepared.

Jan 5, 1919