That function of the mining engineer which relates to examining and reporting on mining properties is both delicate and difficult, and calls for the highest degree of professional effi ciency. In brief, the examination of a mine includes a study of the local conditions, topo graphical, geological and economic, and of the mineral deposit itself ; the mineralogical char acter, quality, quantity and grade of the ore and its value per ton; an estimate of the cost per ton of mining the ore and the net profit which reasonably may be expected; and, lastly, the probable life of the mine. Upon these factors depends the market value of the property. In determining the quantity and grade of the ore, the deposit, as revealed by the development work already done, must be carefully and sys tematically tested. This is done by taking a series of samples in a manner which will enable the engineer to obtain a true average of such ore as can be examined and measured with sufficient accuracy and definiteness to warrant confidence in the results obtained. Evidently much depends upon how and to what extent the mine has been developed. The variety of con ditions which may be met is almost infinite. Nature does not work with rule and plumb line. Besides the ore which can be actually measured and sampled, the engineer may often be warranted in taking into consideration the quantity of ore which in the future will prob ably be rendered available by further develop ment of the mine. In balancing such probabil ities or possibilities, he must be guided mainly by geological and mineralogical analogies de duced from his previously acquired knowledge and experience. Lengthy discussions bearing upon this subject, by well-known engineers, have been published in the transactions of the mining engineering societies and in the tech nical periodicals. It may be added that the cir cumstances under which mine examinations are made are often rendered difficult and embar rassing where the perpetration of fraudulent practices by interested persons may be at tempted, for the purpose of misrepresenting or concealing the true condition of the mine; records of cost and of the value and amount of previous production may be falsified, or the samples taken by the engineer tampered with. Constant vigilance is required to guard against such contingencies.
With the development of the mining indus try and the wider adoption of mechanical appli ances and engineering methods in connection with mining operations, the demand for trained engineers has steadily increased until, at the present time, probably no field of engineering affords better opportunities for a young man. It is true that the course of preparatory study is exacting and the life somewhat arduous, but as yet it is one of the few professions which cannot be said to be overcrowded. Formerly, the so-called ((practical* man monopolized most of the positions of responsibilty and emolu ment, but the educated engineer has made his way to a degree that has produced an active demand for his services. Mining companies have found that the greater breadth of view resulting from a sound technical education has a direct money value. The trained engineer is acquainted with what is being done in his pro fession in other regions or countries. He keeps himself informed as to the experiments and discoveries made by others; is quick to utilize improved and more economical methods, and knows not only what to do but also what to avoid. His competitor who lacks this knowl edge, and who has at his conunand only what has come within his own personal experience, is in danger of failure, if circumstances bring him face to face with new conditions, and with problems the prompt and efficient solution of which must be based on a familiarity with the principles of engineering practice. It must be remembered that the young graduate of a min ing school is not yet an engineer; he has been grounded in the fundamentals of his profession, has absorbed a multitude of facts relating to its practice and his powers of observation have been cultivated; but before he is fitted to deal successfully with the diverse problems which sooner or later will confront him, he must in most cases patiently continue his education in the field for some years after graduation. His
first employment is likely to be that of chemist, assayer, draughtsman, surveyor or assistant to one of the heads of department in the mine or works. How fast he advances will depend on his native energy and ability and the effi ciency of his preparatory training. Not all young men are fitted by nature to become suc cessful mining engineers. If the student has no aptitude for such a pursuit, the sooner he finds it out the better, both for himself and his instructors. Unquestionably, an immense amount of time, money and energy are wasted in the attempt to give a scientific and technical education to young men whose bent — if they possess any decided bent — is in some other direction. The curriculum of the school, there fore, should be so planned as to eliminate ineffi cient students as early in the course as possible.
In the making of an engineer, circumstances and opportunity are important. A well-known engineer and instructor has said: aA man without school education may make a remark able engineer; but it may have taken him years to get his training and at the end of the time there may be whole regions of knowledge utterly unknown to him; in other words, he is liable to be a one-sided man without a broad outlook upon other fields than his own. The school cannot teach him everything, but it can give him the keys to the storehouses which he may need to draw from in after life." A grad uate of a good mining school has this advan tage over his uneducated competitor; that he is better able to avail himself of the opportunities presented to him.
Mining Schools.— The need of technical schools specially equipped for preparing young men for the profession of mining engineering was long ago recognized in Europe, and some of the institutions there established have exerted through their graduates a marked and beneficial influence upon the mining industry of the world. Previous to 1865, mining practice in the United States was based chiefly upon European methods, and the earliest work prosecuted on a large scale in this country— for example, at the Comstock mines, Nevada was in great measure planned and managed by American engineers who had received their education in Europe. The influence of the Continental institutions also made itself felt in the organization of the older American mining schools. The first School of Mines in the United States was founded in 1863 under the auspices of Columbia College, New York. Since then, mining schools have been estab lished in many parts of the country, the total number being now about 40. The majority of them, however, are small, with limited equip ments and teaching forces. Many exist simply as departments of technical schools connected with State universities. A few are separate and distinct institutions. The leading mining schools of the United States are the School of Mines of Columbia University, the Mining De partment of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the College of Mining of the Uni versity of California, the State School of Mines of Colorado, the Michigan College of the School of Mines of the University of Minnesota and the schools at Rolla, Mis souri, Lehigh University and Lafayette College. The courses of study leading to the degree of mining engineer occupy four years but exhibit quite wide variations in plan and scope. Some of the best of the schools have rigidly prescribed courses; others offer a range of elective subjects, comprised in more or less interdependent groups. Without attempting a comparison of the curricula of these schools, a condensed statement of the ground that should be covered by a well organized School of Mines may here be given: First Year.— Algebra — general theory of equations (elementary algebra required for ad mission), analytical geometry, spherical trigo nometry (plane trigonometry required for ad mission), general inorganic chemistry, qualita tive analysis, physics, descriptive and determi native mineralogy, including crystallography and blow-piping, theory of surveying and me chanical draughting. In the vacation follow ing the first year, five weeks' field practice in surveying.