LEAD
BY FREDERICK B. HYDER
USES OF LEAD
Lead is used in the form of the metal, of alloys with other metals, and
of various chemical compounds. As metal its chief uses are as pipe for
water and corrosive solutions; for protective covering of electrical
cables; as sheet lead for lining chambers for the manufacture of
sulphuric acid and vats for chemical manufacturing processes. In
smelting, lead is used as a collector of other metals, particularly of
gold and silver, from which it is later separated, now most generally
by the use of zinc by the Parkes process of desilverization.
Lead alloys readily with nearly all other metals in all proportions.
Its alloys of industrial importance comprise type metal, bearing or
babbitt metals, shot, solders, casting metals, some brasses, and the
fusible alloys used for the protection of electrical apparatus and in
automatic sprinklers for the protection of buildings against fire.
Type metal, originally composed of 83 per cent. lead and 17 per cent.
antimony, now often contains bismuth and sometimes a little copper
and iron. An alloy of 9 parts lead, 2 antimony and 2 bismuth is used
for stereotype plates. Less than 2 per cent. of arsenic is added to
lead used to make shot to increase the hardness and sphericity of the
product. Antimony also imparts the hardness essential to shrapnel,
etc. Bearing metals comprise alloys of lead and antimony or these
with copper, tin, and zinc. Antimony imparts to lead the property
of expansion on solidification, essential to type metal and casting
materials generally. Lead makes a brass that is soft and machines
easily. Solder is commonly an alloy of lead and tin. The melting point
varies with the proportions of these constituents and others, sometimes
added for special purposes. The cheapest solder in general use is
30 per cent. tin and 70 per cent. lead. Solders seldom contain more
than 50 per cent. tin. The addition of bismuth, cadmium, or mercury
lowers the melting below the boiling point of water. Fuses can thus be
obtained which interrupt electric circuits at any desired temperature.
The largest uses of lead compounds are as pigments. White lead or basic
carbonate, 2(PbCO₃)Pb(OH)₂, is the most extensively consumed, being
used alone or mixed with zinc oxide and barytes. Red lead (Pb₃O₄) is
used for painting structural steel, as a pipe-joint cement, and in the
manufacture of glass. Litharge, another oxide, is used in assaying
as a flux, in rubber manufacture, and in making glass. The acetate,
carbonate and other chemical compounds are used in medicine.
The relative amounts of lead consumed in the various uses in 1913 were:
In pigment, comprising white lead, red lead, litharge, and orange
mineral, 38.0 per cent.; in alloys such as type metal, bearing metals,
and solders, 29.7 per cent.; in pipe, 15.2 per cent.; in shot, 10.4 per
cent.; and in sheets, 6.7 per cent.
CHANGES IN PRACTICE
The most revolutionary advance in ore dressing of recent years has been
the development of oil-flotation, electromagnetic, and electrostatic
processes for the concentration of lead-zinc ores. These processes
permit the elimination of the objectionable zinc content of many
ores and render it an additional credit of great importance in the
exploitation of low-grade complex ores.
The Murex process applied to the treatment of complex ores consists
of coating the metallic sulphide minerals with oil and particles of
magnetite and pyrite roasted to magnetic sulphide, then separating them
from the gangue by an electromagnetic machine. The Lyster preferential
flotation of galena depends on the presence of various salts in the
water used. In the Broken Hill mines these salts are present in the
mine waters. After removal of galena the blende may be preferentially
floated by the Bradford copper salt or Bradford hyposulphite or
sulphurous acid processes.
In the reduction of lead ores, there are improvements constantly
being made. These are chiefly in the mechanical appliances, such as
mechanical ore hearths and continuous roasting machinery, such as the
Dwight-Lloyd, and in details of furnace construction and the handling
of materials, rather than in processes or recognized principles.
Various new processes have been proposed, most of which are intended
to make available the ores now of too low grade, or the complex
ores of lead and zinc whose separation is difficult or commercially
impracticable. These processes are now the subject of experiment,
with some indications that successful applications may be found. One
process involves the volatilization by chloridizing roast of sulphide
ores, the precipitation of the lead chloride fume by Cottrell electric
precipitation, and smelting the fume with lime. At least 50 per
cent. of the chlorine is recovered as calcium chloride, which can be
substituted for salt in the further operations. With oxidized ores
it is proposed to dissolve the lead by means of brine acidified with
sulphuric acid and to precipitate metal sponge by electrolysis.
Gillies’s process consists in roasting the complex sulphides to a low
sulphur content, mixing with carbonaceous matter, distilling in excess
of air, and volatilizing the lead, zinc, bismuth, cadmium, arsenic,
etc., as oxides and sulphates, the lead in form of sulphate, the zinc
chiefly as oxide. The fume is caught and digested with a solution of
ZnSO₄ and free H₂SO₄ from the electrolytic vats; PbSO₄ remains, which
can be used as pigment or smelted. The ZnSO₄ solution is electrolyzed,
in the presence of gum arabic in the electrolyte, rendering the zinc
deposit more dense.
The Ganlin process, reported successful on Burma zinc-lead middlings,
consists in feeding the dry pulverized ore into a molten bath of Zn and
NaCl in equal parts. Zinc replaces lead and silver, which are dissolved
as chlorides, ZnS being precipitated. When this reaction is complete
the lead and silver are precipitated as metals by granulated spelter
added to the amount of 35 per cent. of their weight, the dissolved
spelter forming ZnCl₂. The silver-bearing lead is tapped off, the
residue granulated, the salts leached with water, and the zinc-bearing
gangue freed from lead shot by tabling, leaving a zinc ore free from
lead.
Electrolytic refining has been one of the greatest advances in the
industry; it makes possible the preparation of pure lead from any
source and the recovery of numerous by-product metals.
GEOLOGICAL OCCURRENCE
Zinc and lead are commonly associated in mineral deposits, sometimes
intimately mixed, sometimes segregated enough so that one metal
predominates, but seldom free entirely one from the other. The
geological and geographical distribution of the two metals is,
therefore, nearly identical. Galena is the most common and important
of the lead minerals. Cerussite, anglesite and pyromorphite usually
result from the oxidation of galena, the sulphate being usually an
intermediate state in the oxidation to the carbonate. Pyromorphite
and wulfenite are of minor importance. Jamesonite is more an ore of
antimony than of lead. Sphalerite (zinc blende) weathers more readily
than galena, and therefore zinc in many places is carried below water
level more rapidly and completely than lead. For this reason some mines
change from predominantly lead mines to zinc mines with greater depth.
Apart from the effect of such secondary enrichment, this change is
often encountered in primary ores with increase in depth.
Lead ores occur in deposits of several distinct genetic types. Many
deposits lie at shallow depth in sedimentary rocks, without apparent
connection with igneous rocks, occurring as tabular replacements of
receptive beds. In regions of slightly disturbed strata the ore shoots
tend to follow pitching troughs. Ores of this type usually contain
lead (galena), zinc (sphalerite), and iron (pyrite) minerals; many
contain manganese and cadmium; some contain cobalt and nickel; but few
carry gold, silver, copper, or antimony. Deposits of this type are
of world-wide distribution, and many are extensive and commercially
important. The greater purity of the ore and the simplicity of
treatment (particularly for the ores in the oxidized zones), caused
them to be exploited first and most extensively, and to dominate
formerly the world production of lead. To this type belong, with many
others, the deposits of the Mississippi Valley and Silesia, that
together yielded 15 per cent. of the world’s production in 1913.
Other important deposits are closely associated with igneous
rocks, and are characterized by complex ores. They comprise vein
deposits, disseminated replacements of igneous rocks, and silver-lead
replacements in limestone.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
The chief lead-ore deposits of the world are situated in the countries
that are listed below in the order of their importance in 1913.
RECOVERABLE LEAD CONTENT OF THE LEAD ORES OF THE WORLD PRODUCED IN
1913[129]
----+-------------------+----------+-----------+-------------
| | | |Percentage of
| | | |world’s total
Rank| Country |Short tons|Metric tons| production
----+-------------------+----------+-----------+-------------
1. |United States | 484,880 | 440,000 | 36.0
2. |Australia | 267,169 | 242,440 | 19.8
3. |Spain | 209,193 | 189,830 | 16.4
4. |Germany | 79,344 | 72,000 | 5.9
5. |Mexico | 68,343 | 62,000 | 5.1
6. |Tunis | 31,076 | 28,200 | 2.3
7. |Italy | 24,905 | 22,600 | 1.8
8. |Canada | 24,244 | 22,000 | 1.8
9. |Austria | 22,591 | 20,500 | 1.7
10. |Great Britain | 20,277 | 18,400 | 1.5
11. |Greece | 19,836 | 18,000 | 1.5
12. |Turkey-in-Asia | 15,428 | 14,000 | 1.1
13. |China | 13,995 | 12,700 | 1.0
14. |German S. W. Africa| 13,224 | 12,000 | 1.0
15. |Algeria | 12,893 | 11,700 | 1.0
16. |France | 9,587 | 8,700 | 0.7
17. |India (Burma) | 6,502 | 5,900 | 0.5
18. |Peru | 4,331 | 3,930 | 0.3
19. |Japan | 4,143 | 3,760 | 0.3
20. |Egypt | 3,196 | 2,900 | 0.2
21. |Russia | 3,083 | 2,800 | 0.2
22. |Bulgaria | 2,204 | 2,000 | 0.2
23. |Sweden | 2,094 | 1,900 | 0.2
24. |Hungary | 1,256 | 1,140 | 0.1
25. |Bolivia | 1,102 | 1,000 | 0.1
26. |Portugal | 661 | 600 |
27. |Rhodesia | 361 | 330 |
| +----------+-----------+-------------
| Total |1,345,918 | 1,221,390 | 100.0
----+-------------------+----------+-----------+-------------
[129] Adapted from compilations by Adolph Knopf, of the U. S.
Geological Survey.
The four districts now of pre-eminent importance are, in order, Broken
Hill in New South Wales, Australia; southeastern Spain; southeastern
Missouri and Coeur d’Alene, in Idaho: which are credited respectively
with about 19, 16, 12 and 10 per cent. of the world’s production in
1913.
=United States.=--The chief producing regions and their percentage of
the domestic lead production in 1915 are as follows:
Percentage of total
Region domestic production
Southeastern Missouri 33
Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 27
Utah 18
Joplin (in Mo., Kans., Ark., and Okla.) 6
Colorado 5
As regards the types of ores and the character of the lead produced,
there are two metallographic provinces: the Mississippi Valley,
including southeastern Missouri and Joplin, and the minor district
of Wisconsin, producing as soft lead 39 to 45 per cent. of the total
domestic production; and the Western province, in which the ores are
complex, carrying precious metals and often antimony and copper. All of
the output from the Western province, but only a part of the soft lead,
is desilverized.
Ninety per cent. of the ore mined in southeastern _Missouri_ comes
from St. Francois and Madison counties. The ore deposits contain
predominantly galena, and are disseminated in Cambrian limestone over
large areas at depths of 100 to 550 feet. Copper, nickel, and cobalt
occur in the Madison County ores, and copper concentrates are separated
and shipped by nearly all the companies in the region. The principal
operating companies, with the names of companies absorbed by them or
now subsidiaries, shown in parenthesis, are: St. Joseph Lead Co. (Doe
Run Lead Co.), Federal Lead Co., National Lead Co. (St. Louis Smelting
& Refining Co.), Desloge Consolidated Lead Co., Baker Lead Co. (St.
