the mountain side, the veins again crop to the surface, and locations are strung out from this point over another high range and through valleys and over ridges to Taku Inlet, a distance of fully eight miles. On this end are the Star of Bethlehem, Last Chance, Sheridan, and Little Queen locations, which show some very rich gray copper ores. There

is no doubt of the development of this basin into one of the leading quartz camps of Alaska.

Shuck Bay has produced large amounts of placer gold in past years, though now its leads are attracting considerable attention. Of these the Red Wing group is most advanced in development, located in Shuck Basin and owned by the Windham Bay Gold Mining Company. This property was located several years ago by William Ebner, of Juneau, and others, and considerable development work has been done on the same. The ore is of a free-milling nature, carrying iron and zinc blende, galena, a trace of copper in combination with gold, and a small percentage of silver.

While the first auriferous quartz discovered in Alaska was found near Sitka, mining operations have never been vigorously prosecuted in Sitka district. During the past season considerable interest has been manifested and several very promising groups of claims have been bonded to Eastern capitalists, and the coming season will witness a great deal of development work.

The richness of the surface prospects in Sumdum district, fifty miles south of Juneau, has inspired the gold seeker with great hope for the future of the many located in the vicinity, and the promise has been fulfilled in every instance where development has been made. Most conspicuously is this true in the case of the Bald Eagle mine, which, a mere prospect four years ago, has become one of the richest and best paying properties on the Pacific coast. The ores carry very little free gold, the values lying entirely in sulphurates, these being principally pyrites, though both zinc and lead sulphurates are present in considerable quantities, the octagonal sulphurate predominating, this being the richest of all quartz, wherever found. A crusher at the mouth of the adit discharges its product into a flume, which conveys it to the mill, nearly a mile distant, at a nominal cost for handling; and its richness may be estimated by the fact that the four stamps in four days less than six months produced concentrates valued at a round $100,000, or nearly $17,000 per month. The average value of all ores mined is $30 per ton.

Admiralty Island, one of the largest of the Alexander Archipelago, lies south of Juneau. It is separated from the mainland coast by a narrow channel, and its mineral belt is in common with that of Douglas Island, lying north of it. A number of claims have been located upon its ledges, which vary in character from low to medium grade, and in size from mere stringers to immense deposits, approaching or even exceeding that of the great Treadwell. Funter Bay, on the west side of the island, is one of the most promising locations.

Upon Douglas Island there are now dropping 480 stamps in the mills

of the Treadwell and the Mexican companies, the first of which has made this island famous the world over. The reef upon which these mills are located extends two-thirds the length of the island, and upon it have been located numerous claims. The Treadwell has recently let a contract for the erection of 520 additional stamps, which, when in operation, will make this group of mines the largest that the mining world has ever seen.

Like the mother lode of California, the mother lode of Alaska, or the great mineral belt which extends along the coast of southeastern Alaska, just back from the water's edge, and which never fails to pay the careful prospector, has of course its spots of unusually rich value. At Berners Bay, forty miles north of Juneau, on Lynn Canal, there was discovered some years ago ore of splendid promise. The principal mines in this very rich district are those of the Berners Bay Mining and Milling Company, the Jualin Mining and Milling Company, and the Portland and Alaska Mining and Milling Company. The Aurora Borealis has recently erected a five-stamp mill on its property in this district, which will soon be ready for operation. The character of the Aurora is free milling, and is said to be one of the most extensive and richest paying veins in the district. The Mellin Mining and Manufacturing Company of Berners Bay will soon erect a twenty stamp mill on its property.

Many valuable locations have been made in the Ketchikan district, though no mills have yet been erected. It is one of the most promising mining districts on the coast, and is expected to add considerably to Alaska's gold output.

On the banks of Prince William Sound immense deposits of copper have been found, which bid fair to rival the famed Anaconda mine.

The mining carried on in the Lituya section is confined to the beach or ruby sand deposits that lie along the shore line, some miles distant above the entrance to the bay. The first discovery of gold was made there a number of years ago, since which time washing has been carried on to a greater or less extent every season. The Lituya Bay gold commands the price of $18 per ounce. It is fine and somewhat scaly, but, being untarnished by rust, amalgamates readily, and but a very small per cent is lost in the tailings. The gold deposited along the shores is brought there by glacial action from the range back.

In conclusion, we wish to say that but a fraction of one per cent of this rich coast has ever felt the tread of the prospector, and a valuable field for operations is open to all who may come. The great success of this section of the country has inspired the breasts of capitalists with unlimited confidence in this country, and good undeveloped prospects find a ready sale. The chief virtue of prospecting on the coast of southeastern Alaska is the ability to keep in constant communication with a distributing point for supplies and the general evenness of the climate, which is not nearly as severe as the great majority of mining settlements throughout the world.

RECENT REPORTS OF STATE BUREAUS OF LABOR STATISTICS.

IOWA.

Seventh Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the State of Iowa, 1895-1896. W. E. O'Bleness, Commissioner. 176 pp. Since the publication of the sixth biennial report the Iowa legislature has passed a new law governing the bureau of labor statistics and granting certain additional powers to the commissioner. The most important provision of this law makes it compulsory upon manufac turers and others employing five or more wage earners to furnish certain specified wage and industrial statistics when required by the commissioner.

