The _Metallarbeiter_ remarks that metals have in most cases experienced a
reduction in value of late years, this depreciation being attributed in
some measure to the cheaper methods of obtaining metals as well as to the
discovery of new sources of mineral wealth.
The following comparative table shows the approximate prices of various
metals in December, 1874, and December, 1884:
Dec., 1874. Dec., 1884.
Per lb. Per lb.
£ s d. £ s. d.
Osmium 71 10 0 62 0 0
Iridium 70 0 0 45 0 0
Gold 62 15 0 63 0 0
Platinum 25 7 6 21 7 6
Thallium 23 17 6 4 15 0
Magnesium 10 5 0 1 15 0
Potassium 5 0 0 4 0 0
Silver 3 17 6 (in Hamburg) 3 7 6
Aluminum 1 16 0 1 16 0
Cobalt 1 14 0 1 2 0
Sodium 0 14 2 0 8 8
Nickel 0 11 0 0 3 1
Bismuth 0 8 1 0 8 1
Cadmium 0 7 1 0 4 0
Quicksilver 0 2 0 (in London) 0 1 9
Tin 0 1 1 (in Berlin) 0 0 9
Copper 0 0 10 (" " ) 0 0 7
Arsenic 0 0 8 0 0 4-1/2
Antimony 0 0 6-1/4 (" " ) 0 0 5
Lead 0 0 2-3/4 (" " ) 0 0 1-3/8
Zinc 0 0 2-1/2 (" " ) 0 0 1-3/4
Steel 0 0 1-3/8 ( in 0 0 0-3/4
Bar iron 0 0 1-1/8 Upper 0 0 0-5/8
Pig iron 0 0 0-7/16 Silesia ) 0 0 0-1/4
Gold now ranks highest in value of all metals, the competition of osmium
and iridium having been over come. It is only by reason of improved
methods of preparation that the latter have become cheaper, while their
use has at the same time increased. Iridium is mixed with platinum in
order to increase its strength and durability. The normal standards of
the metrical system are made of platinum-iridium on account of its known
immutabilty. In 1882, platinum stood 15 per cent. below its present
value; but its increased employment for industrial purposes led to the
subsequent improvement in price. Thallium has experienced a severe
depreciation on account of the economical process by which it is
extracted from the residue of the lead chambers used in the manufacture
of sulphuric acid. The use of this metal is mainly confined to
experimental purposes. The fall in silver has arisen from increased
production and diminished use for coinage.
Magnesium was scarcely of any industrial value prior to the fall in price
now recorded. Improved processes for its treatment have successfully
engaged the attention of scientific men, and it is now capable of being
used as an alloy with other metals. The Salindres factory regulates the
price to a certain extent, and its system of working is regarded as a
guide in the various processes connected with this branch of industry.
The manufacture of potassium and sodium will, it is expected, be more
fully elucidated than hitherto, by means of researches made at Schering's
Charlottenburg factory. The course of nickel prices illustrates the
stimulus to economical production afforded by an increased consumption.
This latter fact is principally due to the employment of nickel for
coinage, as alloy for alfenide, etc. The use of cadmium is materially
restricted by its relatively limited supply. Hitherto, its only source
was in the incidental products of zinc distillation, but of late it has
been attempted to bring it into solution from its oxide combinations. An
increased employment of cadmium for industrial purposes is expected to
follow.
Production in excess of the demand has caused the depreciation recorded
in tin, and various other metals not commented upon, this remark applying
even to the scarce metals, arsenic and antimony. Even the better marks of
Cornwall tin and Mansfield refined copper have had to follow the downward
course of the market.
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