Francois Lead Co.), Boston Elvins Lead Co., Missouri Metals Co. (Mine
La Motte Co.), and Missouri Cobalt Co. (North American Lead Co.). The
St. Joseph Lead Co. is normally the second largest lead-producing
company in the United States. Its holdings have a conservatively
estimated life of 20 years, at a rate of production of 2,000,000 tons
of ore, or 80,000 short tons of lead, per annum. In 1917 this company
mined 2,485,431 tons of ore, nearly half the total output of the
region. The Federal Lead Co., a subsidiary of the American Smelting &
Refining Co., is the next largest producing company in the region. In
1915 it mined and milled 1,355,000 tons of ore. The National Lead Co.,
through its subsidiary, the St. Louis Smelting & Refining Co., works
three mines near Flat River and has a concentration plant with a daily
capacity of 2,400 tons. Its smelter at Collinsville treats its own
concentrates, as well as those of the Baker Lead Co. and the Boston
Elvins Lead Co. The Desloge Consolidated Lead Co. operates three mines
and a mill of 1,700 tons’ daily capacity; its ores are smelted by the
Federal Lead Co. The Missouri Metals Co. operates the Mine La Motte and
a mill treating 700,000 tons annually at the 1917 rate. In 1915 it was
estimated that this mine could produce 3,000,000 tons of ore annually
for sixty years.
In the Joplin region, which is chiefly in Missouri but also includes
adjacent areas in Kansas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma, the ores lie at
three horizons in horizontal limestone and chert beds of Lower
Carboniferous age. At the upper horizon, usually 100 to 150 feet below
the surface, the ore occurs in clayey chert breccias. The ore bodies
are characteristically “runs” up to 300 feet wide, and continuous in
one horizon for several hundred feet and, rarely, for more than a mile.
The middle horizon, or “sheet ground,” at a depth of 150 to 300 feet
usually ranges from 6 to 15 feet in thickness. The ore, mixed galena
and blende, cements brecciated chert. The third and lowest horizon,
in sandy limestones, contains disseminated ores mainly, and as yet is
little exploited. In 1915, about 4,000,000 tons of ore was mined from
the upper horizon, and 6,500,000 tons from the middle horizon or “sheet
ground.” The average lead content of the ore as mined was about 0.25
per cent. Most of the lead concentrates are sold in open market. The
Webb City district is the most important in the Joplin region, and the
American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. is the largest galena producer. Most
of the output is by lessees and small operators. The Joplin district
ranks second in importance. The A. W. C. Mining Co. is the largest
miner of “sheet ground.” The Ravenswood and Ritz mines of the United
States Smelting, Refining & Mining Co., in Jasper County, produce
218,000 tons of ore annually. The concentrates of this region are
chiefly smelted by the plants of the Eagle-Picher Lead Co. at Galena,
Kansas; Joplin, Missouri; Webb City, Missouri; and by the Granby Mining
& Smelting Co. at Granby, Missouri.
The Coeur d’Alene region is in Shoshone County, _Idaho_. The deposits
are metasomatic veins formed by replacement of siliceous sedimentary
rocks along zones of fissuring, and carry mainly galena and siderite
with some pyrite and sphalerite. In 1915 the crude ore shipments
amounted to 95,169 tons with a lead content of 35,271 short tons.
The remainder of the ore, or nearly 96 per cent. of the total, is
concentrated to carry about 50 per cent. lead. The 1915 yield of
concentrates of all kinds amounted to 329,530 tons, having a lead
content of 128,928 short tons, making the total lead content of crude
and concentrate shipments 164,199 short tons. The mining companies form
three groups, determined chiefly by their relations or affiliations
with the smelters, as follows: The Bunker Hill group, comprising the
Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co., and the Hecla Mining
Co.; the Day group, comprising the Tamarack & Custer Mining Co., the
Amazon-Manhattan mine, and the Hercules Mining Co.; and the American
Smelting & Refining group, comprising the Federal Mining & Smelting Co.
and various small producers.
The mines of the Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co.
had reserves on December 31, 1917, of 3,457,634 tons. The ore bodies
are replacements of quartzite. This company’s production in 1917 was
493,030 tons of ore, the metallic lead recovered by smelting being
46,996 tons. The Bunker Hill & Sullivan Co., while still shipping its
own ores to the Helena plant of the American Smelting & Refining Co.,
built its own smelter at Kellogg, Idaho, where it smelts the Hecla and
other ores. The Day family controls the Hercules, and Tamarack & Custer
companies, the Northport smelter at Northport, Washington (now closed
down), and the Pennsylvania Smelting & Refining Co. at Pittsburgh, Pa.
The 1916 shipments of the Hercules had a lead content of about 22,000
tons. Both companies are close corporations and make public little
information as to their operations. The Tamarack & Custer probably has
large reserves of ore averaging about 9 per cent. lead; it has produced
as much as 3,000 tons of shipping ore and concentrates per month. The
Federal Mining & Smelting Co. operates several mines. One-sixth of
the stock is owned by the American Smelters Securities Co. and all
its silver-lead ores and concentrates are contracted to the American
Smelting & Refining Co. The Success Mining Co., working two mines, has
been an important producer. The Interstate-Callahan has been chiefly a
zinc producer but ships some lead concentrates to the Salida plant of
the Ohio & Colorado Smelting Co.
The lead production of _Utah_ is chiefly from the Park City,
Bingham Canyon, and Tintic districts. The ores, composed of galena,
tetrahedrite and pyrite, and in places sphalerite, with their oxidized
derivatives, occur in lodes cutting limestones, sandstones and shales,
chiefly of Carboniferous age, and also as bedded deposits in limestone.
Both types are frequently associated with porphyry and form irregular
ore bodies in contact-metamorphosed limestone. In many mines copper is
an important constituent of the ores and the silver content is always
important.
The production of _Colorado_ in 1917 comprised 33,995 short tons of
lead, of which 9,293 short tons came from the Leadville district in
Lake County, 10,412 short tons from the San Juan district in San Juan,
San Miguel and Ouray counties, and 6,816 tons from the Aspen district
in Pitkin County. The Leadville deposits are in the Mosquito range.
The chief producing companies are the Iron Silver Mining Co., the
Yak Mining, Milling & Tunnel Co. and its subsidiary, the Leadville
Exploration & Mining Co.; the Western Mining Co.; the Downtown Mines
Co.; the Ibex Mining Co.; and the United States Smelting, Refining
& Mining Co. The Yak Mining, Milling & Tunnel Co., and the Western
Mining Co. are subsidiaries of the American Smelting & Refining Co. In
the San Juan district, the principal producers are the Liberty Bell;
Smuggler-Union; Tomboy; Black Bear; Iowa-Gold Tiger; Dives; Shenandoah;
and Silver Lake mines. The veins penetrate all the clastic and igneous
rocks of this region, and the ores are exceedingly complex. In Pitkin
County, the Smuggler Leasing Co. operates most of the producing mines
at Aspen. The ores are peculiarly free from other metals than lead,
antimony, and silver.
=Australia.=--The lead resources of the Commonwealth of Australia
are chiefly in New South Wales, Western Australia, Tasmania, and
Queensland. New South Wales has been the chief producer in the past,
but the Tasmanian deposits are now being rapidly developed and equipped
for production.
The most important source of ore in _New South Wales_ is the great
Broken Hill lode, situated in the arid Barrier Ranges at an elevation
of about 1,000 feet above sea level. The lode ranges in width from a
few inches to 400 feet and has been worked over a distance of three
miles. Mining began in 1884 and now is conducted by several mining
companies which, in the order of the importance of their production
and ore reserves, are: Broken Hill South Silver Mining Co.; Broken
Hill North Mining Co.; Zinc Corporation; Sulphide Corporation; British
Broken Hill Proprietary Co.; Broken Hill Proprietary Co.; Broken Hill
Proprietary Co., Block 10; and Broken Hill Proprietary Co., Block 14.
Although the deepest workings are 1,815 feet deep, the ore still
continues downward. For many years the estimated ore reserves of
all the mines have approximated 12,000,000 tons. The upper part of
the lode consisted of a gossan 20 to 100 feet wide of siliceous and
manganiferous limonite, hematite, and kaolin. Below the gossan were
great masses of cerussite, anglesite, cuprite, and malachite, with
abundant cerargyrite, embolite, and iodyrite. Between the oxidized
and primary sulphide ores was a thin zone of secondary sulphides. The
early operations in the district were conducted for the purpose of
obtaining lead ores, and immense dumps were accumulated of zinc-bearing
ores sorted out or zinc-bearing tailings left after concentration of
the lead ores. In 1903 these dumps were estimated at 5,687,400 tons,
carrying 18.6 per cent. zinc. With the development of a demand for
zinc sulphide ores and of oil-flotation methods of separation and
concentration, these dumps have been important sources of zinc. There
are two classes of sulphide ores, distinguished as silicate gangue ore,
and calcite gangue ore. The sulphide ores are a close mixture of galena
and zinc blende, carrying silver. The silicate gangue ore bodies carry
rhodonite, garnet, and quartz; and are richer in zinc and silver than
those with calcite gangue.
The Broken Hill South Silver Mining Co. has ore reserves estimated
at 3,350,000 tons and is the largest ore producer in the field.
Broken Hill North, Broken Hill South, Amalgamated Zinc (De Bavay),
Zinc Corporation, and Barrier South, Ltd., are controlled by the
Hoover-Govett-Bailliau group of British and Australian capitalists.
The Amalgamated Zinc Co. in 1913 treated 498,289 tons of tailings
containing 17.1 per cent. zinc, 3.7 per cent. lead, and 4.4 ounces
silver, obtaining 140,098 tons zinc concentrates carrying zinc, 48.9
per cent., lead 5.9 per cent., and silver 8.5 ounces per ton. The
Zinc Corporation, a company formed by Bewick, Moreing & Co., has ore
reserves estimated at 1,504,211 tons, averaging 14.8 per cent. lead,
9.2 per cent. zinc, and 2.5 ounces of silver per ton.
The largest lead-producing district of _Tasmania_ is on the West Coast,
where the largest producers, the Hercules of the Dundas group and the
Primrose and Tasmanian copper mines of the Rosebery company group, are
now controlled by the Mount Read-Rosebery Co., affiliated with the
Mount Lyell Mining & Railway Co., Ltd. The deposits contain complex
sulphide ores, the reserves being estimated by the state geological
staff at 1,272,500 tons, averaging 29.79 per cent. zinc, 8.89 per
cent. lead, 12.16 ounces of silver, and 0.17 ounces gold per ton. This
estimate has since been revised and made more conservative.
In 1913 _Western Australia_ produced 26,589 long tons of lead ore
and 125 tons of silver-lead ore, almost wholly from the Northampton
district on the West Coast. The only company working on a large scale
is the Fremantle Trading & Smelting Co., operating the Baddera and
Narra Tarra mines and, formerly, a smelter at Fremantle. The Chillagoe
district is the largest producer in _Queensland_, its output amounting
to 2,550 long tons of pig lead in 1913, chiefly from the Girofla mine
of the Mungana company, but in part from lead-copper concentrates. The
Chillagoe operated a small smelter. The total pig lead production of
Queensland was 3,603 long tons in 1913.
