Document m9aG2Kog9KggqvLL04qzQEzQ

> ...... . w WI.Iw w>-mw H i f l l ^i<<jl'JIf i m i m|||y-jjy I' IIIIUIM  rT' .* ,jULJupi-iBy *'y- >, 5 -v*-- * 4gfftlJPf9P "J> JMri *sr............ -.............-- -'--quff ^ LIA23099 j For Riliui February 7, 19L7 3 Address before Colorado Inins Association Denver, Colorado February 6, X9U1 : v h t ays u j j nbjpucrior is h t -t d ed gr Felix Edgar Vorxaer Secretary Lead Industrie* Asroclatloe new fork City I want to take a little tine today to tell you what happens to your lead after tie shelter settles with you and why It la highly Important nowadays to redouble your efTorts to mine existing lead ore deposit! and to discover new ones. Itinera c*0*telly are not as well acquainted as they should like to be with the narket for their ortala. This is . quite under- standable as niner* >*ve enough problens turning oot ..ictal under a constantly fluctuating ecor.caie background besides worrying abo-u v*mt hap.was to the ; i aetal after they obtain a aaelter settlement. It will be r.o surprise to you that there la currently s world wide lead shortage well advertised by the fact tiut today the price of lead is a record-breaking 13 f per lb. t:ew fork, brought about largely- by an Intense demand for the netal fraa various sources, together with a diminished supply. Perhaps you have tried to buy soee white laad recently, or a storage battery, only to have to do an extraordinary aaount of flopping In the process before beii>g successful, Thase are but two illustrations of the use of lead I 1 ]S 2001.01 '.^siasssSlS^MiA .eqjamuJJWUJ aM in u n n nl -2- which typify the a'riortage. Uan7 other important -uses of which the public eeldoa hears are just as vital to our economy, such at the use of lead for cable sheathing and gasoline, but more about than and their Import* anew later on* Last year, I tried to tell you cbout the 1mperilannts to a free r-; operation of the lead Industry In the fora of government oootrois on prices, Y uses and imports. Ill of that ws can now happily dismiss. OQos again we are almost entirely on our own. The future la largely up to us. I shall, 4 therefore, try to tell you briefly something about our peacetime position with rasped to the use of lead. I don't know of any other mstal that has the wide diversity of usss r of lead, both in metallic and ehmlcal lore, nor for that matter any othar metal which las so many Important outlets each representing a large volume of production for public consumption with only a modest aoount of replace- ability by other materials. I refer, for example, to the use of leal in storage batteries. This is at once the largest single use of lead. Practically no substitute is available, largely because it is e stagger ing probler. to serve the 26,000,030 cars on the road and the product to do tie Job must be in plentiful supply. To be sure, some competitive products such as the nickel-iron battery and tha cadmium battery, are :i known, but they have different electrical characteristics and art not available in sufficient quantity to do the Job. Therefore, look to tha continued use of large amounts of lead for storage betterlea for an in definite period. At the same time, from a cc.serration standpoint, the storage battery industry returns to the lead eualtin,, industry a large part of the metal manufactured into storage betterlea each year - at least three fourths of it. On balance, therefore, Its lsportanee as a peraaront lead consumer is not great. I think It la fair to estimate the battery requlremnta as about >30,COO tons of lead per year but of this vast tunnago only about 75,003 tone is now lead. ).'impwewmm^wFHgiwy^wa*^^ J -3- Ths second largest us* or lead Is by the electric cable Industry both for telephone toll cable, which is so well known in our metropolitan centers and nay be found stretched on poles alongside railroads through the United States, or burled in the ground, and also electric power coo* duetors for underground high tension powder coowurdcation. Tbslarge grcsrtta in tits use of telephones in ths United States, and tha prospect Of Still further growth, will require extraordinarily large mounts of leads''/.. The Aaerican Telephone & Telegraph Co. recently announced that it would a:qp>end about 12,000,000,000 to enlarge Its facilities in tha United States and that, within the next three to five years, sons 20,000 adles of tell cable will be required, 12,000 idles of it coaxial cable for telerisioa purposes, as well as for phens nessages. I an reliably inforaed that Uda prograa alone will necessitate a consnaptlon of about 125,000 tons of lead per year for telephone cable sheathing. This estimate does not take into consideration the requireaents of the power cable Industry for high tension underground Installations. About 75,000 tons of lead could be utilised for power cable construction this year* Substitution for lead in cable aanufacture can only be door with great difficulty and inconvenience. All in all it looks as if ths cable industry will require for the next few /ears sons 200,000 tons or aorw per year. Although 200,000 tons of lai aay rppear rocord-breakin^, it is approxlsately the tonnage ccnsuaed by cable eunifacturert back in 172/ and 1730 but It is far greater than the c*bla requi .*eeents of recent years when construction of all junda fall off. froa ties to ties you I war of substitutes to take ths place of lead but none, so far as Z know, are practical, considering ths engineer ing requirements of a ,ood cable installation whether for telephone or power use with stophasis on longevity or durability, fMs is not to oonclude that satisfactory substitutes stay not be ultlnataly forthecodrg. tj lil.