value
than the ore actually contained. The same class of producers
occasionally also misunderstand the question and report net instead of
gross proceeds. (3) There is always a certain small percentage of the
product which can not be obtained from the miners. This includes the
output of scattered individual placer workers, often aliens; some of
this is estimated on the basis of mint deposits by traders and banks,
but a little invariably escapes detection. There are, further, cases
where the property is not continuously operated and the owner can not
be found. There is, lastly, the ore and amalgam stolen by
"highgraders," which takes away a notable fraction of the production
of mines containing rich ore. Through small assay offices or improvised
chlorination plants this gold finds its way to the mints or refining
works. Gold and silver from old metallurgical by-products are also apt
to escape notice. Taken together, the three items explained above will
probably compensate for the losses in smelting and refining.
In
general, the response from the mine owners is extremely gratifying and
indicates that they realize that the' individual returns are held
strictly confidential, while they profit from an exact knowledge of the
aggregate production and by correct reports of the state of the
industry. Careful investigation has shown that willful misstatements
are very rare, and, as already noted, the replies are more likely to be
too low than too high. The only difficulty experienced in obtaining
returns for 1908 was in Alaska, where the character and isolation of
many of the mines militates against exact reports.
COMPARISON OF MINT REPORT AND MINES REPORT.
Both
of the plans outlined above for the collection of statistics are
admittedly open to some objections, but it may be questioned whether it
would be practicable to make them wholly consistent and logical. The
most important difference between the two reports is that, though
covering the same time interval, they do not quite cover the same
period of ore extraction, the mines report being as much as three or
four months in advance of the mint report. The mill and placer bullion
reaches mints and refineries soon after its production, and it does not
require a long time to obtain it from the ore; but in smelting, and
especially in custom work, several months may pass before the refined
metals come on the market. Sampling, shipping, mixing, roasting,
smelting, shipment to refinery, and refining—all these operations take
time to perform.
The
figures obtained by the two methods will agree, within certain limits
of error, if the mining and smelting industries are carried on
uniformly and at the same rate. But important disturbing factors may
result in marked discrepancies between the two sets of figures, each
one being a correct statement in itself. Especially is this so when
abnormal conditions appear near the beginning or close of the calendar
year. In time the discrepancies will balance if the reports are
intrinsically correct.
In
complicated statistical work small errors are unavoidable. In the mines
report, according to previous explanations, the totals of gold and
silver are probably slightly lower than the actual figures. In the
report based on smelter and refinery reports the tendency is