=Spain.=--Spain yielded in 1913, 314,369 short tons of lead
concentrates, from which were smelted 189,559 tons of pig lead. In 1915
only 1,010 short tons of ore or concentrates was exported, and 161,912
short tons of desilverized lead was exported, mostly to England. Over
90 per cent. of the production of ore came from the provinces of Jaen,
Murcia, Cordoba, and Ciudad Real. In 1913 the Province of Almeria
occupied fourth place, but its mines are now nearly exhausted. These
provinces are in the southeastern part of Spain and cover the Sierra
Morena and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges.
In the Province of Jaen are two principal districts--the
Linares-Santa-Elena and the La Carolina. Many years ago Linares was the
greatest lead-producing district in the world. The veins cut granite
and thin overlying sandstone and are very narrow. The Arrayanes, a
state-owned mine, has been exploited over a length of two and a half
miles and to 1,500 feet in depth. The gangue is granite, quartz and
calcite. Iron and copper pyrites and sphalerite are present, but a 79
per cent. lead concentrate is easily made. The deepest mine is 1,800
ft. deep and is still in rich ore. In the Santa Elena vicinity, the
San Fernando, Ojo Vecino, and Santa Ana mines are owned locally. The
Caridad is owned by French capital and the Santa Susanna by a Belgian
concern, the Compagnie Real Asturienne des Mines. In La Carolina
district the nearly vertical lodes cut Silurian quartzites and Cambrian
and Silurian slates. The ore attains a greater width than in the
veins of the Linares district. The Nuevo Centenillo mine (English
owned) produces 27,000 short tons of concentrates annually. The great
Guindo lode runs through six mines, two of which are owned by Spanish
companies, and three by the Guindo Co., a German-Spanish corporation
having an output of 27,000 short tons of concentrates yearly. The
Castillo La Vieja, owned by a French company, has a yearly output of
20,000 tons of marketable ore.
In the Province of Murcia the Mazarron and Cartagena districts are
important. Most of the veins are nearly vertical but many have spurs or
branches forming lenticular and bedded deposits in the sedimentaries.
This district extends southwestward along the coast from Cabo de Palos
a few miles north of Cartagena. The production of this province has
been steadily decreasing.
In the Province of Cordoba (district of Posadas) many silver-lead-zinc
mines were worked by the Romans and are still profitable. Near
Alcaracejos are the mines of Anglo-Vask and Penarroya, the latter owned
by a French company of the same name.
The development of the lead ores in the Province of Ciudad Real has
been retarded by lack of transportation facilities. The best known
district is that of El Hoyo-San Lorenzo, which in 1915 had risen to
fourth place among the lead-producing districts of Spain.
=Germany.=--In imperial Germany the lead-producing districts in the
order of their importance were as follows: Upper Silesia, Rhenish
Prussia, Westphalia, Saxony, Hanover, and Nassau. Rhenish Prussia and
Westphalia are usually grouped together as one metallographic province.
At Gladbach, east of Cologne in _Rhenish Prussia_, are ore deposits
lying in troughs and basins in limestone. The ore is smithsonite and
galena mixed with shale. The chief deposits of _Westphalia_ are at
Iserlohn and Brilon. At Iserlohn ores containing calamine, galena,
and blende are found in irregular pockets. The deposits of Brilon are
similar, but most of the ore is found in crevices in the limestone.
Rhenish Prussia and Westphalia are the source of about one-third the
German production of lead.
The greater part of _Upper Silesia_ lay within the boundaries of
Germany in 1914, although formerly part of the kingdom of Poland, the
population being still predominantly Polish; but portions were included
in the old empires of Russia and Austria. The pre-war production of
lead ores from Russian Poland was entirely from this metallographic
province. The deposits, which contain lead and zinc together, lie in
Triassic beds that overlie Carboniferous rocks carrying important seams
of coal. This juxtaposition of ore and fuel furnish an ideal basis for
the great smelting industry that developed locally, for the conditions
permit smelting of low-grade ores.
The historic mines at Freiberg, in _Saxony_ (Erzgebirge) yield a small
quantity of blende in connection with the concentration of galena ores
from a remarkable series of intersecting veins, which number more than
900, although few are more than 2 feet thick. They have been worked to
a depth of 2,100 feet. More than 10 per cent. of the lead production of
Germany is derived from Saxony. These mines are owned and operated by
the Saxon government, which also owns the smelting plants.
Lead predominates over zinc in the ores of the Upper Harz, in
_Hanover_. These ores occur in veins and zones in slates of Devonian
and Lower Carboniferous age. These mines are worked by the Prussian
Department of Mines, which also operates two smelting plants, the
output being about 10 per cent. of the total German output. In
_Nassau_, in the valley of the Lahn, lead ores are produced as a
by-product, with zinc blende concentrates.
=Mexico.=--In Mexico lead ores are mined in several states, the more
important being Chihuahua, Durango, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, Sonora, San
Luis Potosi, and Zacatecas. In many districts during a considerable
part of the past eight years work has been intermittent and
occasionally suspended for long periods.
The Santa Eulalia district in _Chihuahua_ is largely owned by American
companies, including the American Smelting & Refining Co., operating
the Mina Vieja, Sin Nombre, Velardeña, San Antonio and Santo Domingo
mines; and El Potosi Mining Co., operating the mines of the same name.
The San Toy is under lease to the American Metal Co., now purged of
German interests. The Santa Eulalia Mining Co. belongs to the Hearst
estate. The Buena Tierra Mining Co. is a British concern. The mines of
the Santa Barbara and Parral districts are also largely under American
control, among many others being the Montezuma Lead Mining Co. of
the R. S. Towne interests, Granadeña Mining Co., American Smelters
Securities Co. and American Zinc Extraction Co. The American Smelters
Securities Co. operates the Tecolotes, Montezuma, San Diego, Guadalupe
and Alfarena mines. The San Francisco mines are owned by British
capital. In the San Isidro district the Calera, Prieta and Buena Vista
mines are operated by the American Smelting & Refining Co. The Lago
mine is operated by C. M. de Las Plomosas (French). In the Parado
district are mines of the Compañia Minera Aurora y Anexas, controlled
by the Madero family (Mexican). Other Chihuahua mines of the American
Smelting & Refining Co. are Orizaba and La Union at Magistral, the
Jibosa at Dolores, La Luz and Parcionera at Cordera, the Veta Grande
and Veta Colorado.
The largest operators in the state of _Durango_ are the American
Smelters Securities Co. at Velardeña and the Cia. Minera de Peñoles at
Mapimi, both now American since the selling of the German-held stock of
the American Metals Co. by the Alien Property Custodian.
In _Sonora_, the Carnegie Lead & Zinc Co. worked a mine near Cananea,
during the war, but the best part of the deposit is now depleted.
The Tiro General mines, in _San Luis Potosi_, belong to the American
Smelting & Refining Co.
The Cabrilla and Paloma mines, in the Cabrillas district in _Coahuila_,
are owned by the Compañia Minera de Peñoles, controlled by the
American Metal Co. The Sierra Mojada district is dominated by American
companies, the principal mines being owned by the Consolidated Kansas
City Smelting & Refining Co., a subsidiary of the American Smelting
& Refining Co. The Boquillas de Carmen mine has been acquired by an
American company.
In the state of _Nueva Leon_, deposits lying within a radius of 50
miles of Monterrey, at Villadama, Vallecillo, Ladera Occidental
de Minas Viejas, etc., have been exploited by German and American
companies, including the Compañia Metalurgica Mexicana (American),
Joplin-Mexican Mining Co. (American), and the Metallgesellschaft
(German).
=Other Countries.=--The output of lead ore in _Tunis_ in 1913, almost
wholly by French companies, was 56,072 metric tons. It is all exported.
Practically all the output of lead ore in _Italy_ is derived from the
Inglesias district of Sardinia, which in 1915 produced 40,829 metric
tons of ore averaging 55 per cent. lead, out of a total national
production of 41,590 metric tons. The principal operators are the
Monteponi and Pertusola companies, the former Italian, the latter
English. The remainder of the ore comes from the provinces of Bergamo,
Brescia Cuneo, and Grosseto, and the operating companies are the
English Crown Spelter Co. (English), and the Societa Austro-Belga and
Société de la Vieille Montagne (Belgian).
In _Czecho-Slovakia_, the most important district is that of Przibram,
in Bohemia. Rich lead ores were once mined at Mies, but the district
is now exhausted. The district of Joachimsthal was for centuries an
important producer.
In _German-Austria_ are the silver-lead mining districts of Schneeberg,
in Tyrol, and Raibl, in Upper Carinthia. In both districts the mines
were before the war owned and operated by the Austrian state. Miess, in
Carinthia, is one of the chief sources of ore in recent years.
The lead mines of _Great Britain_ in 1916 produced 17,083 tons of
dressed lead ore. The largest operator is the Weardale Lead Co.,
operating the Boltsburn and Stanhopeburn mines and smelting its own
and some custom ores.
In _Greece_ the only important lead deposit is that of Laurium, which
was worked on a large scale in ancient times. It is now controlled and
operated by a French company, the Compagnie Française des Mines de
Laurium.
The lead production of _Canada_ is chiefly from British Columbia, the
most important producers being in the Slocan district. The largest
operator is the Consolidated Mining & Smelting Co. of Canada, Ltd.,
proprietor also of the Trail smelter. This company operates the
Sullivan and other mines and produced during the year ended September
30, 1917, 29,542 tons of lead ore from the Sullivan mine, and 1,100 to
1,500 tons from several others. The Sullivan mine has been reported
to have reserves of 3,500,000 tons of galena-sphalerite ore. Numerous
smaller properties in the same district ship ore to the Trail smelter,
which produced some 22,000 tons of lead during the year ended September
30, 1917.
The most important lead-silver mines of _Asiatic Turkey_ are those
at Hodsha Gernish (Balia), belonging to the Société des Mines de
Balia-Kara-Aidin (French), which yield about 12,000 tons of lead
annually. There is a state-owned mine at Bulgardagh producing lead,
gold, and silver. The English company, Asia Minor Mining Co., produces
about 3,000 tons of ore annually.
In _China_ the ten lead mines in the Province of Hunan are controlled
by Chinese. The Wah Chang Mining & Smelting Co., Ltd., operates the
Tien For Tai mines. The Shui-Ko-Shan mine, controlled by the Hunan
Mining Board, from a deposit in limestone, produced in 1913, 51,561
net tons of ore, which yielded 3,762 tons of lead concentrates and
12,275 tons of zinc concentrates. Since 1913 the production has been
increased, but the possibilities of the deposit are limited. The
Japanese have endeavored to secure control of this mine, but without
success. The pig-lead output of China is chiefly consumed in the
country. The only modern lead smelter is at Changsha and is owned by
Japanese.
The lead production of _Southwest Africa_ (formerly German) has been
derived chiefly from the Tsumeb deposit in the Grootfontein district
in the Otavi Mountains. The ores exported in the fiscal year 1913-14
amounted to 48,000 long tons, averaging 13 per cent. copper, 25 per
cent. lead, and 7.7 ounces silver. The ore is a coarsely crystalline
aggregate of argentiferous galena and chalcocite with minor amounts of
other minerals. The Otavi Mines & Railway Co. owns and operates this
mine, the ore having been exported in 1913-14 to the United States for
smelting.
In 1913 all the lead-ore production of _Algeria_ was from the
Department of Constantine, and amounted to 21,442 tons. Practically the
whole production was by French companies.