The present report deals with the following subjects: Letter of transmittal, introduction, recommendations, etc., 18 pages; industrial statistics, 40 pages; strikes, 1 page; railroad statistics, 9 pages; the Amana Society, 13 pages; manual training schools, 11 pages; cooperative railroading, 2 pages; the Temple amendment, 83 pages.

INDUSTRIAL STATISTICS.-Tables are given showing by counties and industries, for the years 1895 and 1896, the number of male and female employees, the number of apprentices, the total yearly wages paid, and the number of weeks in operation for 1,752 establishments, representing 152 industries. In 1895 these establishments employed 42,472 males, 7,436 females, and 730 apprentices, making a total of 50,638. In 1896 there were employed 40,854 males, 7,732 females, and 687 apprentices, or a total of 49,273. This shows a falling off in 1896 of 1,365 persons. In the number of females employed, however, there was an increase of 296 persons in 1896.

The total amount of wages paid in these 1,752 establishments also shows a decrease. In 1895 this item amounted to $18,119,080, and in 1896 to $17,369,622, or a decrease of $749,458.

The establishments were, on an average, in operation on full time and with full force 42 weeks in 1895 and 40 weeks in 1896; on short or reduced time with reduced force 5 weeks in 1895 and 8 weeks in 1896. The average time during which business was entirely suspended was 5 weeks in 1895 and 4 weeks in 1896.

The industry paying the greatest amount in wages was that of coal mining, being $3,592,029 in 1895 and $3,257,215 in 1896. Next in importance, as regards this item of wages, was the sash and door manufacturing industry, the wage payments for this industry being $1,299,627 in 1895 and $1,217,485 in 1896. The other industries whose

wage payments aggregated over half a million dollars during the year 1896 were the newspaper, printing, and binding industries, $988,823; wholesale groceries, $747,884; pork packing, $688,263; and retail dry goods, $623,030.

STRIKES.-In 1895, 40 strikes were reported to the bureau, involving 2,484 persons, and resulting in a wage loss of $118,715. In 1896 there were but 13 strikes, involving 889 persons, and resulting in a wage loss of $74,025. All the strikes reported a reduction in wages as the cause of strike.

RAILROAD STATISTICS.-This consists of tables showing by groups of occupations, for the years 1895 and 1896, the number of officials and other employees in the service of the railroad companies doing business in the State, and their total yearly and average daily earnings.

During 1895, 24,107 persons were employed in the railroad industry, of whom 113 were general officers. In 1896 there were 28,165 persons so employed, of whom 132 were general officers. The following statement shows the distribution of expenditures for salaries and wages of the railroad companies during the years 1895 and 1896:

EXPENDITURES OF RAILROADS FOR SALARIES AND WAGES, 1895 AND 1896.

THE AMANA SOCIETY.-Two articles descriptive of this socialistic community are reproduced from a monthly magazine.

MANUAL TRAINING SCHOOLS.-This chapter contains reports from the superintendents of the manual training schools at West Des Moines and Mason City. They give an outline of the courses of study and systems of instruction at each school.

COOPERATIVE RAILROADING.-This contains an account of the system adopted by the Illinois Central Railroad whereby employees can acquire shares of stock in the company by making installment payments.

MASSACHUSETTS.

Twenty-seventh Annual Report of the Massachusetts Bureau of Statistics of Labor. March, 1897. Horace G. Wadlin, Chief. xv, 353 pp.

The following subjects are treated in this report: Part I, Social and industrial changes in the county of Barnstable, 104 pages; Part II, Graded weekly wages, 202 pages; Part III, Labor chronology, 1896, 47 pages.

PART I, SOCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL CHANGES IN THE COUNTY OF BARNSTABLE. This part of the report is the result of an inquiry made

by direction of the legislature, and has special reference to the immigration of Western Islanders into the county. The presentation consists of population and industrial statistics, and portrays by comparative figures the present conditions of the county and the changes that it has undergone, and indicates the means by which improvements can be made in its resources and in the welfare of its inhabitants.

PART II, GRADED WEEKLY WAGES.-This comprehensive presentation of wage statistics for the United States and foreign countries has already been reviewed in Bulletin No. 14. It is published in installments, the present report (the second installment) containing occupations having the initial letters D, E, F, and G.

PART III, LABOR CHRONOLOGY, 1896.-This chapter contains brief accounts of important events affecting labor that occurred during the year. These accounts are arranged in chronological order under each of the three heads-hours of labor, wages, and trade unions, respectively. The chapter also contains a reproduction of the labor laws passed in 1897. The following summary will give an idea of the labor movement during the year 1896:

"In the year 1896 the labor unions continued agitation for a shorter working day, increased wages, and the use of union-made goods designated by means of the label. Considerable effort was also made in the interest of organization, unions being formed in several trades hitherto unorganized. Owing to the general curtailment of production and the necessary idleness of several thousand employees, the labor unions were particularly beneficial by paying to members a fixed sum weekly, thus supplying a means of living in place of loss of employment. The labor laws enacted by the legislature during the past year were due chiefly to the labor unions. The settlement of labor difficulties by the principle of arbitration was adhered to more strictly than in previous years. The principal subjects receiving the indorsement of organized labor were the abolition of contract labor on public works, raising of the compulsory school age, further restriction of hours of labor for women and children, the extension of factory laws to mercantile establishments. New members reported admitted to various unions numbered 1,637, a slight increase over the preceding year. New organizations formed numbered 34, with 1,454 charter members. These figures are probably less than the actual number."