In all mines one of the most dreaded things is fire. The forests of underground 1 timber in many old workings make it a very dangerous aceident. and when in shaft houses at the trances it often entails disastrous consequences on the men below. In coal mines there is the added danger of explosions and even of com bustion of the coal. It is more and more custom ary, therefore, to locate boilers and engines in separate buildings from shaft houses, and to use every precaution against an outbreak.
In the organization of the force of miners the relations of employer and employed in mikes are soniewhat different from those of operations on the surface. The men are distributed as individ uals and small parties in places more or less seattered and beyond regular superintendence. It is therefore often customary to let out work by contract rather than by day wages. A fair price is offered, based on experience, and usually mated by the cubic yard or fathom of ore or rock excavated. and a party of miners organize and assume the contract. Active and men do well under these eiremnstanees, hut as a rule the prices son!t adjust themselves to about a fair average. The company furnishes supplies of ex plosives. drills. timber. ere., to the men at rates agreed upon. it also bias a mine foreman. with to see that the work goes oft satis factorily. and at the 'lid of each month the veyor or engineer or superintendont measures imp the work. In ease the owners lack capital. or the rein is poekety and not adapted 10 systemalie work in the large way. the may be adopted. The parties of men then lease a cer tain block of ground and mine at their own ex pense and risk, paying In the owners a graded percentage of the value of the ore. If the men strike Hell ore they realize Medi returns, but if it proves lean and low-grade they may netnally lose. Dld miners who know a mine thoroughly may often thus work to a great advantage. ONVIP ers of small capital sometimes get a new mine developed by leasing it to a party of practical miners for a percentage of the ore values for a limited time period. In this way the ore body
is opened up without expense to the owners, but the leasers, who take the risks, naturally reap the share of the profits. The rela tions of employers to men in remote settlements are also peculiarly close. The mining company of necessity furnishes houses, supplies, and all necessaries of life.
The production of the metals and useful erals the world over has increased remarkably. Nowhere has the advance been more pronounced than in the United States. which is the foremost of mining nations, leading, in 1902. in the pro duction of iron and steel, copper, gold, silver, mercury, coal, salt. and petroleum. Of the other more prominent metals and minerals. Spain is the chief producer of lead, Germany of zinc, and Russia of platinum.
For statistics and further information, consult the separate articles on the carious metals.
BIBLIOGRAPHY. The Transactions of the AmeriBibliography. The Transactions of the Ameri- can Institute of Mining Engineers contain many papers relating to mining. Additional ones may also be found in the Engineering and Mining Journal (New York); The Mineral Industry (New York) ; Mines and Minerals (Scranton) ; the Engineering Magazine (New York) ; Mining and Scientific Press (San Francisco) ; Trout wine's Engineers' Pocket-Rook (New York, 1902) contains many valuable data grouped for easy reference, and among other works may be tioned 11. M. Report .1 C., Pennsylvania Geological Surrey; R. Peel. Coat Mining (Philadelphia) ; 11. Davies, Machinery for Metalliferous Alines (London); F. A. Abel, Mining Accidents and their Prevention (New York) : A. Serlo, Left fallen zur Bergbaukunde (Berlin) : Barringer and Adams. The Lam of Mines and Mining in the United States (Bos ton) ; The Coal and Metal Miners' Pocket-Rook (Scranton. Pa., 1900) ; Foster, A Text-Book of Ore and Stone Mining ( Philadelphia. Stretch, Prospecting. Locating. and Valuing M ines (New York, 1902) ; WYilson, Hydraulic and Plae(r Mining (2(1 ed., New York, Hilseng, A Manual of Mining (3d ed., New York, 1901) ; Firld Book of Practical ogy (New York. 1901).