Lead ore is produced in several scattered districts in _France_,
chiefly in the south. Among the mines are the Chaliac et Chassezac
(Ardeche) mines of the Société Metallurgique et Minière des Cevennes,
producing 2,200 metric tons in 1913; the mines of the Société Civile
des Mines des Malines; La Londe mine of the Société des Mines des
Bormettes; that of the Société des Mines de Bleymard, producing 2,470
tons of galena ore in 1913; and the Pierrefitte (Haute Pyrenees),
Peybrune, and Bulard de Sentein-Saint Lary (Ariege) mines. All of these
appear to be French companies, except the Pierrefitte, which is English
controlled.
In _Burma_, the chief deposits are those of the Bawdwin mines, in the
Northern Shan States (Burma), now connected with the Burma Railway
from Rangoon. The ore bodies of present interest are nearly vertical
shoots in a feldspathic grit (rhyolitic tuff or silicified rhyolite)
and rhyolite series. The Chinaman and the smaller Shan ore body are
believed to have been one, though now separated by faulting. Estimated
reserves on December 31, 1917, were 4,033,000 tons of lead-zinc ore
assaying 24.7 ounces of silver, 27.4 per cent. lead, 19.1 per cent.
zinc, and 0.4 per cent. copper; and 105,000 tons of copper-silver ore
assaying 21.0 ounces of silver, 19.9 per cent. lead, 8.8 per cent.
zinc, and 8.9 per cent. copper. Since then development has considerably
increased these reserves. In addition there is estimated to be
1,600,000 tons of low-grade ore averaging 5.1 ounces of silver, 7.5 per
cent. lead, 4.8 per cent. zinc, and 0.2 per cent. copper per ton, with
excellent prospects of larger developments. A large tonnage of gossan
outcrop ore containing 4 or 5 ounces silver, 4 to 5 per cent. lead, and
a little zinc is cheaply mined and available as siliceous flux. The
essential constituents of the ores are galena and sphalerite with a
little pyrite and chalcopyrite. All of the ore is argentiferous.
The lead and zinc concentrates are available for the customary methods
of smelting. A zinc-distilling and sulphuric acid plant is being
constructed at Sakchi, with the aid of the Indian government, to treat
the table zinc concentrates. Its initial capacity of 25,000 tons of
concentrates is expected to be increased to 75,000 tons. The company
operates a lead smelter at Nam-Tu, 11 miles from the mines, using a
mixture of ore and ancient slags. Treatment of the middlings by the
Ganlin process is proposed and a 100-ton unit is under construction
at Avonmouth, England. The Bawdwin deposits may be expected to be an
important factor in the world’s production of lead in the immediate
future. They are owned by the Burma Mines, Ltd., an English corporation
representing the R. Tilden Smith-Govett-Hoover interests and some
American capital.
The lead production of _Peru_ is largely in the form of ancient
high-lead slags from the Cerro de Pasco district, Department of Junin,
shipped to plants of the American Smelting & Refining Co. in the
United States. Lead occurs as a minor constituent of copper deposits.
The domestic lead-ore deposits of _Japan_ are all owned and operated
by Japanese. During the war Australian concentrates and Chinese ore
were imported and smelted, 10,666 short tons of the former, carrying
56 per cent. lead, during the fiscal year 1915-16, and 9,829 short
tons of the latter during the year 1916. The Fujita company, mining
in Japan, Korea, and Formosa, produces 382 short tons of lead yearly.
Its principal mine is the Kosaka, at the northern end of Hondo, the
main island of Japan. The ore is a complex sulphide mixture of lead,
zinc, iron, and copper minerals. The annual output of this mine is
about 335 short tons of lead. The Mitsui Mining Co., Ltd., is the
largest producer, its output in 1915 having been 3,561, and in 1916,
8,098 short tons of pig lead. This is derived wholly from the Kamioka
zinc-lead mine, in the Province of Hida, on a contact metamorphic
deposit in limestone lenses enclosed in Archean gneiss near a quartz
porphyry contact.
The only deposit exploited in _Egypt_ is that known to the ancients,
Gebel Rosas, now operated by the French company, Compagnie Française
des Mines de Laurium. As regards the former empire of _Russia_, the
lead production of _Russian Poland_ and the Caucasus Mountains is
small, the output in 1913 coming chiefly from the Caucasus Mountains
and being made by the Elboruss Co., and the Compagnie d’Alagir
(Belgian).
In the Altai Mountains, in _Siberia_, a zinc-lead-silver deposit, the
Zmeinogorsk, formerly belonging to the Russian Mining Corporation
(British), is now owned by a Russian company, Altai Mines, Ltd., though
part of the capital is probably British. The Nerchinski district,
in eastern Siberia, comprises many known deposits. The Akatonevski,
Kadaenski, Algachinski and Klichinski deposits are veins, whereas many
of the Zerentniski, Gasimoura Valley, Koultoumski and Maltzevski are
lenticular masses of disseminated ore. In the Kadaenski deposits two
massive disseminated ore bodies occur in dolomite between two veins.
These deposits were controlled by the Imperial Cabinet, and their
exploitation was being seriously considered by British and American
capital shortly before the revolution. The deposits of largest present
importance in Siberia are those of the Ridder Mining Co., controlled
by the Irtysh Corporation of London, which has developed two mines,
the Ridder and the Sokolni, on the same mineralized zone. The deposits
are replacements by complex sulphide ore of members of a conformable
series of slates, tuffs, and igneous sills. In 1916 the reserves were
estimated at 945,000 tons of a grade of 31.2 per cent. zinc, 18.1 per
cent. lead, 1.5 per cent. copper, 9.7 ounces of silver, and 0.47 ounces
of gold; and also 2,229,000 tons averaging 6.7 per cent. zinc, 3.5 per
cent. lead, 0.5 per cent. copper, 1.7 ounces of silver, and 0.7 ounces
of gold per ton. Other known mineralized zones have not been developed,
but the possibilities of the property are immense, being limited
chiefly by general political and economic conditions.
A small quantity of lead is produced in _Bulgaria_ from a few small
deposits containing intimate mixtures of lead, copper and zinc
minerals; usually either zinc or copper predominate.
The most important lead deposit in _Sweden_ is the Sala, in
Vestmanland, where irregular masses and veins of galena and blende with
minor amounts of pyrite, etc. occur in limestone. Similar deposits
occur at Lofas and Guldmedshyttan.
_Hungary_ has no lead mines of importance, although galena occurs in
some of the veins exploited, notably at Schemnitz, where the larger
mines are the property of the Hungarian state.
Most of the ore from _Bolivia_ exported to the United States comes from
the Majo mine, which produced 884 tons, lead content, in 1912. This
mine is in southern Bolivia in the region of La Quiaca.
The most important lead-producing area in _Portugal_ is Merlota, near
the Guadiana River, where silver-bearing galena and oxidized ores
are found. Other districts are those of Villa Real, Vizen, Aveiro,
Portalagre, and Beja. The deposits are similar to those of Spain.
The only deposit of importance in _Rhodesia_ (South Africa) is the
Rhodesia Broken Hill. The large ore bodies are, so far as developed,
almost wholly oxidized. One ore body is estimated to contain 250,000
long tons of ore averaging 26 per cent. lead and 22.5 per cent. zinc;
another ore body is estimated to contain 300,000 long tons, averaging
32 per cent. zinc, with little lead, but much iron oxide and carbonate.
These ore bodies are controlled by British capital. Considerable
difficulty has been experienced in developing a commercial treatment.
Reports indicate this deposit is of greater magnitude than is generally
recognized.
The most important lead deposit of _Belgium_, or rather of the neutral
district of Moresnet adjoining Belgium, belonged to the Belgian
company, Société de la Vieille Montagne at Moresnet. It was exhausted
in 1882.
=Changes in Geographical Distribution of Production in the Near
Future.=--No marked change in the pre-war rate of production of ores by
the countries of Europe or northern Africa is anticipated when normal
conditions are resumed. Most of the districts in those countries have
been exploited a long time and have passed their zenith of production;
many are approaching exhaustion. A possible exception to this statement
is the Ciudad Real Province of Spain, which is being energetically
developed by the Penarroya company. The division of Austria-Hungary
will not materially affect the control of the lead industry.
The United States will continue to be the largest source of lead in
the world, and the only change anticipated is a slight increase in the
relative importance of the hard-lead output of the Western States.
The chief new factor in production will be the Bawdwin mines of Burma,
which are being developed on a large scale for the production of
300,000 tons of ore annually.
Recent developments in the Altai Mountains of southwestern Siberia
have proved immense bodies of complex zinc-lead ores. Their geographic
isolation will prevent them from becoming an important factor in the
world market for a long period, notwithstanding their large size and
excellent grade. The extent of their exploitation will be determined
largely by how far the Russian market is affected by internal social
and political conditions. The loss of the Polish industrial region,
with its market protected by stringent tariffs, materially restricts
the extent of visible outlets.
In the future, but not soon, it is anticipated that there will be
developments in the Andes region of South America of complex lead-ore
deposits similar to those of the Western United States.
POLITICAL CONTROL
Political control of the lead resources of the world up to the outbreak
of the war in 1914 seems to have been a minor factor in the industry,
and to have made itself felt chiefly through imposition of protective
tariffs or bonuses designed to stimulate domestic production, smelting,
and refining. Such measures resulted in the establishment of lead
smelting in British Columbia and were an inducement to the development
of the Altai district of Siberia. As will be described later in detail,
the growth of international commercial relations had permitted the
establishment by German interests of organizations which, although not
all-inclusive, gave effective control of the industry.
During the World War, however, political jurisdiction was largely
invoked to restore control of national resources to citizens. This
movement was particularly marked in the British Empire, where there
now exists a joint political and commercial control. Alien interests
have been eliminated by governmental action and the government retains
a share in the control through its interest in marketing organizations
or its financial participation in reduction works. In France, the
consortium Société Minerais et Metaux, organized by government action,
is the arbiter of the industry and comprises all the important French
companies both at home and abroad. In the United States the Alien
Property Custodian was active in eliminating all enemy-alien interests.
COMMERCIAL CONTROL
Copper, lead, and zinc form a class by themselves, with respect to
industrial utility and tonnage produced, ranking after iron, which far
outclasses them, as the most important base metals. The total yearly
production of each throughout the world is considerably more than a
million tons.
TABLE 53.--ORE PRODUCTION, SMELTING, AND CONSUMPTION OF LEAD IN 1913
(Tons of 2,000 Pounds)
-------------------+-------------------------------------------+
| Recoverable lead content of ores |
| and concentrates |
+---------------+-------------+-------------+
| | | |
|Mine production| Exports | Imports |
+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
| | Per| | Per| | Per|
| Net |cent.| Net |cent.| Net |cent.|
Country | tons |[130]| tons |[130]| tons |[130]|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
Algeria | 12,900| 1.0| 12,900| 1.0| ... | ...|
Australia | {244,500| 19.7|132,000| 10.6| ... | ...|
| { [133]| | | | | |
Austria-Hungary | 23,800| 1.9| ... | ...| 2,800| 0.2|
Belgium | ... | ...| ... | ...| 56,000| 4.5|
Bolivia | 1,100| 0.1| 1,100| 0.1| ... | ...|
Bulgaria | 2,200| 0.2| 2,200| 0.2| ... | ...|
Canada | 18,800| 1.5| ... | ...| ... | ...|
China | 14,000| 1.1| 14,000| 1.1| ... | ...|
Egypt | 3,200| 0.3| 3,200| 0.3| ... | ...|
France | 9,600| 0.8| ... | ...| 21,300| 1.7|
German S. W. Africa| 13,200| 1.0| 13,200| 1.0| ... | ...|
Germany | 79,300| 6.4| ... | ...|120,300| 9.7|
Great Britain | 20,300| 1.6| ... | ...| 13,300| 1.1|
Greece | 20,300| 1.6| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Holland | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
India | | | {[134]| | | |
(Burma) | 6,500| 0.5| {2,200| 0.2| ... | ...|
| | |{ [134]| | | |
Italy | 24,900| 2.0|{ 1,000| 0.1| ... | ...|
Japan | 4,200| 0.3| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Mexico | 68,300| 5.5| 7,100| 0.6| ... | ...|
Norway | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Peru | 4,300| 0.3| 4,300| 0.3| ... | ...|
Portugal | 600| ...| 600| ...| ... | ...|
Rhodesia | 400| ...| 400| ...| ... | ...|
| | | {[134]| | | |
Russia | 3,100| 0.2| {2,000| 0.2| ... | ...|
Spain | 209,200| 16.8| ... | ...| 9,900| 0.8|
Sweden | 2,100| 0.2| 500| ...| ... | ...|
Switzerland | ... | ... | ... | ...| ... | ...|
Tunis | 31,100| 2.5| 31,000| 2.5| ... | ...|
Turkey-in-Asia | 15,300| 1.2| ... | ...| ... | ...|
United States | 411,900| 33.3| ... | ...| 13,200| 1.0|
Other countries | ... | ...| ... | ...| 2,600| 0.2|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
World[135] |1,245,100|100.0|227,800| 18.2|239,400| 19.2|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
-------------------+-------------------------------------------+
| |
| Primary pig lead |
+---------------+-------------+-------------+
| Smelter | | |
| production | Imports | Exports |
+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
| | Per| | Per| | Per|
| Net |cent.| Net |cent.| Net |cent.|
Country | tons |[130]| tons |[130]| tons |[130]|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
Algeria | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Australia | 112,500| 9.0| ... | ...|101,900| 8.1|
| | | | | | |
Austria-Hungary | 26,600| 2.1| 12,500| 1.0| ... | ...|
Belgium | 56,000| 4.5| ... | ...| 8,700| 0.7|
Bolivia | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Bulgaria | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Canada | 18,800| 1.5| 6,400| 0.5| ... | ...|
China | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Egypt | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
France | 30,900| 2.5| 87,700| 7.0| ... | ...|
German S. W. Africa| ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Germany | 199,600| 15.9| 46,800| 3.7| ... | ...|
Great Britain | 33,600| 2.7|177,400| 14.1| ... | ...|
Greece | 20,300| 1.6| ... | ...| 20,300| 1.6|
Holland | ... | ...| 10,500| 0.8| ... | ...|
India | | | | | | |
(Burma) | 4,300| 0.3| ... | ...| 4,300| 0.3|
| | | | | | |
Italy | 23,900| 1.9| 12,000| 1.0| ... | ...|
Japan | 4,200| 0.3| 17,000| 1.3| ... | ...|
Mexico | 61,200| 4.9| ... | ...| 61,200| 4.9|
Norway | ... | ...| 500| ...| ... | ...|
Peru | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Portugal | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Rhodesia | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
| | | | | | |
Russia | 1,000| 0.1| 63,700| 5.1| ... | ...|
Spain | 219,100| 17.4| ... | ...|219,100| 17.5|
Sweden | 1,600| 0.1| 1,200| 0.1| ... | ...|
Switzerland | ... | ...| 6,400| 0.5| ... | ...|
Tunis | ... | ...| ... | ...| ... | ...|
Turkey-in-Asia | 15,300| 1.2| ... | ...| 15,300| 1.2|
United States | 425,100| 33.8| ... | ...| 10,800| 0.9|
Other countries | 2,600| 0.2| 34,100| 2.7| ... | ...|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
World[135] |1,256,700|100.0|476,200| 37.8|441,600| 35.2|
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----+
-------------------+-------------------------------------------
| Recoverable lead in ores
| and pig lead
+---------------+-------------+-------------
| | |
| Consumption | Net imports | Net exports
+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----
| | Per| | Per| | Per
| Net |cent.| Net |cent.| Net |cent.
Country | tons |[130]| tons |[130]| tons |[130]
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----
Algeria | ... | ...| ... | ...| 12,900| 1.3
Australia | 10,600| 0.8| ... | ...|233,900| 18.7
| | | | | |
Austria-Hungary | 39,100| 3.0| 15,300| 1.2| ... | ...
Belgium | 47,300| 3.7| 47,300| 3.8| ... | ...
Bolivia | ... | ...| ... | ...| 1,100| 0.1
Bulgaria | ... | ...| ... | ...| 2,200| 0.2
Canada | 25,200| 2.0| 6,400| 0.5| ... | ...
China | ... | ...| ... | ...| 14,000| 1.1
Egypt | ... | ...| ... | ...| 3,200| 0.2
France | 118,600| 9.1|109,000| 8.7| ... | ...
German S. W. Africa| ... | ...| ... | ...| 13,200| 1.0
Germany | 246,400| 19.1|167,100| 13.4| ... | ...
Great Britain | 211,000| 16.4|190,700| 15.2| ... | ...
Greece | ... | ...| ... | ...| 20,300| 1.6
Holland | 10,500| 0.8| 10,500| 0.1| ... | ...
India | | | | | |
(Burma) | ... | ...| ... | ...| 6,500| 0.5
| | | | | |
Italy | 35,900| 2.8| 11,000| 0.1| ... | ...
Japan | 20,400| 1.6| 17,000| 1.3| ... | ...
Mexico | ... | ...| ... | ...| 68,300| 5.5
Norway | 500| ...| 500| ...| ... | ...
Peru | ... | ...| ... | ...| 4,300| 0.3
Portugal | ... | ...| ... | ...| 600| ...
Rhodesia | ... | ...| ... | ...| 400| ...
| | | | | |
Russia | 64,800| 5.0| 61,700| 5.0| ... | ...
Spain | ... | ...| ... | ...|209,200| 16.7
Sweden | 2,800| 0.2| 700| ...| ... | ...
Switzerland | 6,400| 0.5| 6,400| 0.5| ... | ...
Tunis | ... | ...| ... | ...| 31,100| 2.5
Turkey-in-Asia | ... | ...| ... | ...| 15,300| 1.2
United States | 414,300| 32.1| 2,400| 0.2| ... | ...
Other countries | 36,700| 2.8| 36,700| 2.9| ... | ...
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----
World[135] |1,290,500|100.0|682,700| 52.9|636,500| 50.9
-------------------+---------+-----+-------+-----+-------+-----
[130] Percentages of World production of recoverable lead content of
ores.
[131] Percentages of World smelter production of pig lead.
[132] Percentage of mean of totals used in _a_ and _b_.
[133] Total recoverable lead content of ore production reported, less
lead content of Australian production in forms other than pig lead.
[134] Probably represents ore surplus rather than exports.
[135] Lack of proper balance in these totals shows error or
incompleteness, or lack of comparability, due in part to lag in the
statistics, which, however, show correctly the general situation.
The ownership or operative control of mines is a minor factor in the
commercial control of the lead industry and in general is of importance
only as determining the distribution of ore to smelters competing
otherwise on nearly equal terms. Most of the large smelter interests
engage in, or have subsidiaries engaged in, mining or have sufficient
holdings in large mining companies to influence their smelting
contracts. The actual basis of control of the industry is, therefore,
often through combined ownership or control of mines and of reduction
works.
The ownership or control of reduction plants has been the dominating
factor in the commercial control of the industry. The production of
each country in 1913, the principal lead reduction works of the world,
and their affiliations and control are discussed below.
=United States.=--The control of the lead industry of the United States
through ownership or control is vested in ten groups as follows:
1. The Morgan-Guggenheim group, comprising the American Smelting &
Refining Co.; American Smelters Securities Co.; and their subsidiaries:
Selby Smelting & Lead Co.; Tacoma Smelting Co.; Garfield Smelting Co.;
Consolidated Kansas City Smelting & Refining Co.; Federal Lead Co.;
Federal Mining & Smelting Co.; Western Mining Co.; Silver Lake Mining
Co.; and the Yak Mining, Milling & Tunnel Co.
2. The St. Joseph Lead Co.
3. National Lead Co.; St. Louis Smelting & Refining Co.; United Lead Co.
4. The Rockefeller-Ryan group, comprising the International Smelting
Co.--Tooele smelter, Utah; and the International Lead Refining
Co.,--refinery at East Chicago, Ind.
5. The United States Smelting, Refining & Mining Co. group, comprising
the United States Smelting Co.--Mid vale smelter, Utah; U. S. Metals
Refining Co.,--electrolytic lead refinery at Grasselli, Ind.; Needles
Mining & Smelting Co.,--zinc-lead custom concentrator at Needles,
Calif.; Bingham Mines Co. and other mines in Utah (Bullion, Beck,
Champion, Utah-Apex, Centennial-Eureka and Tintic); Sunnyside and Gold
Prince mines at Silverton, Colorado, and formerly a half interest in
International Metals Selling Co.; and the Leadville Unit.
6. The Day group, comprising the Northport Smelting & Refining Co.;
Pennsylvania Smelting & Refining Co.; Hercules Mining Co.; Tamarack &
Custer Mining Co.; and the Amazon-Manhattan mines et al.
7. The American Metal Co. group, controlling the Ohio & Colorado
Smelting Co. (owning 65 per cent. of its stock), and the Balbach
Smelting & Refining Co. (owning one-third of its capital stock and
selling the entire output).
8. Hayden-Stone-Clark-Coolidge group, comprising the American Zinc,
Lead & Smelting Co.; American Zinc Co. of Tennessee; American Zinc. Co
of Wisconsin; American Zinc Co. of Illinois; Granby Mining & Smelting
Co. of Missouri; and the Butte & Superior Mining Co.
9. The Eagle-Picher group, comprising the Eagle-Picher Lead Co.,
Joplin, Mo. with smelter at Joplin, Mo., and controlling the Galena
Smelting & Manufacturing Co., Galena, Kan.; and the Webb City Smelting
& Manufacturing Co., Webb City, Mo.
10. The Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mining & Concentrating Co., controlled
by Bradley-Crocker interests, and probably representing a certain
proportion of English capital.
11. The Desloge Consolidated Lead Co., which formerly operated its own
smelter but now has its ores smelted on toll by the Federal Lead Co.
and markets its own lead.
All of the above companies are owned and controlled by American
citizens so far as known, except certain interests in the American
Metal Co. and perhaps the Bunker Hill & Sullivan Mining & Concentrating
Co.
The American Metal Co. has 70,000 shares of capital stock, of which
34,644 shares were owned by the Metallgesellschaft, one of the German
“Trio,” 18,620 shares belong to Germans who have become naturalized
American citizens and have had the management, and the remaining 16,736
belonged to Henry L. Merton & Co., of London, a firm that is in process
of liquidation. The Alien Property Custodian took over the 34,644
shares referred to above and sold them at public auction. The control
of the company is vested in three voting trustees selected by agreement
between the Alien Property Custodian and the American shareholders.
Vogelstein & Co. at one time linked groups 5, 7, 8, and 10, chiefly
through selling contracts. Vogelstein & Co. owned the International
Metals Selling Co., formerly marketing the production of the United
States Smelting, Mining & Refining Co., but this connection is now
broken. A contract for sale of the entire output of the American Zinc,
Lead & Smelting Co. was held by L. Vogelstein & Co., partly owned by
Aron Hirsch & Sohn, another member of the great German metal combine.
L. Vogelstein & Co. (Inc). was seized by the Alien Property Custodian
and was controlled by five directors, two of whom were appointees of
the Custodian.[136] The operative control of the Bunker Hill & Sullivan
Mining & Concentrating Co. is vested in Americans, but Vogelstein & Co.
sells the output. Groups 5 and 8 are probably linked to some extent by
large stockholders in common, Clark & Coolidge of Boston.
[136] L. Vogelstein is reported to have sold his interests to the
American Metal Co. and subsequently, early in 1920, to have acquired
a fifth interest in that company.
As a result of the activities of the Alien Property Custodian, the
ownership and control of substantially all the mines and reduction
works in the United States are vested in American citizens. Further
information regarding the activities of German interests in the
American metal trade is given in the chapter on copper, pages 232-235.
Table 54 lists the important lead smelting and refining plants of the
United States at the present time.
TABLE 54.--SILVER-LEAD SMELTERS IN THE UNITED STATES
---------+-------------------+---------------------+--------+---------
| | | | Annual
Financial| | | Number |capacity
Group No.| | | of |(tons of
| Operating company | Location |furnaces| charge)
---------+-------------------+---------------------+--------+---------
1 |American Smelters | | |
|Securities Co. |Selby, Calif. | 3 | 210,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Denver, Colo. | 7 | 510,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Pueblo, Colo. | 7 | 380,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Durango, Colo. | 4 | 210,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Leadville, Colo. | 10 | 510,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Murray, Idaho | 8 | 657,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |East Helena, Mont. | 4 | 306,000
1 |American Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Omaha, Neb.[137] | 2 | 82,000
1 |American Smelting |Perth Amboy, | |
|& Refining Co. |N. J.[137] | 4 | 170,000
1 |Con. Kansas City | | |
|Smelting & Refining| | |
|Co. |El Paso, Texas | 6 | 380,000
10 |Bunker Hill & | | |
|Sullivan Mining & | | |
|Concentrating Co. |Kellogg, Idaho | 3 | 600,000
7 |Ohio & Colorado | | |
|Smelting Co. |Salida, Colo. | 3 | 200,000
5 |U. S. Smelting, | | |
|Refining & Mining | | |
|Co. |Midvale, Utah | 7 | 530,000
6 |Northport Smelting | | |
|& Refining Co. |Northport, Wash. | 2 | 216,000
6 |Pennsylvania | | |
|Smelting Co |Carnegie, Pa. | 2 | 60,000
4 |International | | |
|Smelting Co. |Tooele, Utah | 5 | 500,000
| | +--------+---------
| Total | | 77 |5,521,000
---------+-------------------+---------------------+--------+---------
[137] Refinery also.
The following Table 55 shows the relative importance of the various
financial groups controlling the production of lead in the United
States.
TABLE 55.--FINANCIAL GROUPS CONTROLLING THE PRODUCTION OF LEAD IN THE
UNITED STATES
---------+---------------------------------------+---------------
| | Percentage
| | of production
Financial| Company +----------+----
group | |Oct.-Nov.,|
No. | | 1918 |1917
---------+---------------------------------------+----------+----
1 |American Smelting & Refining Co | 34.1 |37.7
3 |National Lead Co. (St. Louis Smelting &| |
|Refining Co.) | 5.9 | 9.0
2 |St. Joseph Lead Co. | 20.1 |16.4
4 |International Smelting & Refining Co. | 3.7 | 6.5
5 |U. S. Smelting Refining & Mining Co. | 5.5 | 8.3
6 |Pennsylvania Smelting Co. | 6.2 | 7.2
7 |American Metal Co. | 1.8 | 2.1
8 |American Zinc, Lead & Smelting Co. | 1.7 | 1.3
9 |Eagle-Picher Lead Co. | 9.3 | 6.2
10 |Banker Hill & Sullivan Mining & | |
|Concentrating Co. | 6.3 | 1.7
11 |Desloge Consolidated Lead Co. | 2.6 | 3.3
|Ontario Smelting Co. | 1.9 | 0.0
---------+---------------------------------------+----------+----
The American Smelting & Refining Co., through the preponderance of its
production and the wide distribution of its interests, dominates the
domestic industry, although its proportion of the total output has
decreased greatly during the past few years.
=Spain.=--More than 60 per cent. of the pig lead made in Spain comes
from the smelters of the Penarroya company (French), which within the
past few years has absorbed the Spanish smelters of Escombrera-Bleyberg
at Esconbrera, and the two smelters of Figueroa, at Linares and
Cartagena. This gives the Penarroya company a dominant position in the
Spanish lead industry. English interests, E. J. Enthoven & Co., have
a smelter producing about 25,000 short tons of lead annually. All the
smelting companies have made a combination to stop competition in ore
buying. The Spanish government imposes a duty of about $1.80 per ton on
lead concentrates exported.
=Australia.=--Smelting plants in Australia that produce lead have the
capacities shown below.
----------------------+-----------------------------+----------------
| |1913 production,
| | short tons
Company | Location | pig lead
----------------------+-----------------------------+----------------
Broken Hill Associated| |
Smelters |Port Pirie, South Australia | 92,824
Sulphide Corporation |Cockle Creek, New South Wales| 19,660
| +----------------
Total | | 112,484
----------------------+-----------------------------+----------------
The annual capacity of the Port Pirie plant is now 165,000 short tons
of pig lead.
TABLE 56.--SILVER LEAD SMELTERS IN MEXICO
----------------------------------+--------------+----------+---------
| | | Annual
| | | capacity
| | Number of| tons of
Company | Location | furnaces | charge
----------------------------------+--------------+----------+---------
American Smelting & Refining Co. |Monterrey | 7 | 410,000
American Smelting & Refining Co. |Aguascalientes| 1 (lead) | 40,000
American Smelting & Refining Co. |Chihuahua | 7 | 400,000
American Smelters Securities Co. |Velardeña | 3 | 150,000
Compañia de Minerales y Metales |Cerralvo | 2 | 35,000
Compañia de Minerales y Metales |Guadalupe, | 1 | 70,000
|N. L. | |
Compañia Fundadora y Refinadora de| | |
Monterrey (leased to American | | |
Metal Co.) |Monterrey | 4 (or 8?)| 210,000
Compañia Metalurgica Mexicana |San Luis |10 | 250,000
(Towne) |Potosi | |
Compañia de Minerales y Metales | | |
(reported about to be dismantled) |Torreon | 9 | 350,000
Compañia Minera de Peñoles |Mapimi | 6 | 350,000
Mazapil Copper Co., Ltd. (English)|Saltillo, | |
|Coahuila | 1 | 36,000
| +----------+---------
Total | |51 |2,301,000
----------------------------------+--------------+----------+---------
=Mexico.=--Practically all the Mexican smelting works are owned and
operated by American companies. Prior to the war several of these
were controlled by German interests through the American Metal Co.
(incorporated in the United States), but the action of the Alien
Property Custodian eliminated all foreign control in those companies,
which comprise Compañia Minera de Peñoles, Compañia de Minerales y
Metales, and Compañia Metalurgica de Torreon, leaving only the Compañia
Fundadora y Refinadora de Monterrey still under German control. The
American Metal Co. normally controlled 60,000 to 75,000 tons of bonded
Mexican lead and 12,000 to 15,000 tons of lead smelted in Mexico,
together with over a thousand tons of antimonial lead.
The Aguascalientes and Velardeña plants are chiefly copper smelters.
There are small lead smelters at Terrazas and Santa Rosalia, Chihuahua,
but they are probably abandoned.
=British Isles.=--During the war the British lead-smelting capacity
is reported to have been increased. Before the war a large amount of
foreign lead bullion from Spain, Belgium and Germany was desilverized
in the British Isles.
=Other Countries.=--The lead-smelting plants of _France_ escaped
destruction during the war, being outside the war zone. The capacity
of the Pontgibaud plant was greatly increased. They are all French
owned. The most important lead smelting plant in _Italy_ is that of
the Societa di Pertusola (English), with a pig-lead output in 1915 of
16,625 metric tons; the other plant is that of the Societa di Monteponi
(Italian), with an output of 5,187 tons. The only lead smelting of
_Greece_ is that of the Compagnie des Mines de Laurium (French).
The only important lead smelter of _Canada_ is that of Trail, British
Columbia, which is controlled by the Canadian government. This plant
includes a refinery using the Betts electrolytic process.
The only lead smelter in _Turkey_ is one controlled by French
interests, that of the Société des Mines de Balia-Kara-Aidin, at
Kara-Aidin. The lead smelting plant of the Burma Mines Corporation,
Ltd., at Bawdwin, _Burma_, has a capacity of 22,000 short tons lead.
In _Siberia_ the Ridder Mining Co., controlled by the Irtysh
Corporation, of London, has constructed 165 miles of railroad,
which, together with river transport, brings the ore from the Ridder
concession and the coal of the Ekibastus coal fields to the smelting
plant at Ermak, which has a capacity of 15,000 tons of lead annually.
=Trade Combinations.=--National and even international control of the
lead market has at times been attained through marketing organizations
or trade combinations of reduction works, ore-buying and metal-selling
agencies with interlocking directorates, joint ownership, and long-term
contracts for ores, concentrates, and metals.
In 1909 the so-called Lead Convention, or officially the International
Sales Association, was formed in Paris. It was composed of German,
Spanish, and Belgian producers and metal-selling agencies controlling
directly about one-half of the European production. Some companies not
nominally in the association acted in concert with it. This convention
was renewed in 1910 and again in 1913 for three years. The association
was dominated by the same interests as the German Zinc Syndicate,--the
Merton group, comprising the Metallgesellschaft, the Metallbank and
Metallurgische Gesellschaft of Frankfort and the Merton companies
of London; Beer, Sondheimer & Co., controlling a dozen German metal
and chemical concerns, and Aron Hirsch & Sohn at Halberstadt. The
Merton group of London and Frankfort were the selling agents of the
association, and the dominant “Trio,” through the Australian Metal Co.,
controlled the lead exported as metal or concentrates from Australia.
In the United States and Mexico all lead exported was controlled by the
American Metal Co., affiliated with the association, or the American
Smelting & Refining Co., acting in concert with it. The German “Trio”
maintained and was rapidly extending and strengthening its ascendancy
throughout the world through banks, holding companies, affiliations
with syndicates and cartels, interlocking directorates, joint share
holdings and purchase in whole or in part of mines and smelters.
Some of the English lead refineries were closely associated with the
Convention, and all lead exported from the Port Pirie smelter was sold
by Merton & Co. The association was able to fix the price of lead
in Europe and thus affect the output and, it has been claimed, so
manipulated the market that lead outside the Convention was controlled
just as effectively as that inside. The membership was international,
brought together by mercenary motives. That the strongest and most
aggressive interests were German citizens was purely incidental.
As a result of the war, however, the production of Australian lead
concentrates and bullion is permanently diverted from German control.
The activities of the Alien Property Custodian tended to eliminate
all German interests in the United States. Most of the Australian
lead bullion production is now marketed by the Broken Hill Associated
Smelters, Prop., Ltd., of whose capital stock the Broken Hill
Proprietary owns one-third and the Broken Hill South, Broken Hill
North, and Zinc Corporation each own two-ninths. The plant of this
company is now the largest smelter in the world.
The nationalist movement in France resulted in the formation of trade
associations known as “consortiums,” comprising the principal factor in
each industry. These “consortiums,” were recognized by the government,
and each was made virtually arbiter of its particular field. The
consortium of the mineral industry has been perfected into the Société
Minerals et Metaux, 154 Boulevard Hausmann, Paris. The official
announcement states that this society is organized under the auspices
of the French government in order to group the French metal producers
operating both at home and abroad into a co-operative association for
the purchase and sale of metallurgical products.
The participants comprise the principal companies in France producing
or refining metals and also the mining and smelting companies
controlled by French capital in Spain, Algeria, Tunis, and other
foreign countries. A highly centralized organization of that part of
the mineral and metal industry under French control is thus achieved
for mutual protection and advantage in competition with other
nationalities. Members of this organization will produce most of the
ore from Algiers and Tunis and probably 75 per cent. of the Spanish
lead bullion. The present annual output of the participating companies
is about 200,000 metric tons of lead, 50,000 metric tons of zinc, and
40,000 tons of copper, besides iron, antimony, platinum, etc. The
association comprises the following companies: Société Minière et
Metallurgique de Penarroya; Société d’Affinage de Metaux; Compagnie
des Mines d’Ain-Barbar; Association Minière; Société des Mines de Zinc
d’Ain-Arko; Compagnie du Boleo; Compagnie Française des Mines de Bor;
Corocoro United Copper Mines, Ltd.; Société des Mines de Fedj-el-Adoum;
Société des Mines de Zinc de Guergour; Compagnie des Mines de Huaron;
Société Minière du Kanguet; Compagnie des Minerais de Fer Magnetique
de Mokta-et-Hadid; Comptoir Lyon Allemand; Société Anonyme des Mines
de Malfidano; Compagnie des Mines d’Ouasta et de Desloula; Société des
Mines de Parzan; Compagnie Industrielle du Platine; Société Anonyme
des Mines et Fonderies de Pontgibaud; Société des Mines d’Antimoine
de Rochetrejoux; Société des Anciens Etablissements Sopwith;
Société Française d’Etudes et d’Enterprises; Société des Mines du
Djebel-Ressas; Société Anonyme Française du Djebel-Hallouf; Société
Anonyme des Mines et Usines de Peyrebrune; and Compagnie La Cruz.
One of the results of the war was the stimulation of co-operative
enterprises between British companies, the movement being encouraged
by the government, which in some cases participated financially. The
British Australian Lead Manufacturers Proprietary, Ltd., was formed
as a consolidation of the Australian interests of British firms, with
the object of establishing a white-lead industry in that country.
Those participating comprise: Alexander Ferguson & Co.; Cookson & Co.;
Foster, Blockett & Wilson; Locke, Blockett & Co.; Locke-Lancaster; W.
W. & R. Johnson & Sons, Ltd.; Mersey White Lead Co., Ltd.; and Walkers
Parker & Co.
The Chloride Syndicate comprising the Zinc Corporation, Ltd., Burma
Mines Corporation, and the Swansea Vale Smelter, Ltd., is conducting
experimental work on the Ganlin process with the object of perfecting
it.
Richard Tilden Smith, having acquired controlling interests in J. H.
Enthoven & Sons, Locke-Lancaster, Walkers Parker & Co. and a one-third
interest in the Burma Mines Corporation, became a strong link between
these important companies and thus secured an arrangement with the
Imperial Government for financial assistance with the new plant of the
National Smelting Co., Ltd., at Avonmouth to the extent of £500,000
out of the total estimated cost of £750,000, the government being
particularly interested in the production of by-product acid. The
National Smelting Co. agreed to take 25,000 tons yearly of Broken Hill
concentrate and smelt no foreign ore without government permission.
Enthoven & Sons control through ownership the output of one of the
Spanish smelters and through desilverizing and marketing contracts the
output of the French Laurium company of Greece. An attempt to bring
about a closer combination of all the above-mentioned English and
Australian companies failed.
It is reported that in 1917 Vivian, Younger & Bond, and Morgan,
Grenfeld & Co. were instrumental in forming a “Metal Bank” in London.
Broken Hill Associated Smelters Prop. Ltd., and the Penarroya company
were said to have agreed to market their production through this bank,
but it is probable that the arrangement was never made effective. A
Chemical and Metallurgical Bank has been formed in London, among the
shareholders being Richard Tilden Smith. Its proposed field is not
clear, but it will probably endeavor to influence the control of lead
in the United Kingdom.
A British Metals Corporation was formed in 1918 by Vivian, Younger &
Bond, Chas. Tennant Sons & Co., Cookson & Co., the British Aluminum
Co., Morgan, Grenfeld & Co., and large stockholders of the Rio Tinto
Co., with a capital of £5,000,000. The Imperial Treasury will be
represented on the board of directors. The purposes are to finance
British non-ferrous metal companies, bring all the production within
the empire of those metals under one marketing organization and
preserve British control. If plans are successfully carried out, the
smelting both in England and on the Continent of Europe, should any
British concentrates be allotted there, will practically be on toll,
the metal remaining in the control of the Metals Corporation or the
affiliated bank.
POSITION OF THE GREAT NATIONS
The accompanying table presents available statistics of production
since 1913 in order to show the extent to which the industry in each
country is controlled by domestic or foreign capital, and attempts to
show the extent of commercial control by each of the great powers. Such
statistics are at best only approximate; the control varies from year
to year and the data are difficult to obtain and verify.
TABLE 57.--COMMERCIAL CONTROL OF THE WORLD’S OUTPUT OF PIG LEAD
----------+---------+----+-----+--------------------------------------
| Recent | | |
| pig-lead| | | Financial control by
| pro- | | Per +------+-------+-------+-------+-------
| duction| |cent.| Home | | | |
| (short | | of | cap- | United| Great | |
Country | tons) |Year|world| ital | States|Britain| France|Germany
----------+---------+----+-----+------+-------+-------+-------+-------
United | | | | | | | |
States | 612,200|1917| 44.6| ... |612,200| | |
Australia | 127,800|1913| 9.4| ... | ... |127,800| |
British | | | | | | | |
Isles | 12,600|1916| 0.9| ... | ... | 12,600| |
Canada | 20,400|1916| 1.5| ... | ... | 20,400| |
Burma | 20,000|1917| 1.5| ... | ... | 20,000| |
France | 30,800|1913| 2.2| ... | ... | ... | 30,800|
Italy | 24,000| ...| 1.8| 5,700| ... | 18,300| |
Belgium | 39,400|1913| 2.9|15,000| ... | ... | 24,400|
Venezuela | 200|1917| ...| ... | ... | ... | ... | 200
Bolivia | 2,400|1917| 0.2| 400| ... | ... | 2,000|
Greece | 12,800|1916| 0.9| ... | ... | ... | 12,800|
Japan | 12,300|1916| 0.9|12,300| | | |
Peru | 3,000|1917| 0.2| 500| 500| 2,000| |
Russia | 1,100|1913| 0.1| 1,100| | | |
Chile | 6,000|1917| 0.4| 3,000| ... | 1,000| ... | 2,000
Mexico | 61,200|1913| 4.4| ... | 53,200| 8,000| |
Spain | 157,000|1917| 11.4|20,000| ... | 25,000|105,000| 7,000
Sweden | 2,100|1915| 0.1| 1,100| ... | ... | ... | 1,000
Germany | 200,000|1913| 14.5| ... | ... | ... | ... |200,000
Austria- | | | | | | | |
Hungary | 26,600|1913| 1.9|26,600| | | |
+---------+----+-----+------+-------+-------+-------+-------
Total |1,371,900| ...|100.0| |665,900|235,100|175,000|210,200
+---------+----+-----+------+-------+-------+-------+-------
Per cent. | | | | | | | |
of world | | | | | | | |
produc- | | | | | | | |
tion. | | |100.0| | 48.6 | 17.2 | 12.7 | 16.3
----------+---------+----+-----+------+-------+-------+-------+-------
=United States.=--During the war the United States demonstrated
that its lead-ore deposits were capable of a production greatly in
excess of the normal. That the increase was not greater was chiefly
because of insufficient incentive in the market price of lead, which
did not attain the early inflation of many of the other metals; and
later, when the price was right, was restricted by lack of refining
capacity. The existing capacity was at times not fully utilized because
of the congestion of railway traffic. The lead-ore deposits in the
United States have large possibilities, but with the exception of the
disseminated lead deposits of southeastern Missouri the developed ore
reserves will supply production for only a few years. Control of the
mines in the United States is vested almost exclusively in Americans
or American companies, some of the latter, however, having foreign
stockholders, chiefly British or Canadian.
The United States imports lead ores, to a small percentage of its
total production, from Mexico, Canada, South America and Africa. The
Mexican ore is largely imported to meet the especial needs of the El
Paso lead smelter, and not because of lack of smelting capacity in
Mexico. The smelting capacity of the United States has always been
in excess of the actual production of ore and is now very greatly in
excess of the normal production. The ownership of most of the important
smelters has always been vested in American capital, and as a result
of the activity of the Alien Property Custodian all of them are now
owned and controlled by American citizens. A considerable amount of
lead bullion is imported, chiefly from Mexico, for refining. Most
of this is re-exported. United States capital through ownership of
smelters controls the greater part of the pig lead produced in Mexico
and Peru. The importation of ore and bullion for refining from Canada
is restricted by the government bounty on lead smelted and refined in
Canada. United States capital also controls a considerable percentage
of the mines of Mexico and has some interest in the Burma Mines
Corporation, and the Irtysh Corporation.
Notwithstanding the enlarged smelting capacity and the possibilities
of production from American mines, it is not expected that there
will be any considerable export of domestic lead after the period of
readjustment following the World War.
=British Empire.=--The countries of the British Empire in the order
of the importance of their lead output in 1913 are Australia, British
Isles, Canada, Burma, and Egypt.
British capital controls the mines and smelters of the British Isles,
Canada, Australia, Burma, and the Altai Mountains in Siberia, and, by
ownership of mines and smelters, some 25,000 tons of lead annually from
Spain and over 70 per cent. of the production of Italy. By contracts
for desilverization and marketing it has controlled the greater part of
the Spanish output and part of the production of Greece. It is reported
also to control small tonnages of ore from Peru and Chile. In view of
the recent increase of refining capacity in Spain by the Penarroya
company (French), and the organization of all French interests into
the Société Minerais et Metaux, future control by English capital of
Spanish output above the 25,000 tons produced by the English smelter
is doubtful, although it has been reported that the Penarroya company
had agreed to market its lead through the new Metal Bank of London.
Prior to the war much base bullion from Spain, Belgium, and Germany was
imported and desilverized, and in large part re-exported.
The ore production of the British Empire is about 25 per cent. greater
than its consumption, but insufficient smelting capacity has caused
dependence on foreign-smelted lead. The smelting capacity has been
increased, and the additional capacity contemplated will make the total
equal the consumption. The empire can be made independent of the rest
of the world should the policy of “Imperial preference” be adopted.
All the large interests in the lead industry of the British Empire
have shown during the war period a strong tendency to co-operate and
organize for mutual protection and benefit. A culmination of this
movement is apparently the formation of the British Metals Corporation,
intended to vest the marketing control of the production of the whole
British Empire in one organization under governmental auspices.
_Australia._--The Australian production of lead ore and concentrates,
derived chiefly from New South Wales, makes Australia rank second in
world production of lead ores. In 1913 little more than half the output
was exported to Europe for smelting, the remainder being smelted at
Cockle Creek and Port Pirie. The pig lead produced, less a small local
consumption, was also exported.
Australian mines have always been owned by British and Australian
capital. Prior to the war the marketing of concentrates and of all lead
bullion exported was controlled by the Australian Metal Co., affiliated
with the German metal “Trio” headed by the Metallgesellschaft. During
the war, however, the governments of Great Britain and Australia
annulled the long-time ore- and metal-purchasing contracts, and the ore
producers and smelters have organized for mutual protection and to keep
the industry permanently under exclusive British control. The capacity
of the Port Pirie reduction works has been increased by capital
contributed jointly by the principal mining companies, and the plant is
now the largest lead smelter in the world.
_British Isles._--The small output of lead ore in Great Britain is
obtained from a few scattered deposits of little importance. Some ore
is imported and smelted with the domestic production. The consumption
of the British Isles is so large that very large imports of pig lead
are necessary, amounting to 14 per cent. of the world’s production.
All of the mines and smelters of the British Isles are owned and
controlled, so far as known, by British capital.
_Canada._--With the assistance, through bounties, of the Canadian
government, the Trail smelter has become firmly established and is the
only important lead producer of Canada. It handles most of the British
Columbia output of ores, which otherwise would have to go to the United
States for reduction. The Canadian consumption is, however, about
one-third greater than the production.
_Burma._--Although the production of ore and pig lead in the Northern
Shan States by the Burma Mines Corporation was in 1913 an insignificant
part of the world’s output, the company has developed its deposits so
as to be capable of a very much greater yield, which may amount in the
near future to 75,000 tons annually. This company is controlled by
British with probably some American capital.
_Egypt._--The small ore production of Egypt is exported for smelting
and is controlled by French capital.
=Germany.=--Germany, a large producer of lead ores, imported in 1913
for smelting nearly 10 per cent. of the world’s output and in addition
imported a considerable amount of pig lead, being the second largest
consumer of lead in the world. Should Germany lose Upper Silesia, which
produced nearly half the domestic ores, it will be still more dependent
on imports to supply its smelters. Prior to the war the German lead
industry was closely organized, much of the lead mining and smelting
being conducted by departments of the state governments, although some
of the largest concerns were private corporations. The German metal
“Trio” headed by the Metallgesellschaft through the International
Sales Association controlled directly about one-half the European
production, comprising in this so-called Lead Convention, besides the
German concerns, most of the Spanish and Belgian producers, most of the
lead exported from the United States and Mexico, and the pig lead and
concentrates exported from Australia. This system of control outside of
Germany has now been permanently destroyed, and the magnitude and the
organization of the German lead industry in the near future cannot be
anticipated.
=France.=--In France the output of lead ore is small and is controlled,
with probably one exception, by French capital. Some ores are imported
for smelting, Tunis and Algeria being capable of supplying even more.
To provide for the large consumption, France ranking fourth among
lead-consuming countries, there is imported in the form of pig lead
some 7 per cent. of the world’s output. Recently smelting capacity has
been increased. French capital controls more than half the production
of Belgium through ownership of smelters, and through ownership of
mines and smelters controls more than half the production of Spain
and most, if not all, of the output of Greece. It also controls the
ore production of Egypt and most of the ores produced in Algeria and
Tunis. Under government auspices a strong organization of all the
metal-producing companies controlled by French capital in France
and foreign countries has recently been effected under the name of
the Société Minerais et Metaux, which controls the sale of all the
production of its members, as well as acting as a purchasing agent for
them.
=Belgium.=--Belgium produces no ores but smelts about 4¹⁄₂ per cent.
of the world’s output, nearly the whole of which is consumed within
her borders. A little less than half of this production is controlled
by Belgian capital, the remainder by French interests. Belgian capital
is also interested to a minor extent in Spain, Algeria, the Caucasus
Mountains and Tunis. It is believed that a part of the Australian
concentrates may be allotted to Belgium for smelting.
=Italy.=--The Italian ore production, amounting to about 2 per cent. of
the world’s total, is smelted in that country. The product is consumed,
together with about 50 per cent. more, imported as pig lead. More than
three-fourths of the domestic output is controlled by English capital;
nearly all the remainder is controlled by Italian capital, but other
English, French and Belgian companies produce insignificant amounts of
ore.
=Austria-Hungary.=--The Austro-Hungarian Empire produced and smelted
ores to the amount of about 2 per cent. of the world’s output in 1913,
and consumed this with about 50 per cent. more metal imported in the
form of pig lead. The several lead-producing districts and smelters,
some of which belong to the states of Austria and Hungary, with the
partition of the empire fall within three or more distinct political
jurisdictions, the lead production of none of which will be of
importance. One of the important lead smelters is at Fiume.
=Spain.=--Spain ranks third in _content_ of ores produced and second
in smelter production. The domestic consumption being negligible, all
of the lead is exported. Prior to the war most of the production went
to England to be desilverized. During the war, however, the refining
capacity of Spain was greatly increased, and it now seems likely that
any silver lead which the domestic plants can not take care of will
be shipped to France for desilverization. More than half the Spanish
production is controlled by French capital, and to a minor degree by
Belgian and German interests.
=Japan.=--Japanese lead-ore resources are meagre. The output of lead
ore and pig lead in 1913 was about 25 per cent. of the domestic
consumption. Since then ores and concentrates have been imported from
China, Formosa, Korea, Siberia, and Australia, but importation of pig
lead has still been necessary. The Japanese are endeavoring to secure
control of ore deposits in China and Siberia, and supply the raw
material for the increase of their domestic smelting and manufacturing
industries. It is probable, however, that Japan will be dependent for
many years on imports from other sources for most of the lead consumed.
SUMMARY
The chief uses of lead are as metal and in the form of white lead or
basic carbonate, as a pigment. Metallic lead is used for water pipe,
covering for electrical cables, lining acid chambers and vats, and for
shot, bullets and shrapnel. Alloys with various other metals are used
in type, bearings, and fuses. The red and orange oxides are used for
pigments. The largest single form of consumption is white lead.
Lead and zinc ores are commonly associated and are widely distributed
over the world. Galena is the chief lead mineral, the other ore
minerals, cerussite and anglesite, being derived from it by oxidation.
Galena is a persistent mineral, being found in nearly all types of
ore deposits. The countries producing the most ore are, in order of
importance, United States, Australia, Spain, Germany, and Mexico.
Districts of major importance are Broken Hill, New South Wales;
southeastern Spain; southeastern Missouri; and Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
The developments in selective oil flotation, by which the detrimental
zinc content is eliminated from complex ores and made an asset,
constitute the greatest recent advance in the dressing of lead ores.
Electrolytic refining is the greatest recent advance in the metallurgy
of lead.
The readiness with which lead is reduced from its ores and its utility
as a collector of the precious metals in smelting have resulted in a
wide distribution of reduction plants. Nevertheless a large percentage
of the world’s output of ores is transported from the countries of
origin to others, for reduction near the market and where skilled labor
and fuel are more abundant and cheaper.
The countries of largest smelter production are, in order, United
States, Spain, Germany and Australia; those of much less importance are
Mexico, Belgium, Great Britain, France, Austria-Hungary, Italy, Greece,
Canada and, recently, Burma. Other countries are of little importance.
The countries of major consumption are, in order, United States,
Germany, Great Britain, and France. The United States produces its own
requirements, but the other three countries import ores for smelting
and also pig lead in large quantity. Australia and northern Africa have
supplied the bulk of the ores, and Spain, Australia, and Mexico most of
the pig lead. This is the situation at last analysis, the actual trade
movement being, of course, much more complex.
The political control of the world’s lead production, in terms of the
lead content of ores, in 1913 was as follows: United States, 36.0 per
cent.; British Empire, 23.9 per cent.; Spain, 6.4 per cent.; Germany,
5.9 per cent.; Mexico, 5.1 per cent.; and France, 4.0 per cent. Three
powers thus control 76 per cent. of the production.
The ownership of mines is important chiefly as determining the
distribution of ores to smelters. Ore-purchasing contracts may modify
or annul the effect of political jurisdiction and mine ownership. The
ownership or control of reduction plants has been the most effective
basis for commercial control of the industry. In the United States the
American Smelting & Refining Co. dominates the market, but controls
directly only one-third of the output. In Spain the French company of
Penarroya controls more than half the production. In Germany the “Trio”
headed by the Metallgesellschaft controlled the domestic industry prior
to the war, and through the “Lead Convention” extended its domination
to half the European output and most of the exports of Australia,
Mexico, and the United States. This control was, however, never
absolute. In Australia at present the Broken Hill Associated Smelters
controls the marketing of most of the pig lead exported.
Joint political and commercial control has been established in the
British Empire and France. During the war, political jurisdiction was
quite generally invoked to modify or eliminate commercial control,
particularly with regard to alien-enemy interests.
The various combinations of British companies to insure British control
of the resources of the empire, particularly of Australia and Burma,
culminated in the formation of the British Metals Corporation for the
sale of the output. A representative of the Imperial Treasury will be
on the board of directors and either the Metal Bank of London or the
Chemical & Metallurgical Bank may finance its operation, unless it
absorbs their functions. This organization is doubtless intended to
take the place of the Metallgesellschaft as the dominant factor in the
lead industry of the world. It will have much influence, as British
capital controls all the production of the British Isles, Australia,
Burma, Canada, and normally Siberia, most of that of Italy, part of
that of Spain and Mexico, and perhaps of Greece. Probably the British
Isles will not in the future desilverize as much foreign lead as
formerly, so that the importance of this basis of commercial control
will be greatly decreased.
The Société Minerais et Metaux, comprising all producers controlled by
French capital, under government auspices is selling and purchasing
agent for its members, and controls all the French and most of the
Grecian production, more than half of that of Spain and Belgium,
besides the ores of northern Africa and of Egypt.
Since the elimination of alien-enemy holdings by the Alien Property
Custodian, United States capital controls substantially all the
domestic production and nearly all that of Mexico, besides some ores
imported from Mexico, Canada, and South America. Notwithstanding large
ore reserves and reduction capacity, the United States is expected,
after the period of readjustment, to supply its domestic needs, but to
export little lead, as was the case prior to the war.
The position of Germany will depend largely upon arrangements for
foreign ore supply. Some Mexican ore production may still be under
German control. Belgium is wholly dependent on foreign ore, which
presumably will be obtained largely from Australia; and with more than
half her production controlled by French capital, she will be under
British and French domination; but she consumes most of her smelter
output. Italy consumes 50 per cent. more than the domestic production,
which is chiefly controlled by English capital. None of the states
formed by the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Empire will be of
importance in the lead industry.
The commercial control of the smelter production of lead, calculated
from the latest statistics available, is approximately as follows:
United States, 48.6 per cent.; British Empire, 17.2 per cent.; Germany,
15.3 per cent.; and France, 12.7 per cent.; or a total for the four
powers of 93.8 per cent. of the pig-lead output of the world.