*'e.e-tiiiijil uipywwwBjj^jg^j^j.n J is iwsm ,ji m h pp|)pyjJ.u' vw nw i j m wwwfpp^wyBpw,i ||3! I jj I m iu iiy pnijs IHyp p i m u p % -1- '1 I now wish to talk to you shout an old friend of tbs Isad nlasrs which has bsan a standby for years end forderly eooprissd the largest out 1 let, for the *lner, namely white lead, /s recently as 192k white lead i : was the leading outlet but, owing to drastic restrictions ce its use during the war, and the inability of the wldte lead corroders to precure 5 an adequate supply of pig lead today, the whita laad industry has suffered ] core than perhaps any other lead using industry in being restored to . -9 peacetime econocy. Without difficulty 100,000 tons of wtdte load, or * ore, could be sold today. It remains a market of greet lmportanoe to '* * the laad mining industry. The miners ere justified in going to extra ordinary erasures to protect its competitive position. White lead remains - unexcelled for exterior painting, but because of its relatively high cost compared with other paint pijpents there is a tendency on the part of paint manufacturers to use as little as possible of It in their formu lations. let me show you what I mean. I have here a booklet which shows the analysis of sens paints and varnishes sold In the State of K^rth Dakota, where the regrlatlortt require the formulas to be printed on the can, a practice which msserous other states have since follcwred. The reason for such a regulation la obvious. So oany abvses occurred in the marketing of Inferior paint the famers that, in self defense, i.'orth Dakota passed labeling lairs and occasionally publishes results of Its paint investigations. Bare are several axsnples of exterior paints manufactured by large ooopanles that 1 contain water and excessive amounts of extenders, 1 I think you will see from this brief expost how Important it la to acquaint the American public with the merits of whita load. Hundreds of > thousands of people insist on having nothing but pure white lead on their hones because they know by experience that white lead provides durability in paint. We must do a lot more to educate the people of the United States to the merits of white lead and the respo:isibility in part II WUR JS I 1 LIA23103 Srr-' m -5- nust rest upon the mining industry Tor, after all, the paint manufacturer can use other and cheaper ingredients in his paint* In this connection, you will be interested to know that the Lecd Industries Association has been worsting closely with the 0, S. Office of Education and the State educational departments of nearly every slate in & the United states, seeking to assist then in establishing courses m paint instruction which woula help ths universities, collages sad highechools of ths United States in developing an appreciation of good paint* Hers is a manual entitled, "Painting Para Buildings and Equipment" which was prepared with the cooperation of the U.S. Office of Education, and which has been widely distributed in the United States* Here is another manual entitled, "Instructor's .manual for Teaching Exterior Painting of Para Building? and Equipment," designed specifically for the use of instructors and prepared for us by Professor C. A. Scheldt of the Colorado ALU Collect* As a result o. oil of these e:\crta, I as ,,lad to say that aany technical courses and text bocks used throughout the United States for ti instructional purposes have been laproved in their treatment of paints and painting* But, cbore all, we aust tint and produce as much laaci as possible to satisfy the great unfilled dooand for white lead free the public* Red lead 1s also important in the paint industry for protecting steel work froc corrosion. In fact about 20,000 tons are used annually for the purport. Competition is keen for business and our industry has obillted its technical resources to sake sure that the preeminent position of red lead will be maintained, Recently we have cade acne remarkable ad vance! in the use of red lead for narlne .ulntlng wigch are being disclosed currently* Beride3 being applied to the i;.torior cl buildings as paint, sub stantial amounts of lead are used elsewhere, in plumbing, in sheerer pans, and even in flashings. Indood, lead plurAin^, which lias been known for jwijpr WWWgHPW jgu.-e, iJM.s " TO tarn 0 wm* vmim - **ui^pan *)nun i mavmmmmmw " ' `*"" H LIA23104 --. ?-- > "-t '4h' J i -1 i 'S j ..1J 'a ! 6* oenturiea , (till accounts for some 20,000 ton* of lead per /ear in the fora of pipe, sheet and solder. If to this is added the substantial ton,.a;e of lead used for calking oast iron pipes in buildings and in the distribution system of waterworks, we oust provide another 35,000 tons* Needless, to say, these are highly competitive outlets, for lead, and it trill be interesting to see how they survive tho intense period of competition ahead in the changed relatioi'amp In ts* price of lead with brass, lloe and and copper and noneetallic calking compounds. Hi have not been altogether asleep and have developed s unit type of lead plwnhin*, illustrated in the photograph I have here, which has the cerit ef permitting the pliraber to fabricate part of the plvablng Installation in his shop and then a djusting it on the Job by virtue of ths flexibility inherent in lead. Sheet lead is widely used in hospitals, in x-rcy rooms, and wharever x-ray equipment cay be found, it is ths most efficient barrier, know to science, to x-rays and kind*ed radiation. fherever sulphuric acid is used, and sulphuric acid is tha ccanon*it acid used in industry today, one is tp>- to find lead in ths font of rats, sheet or pipe to convey the acid from point to point. Hence, rayon plants, oil refineries, cokt plants and other large industries are constant users of lead. Often the mining industry. Itself, in cany leeching and electro lytic operations involving sulphuric acid, use large tonnages. But, competition here fra glass, rubber and alloy steels will be keen. Perhaps 50,000 tons of lead are consisted annually for x-ray protection and for use in Us chemical industry. I haven't yet .mntioned another fertile field for lead, nanely its use in alloys. The commonest lead alloy known to you it soldar, which requires about 50,000 tons annually. Then the aar.unition industry, which generally uses an alloy of lead and arsenic requires about 50,000 tons of lead annually, Tl>e printing lrxlu*ti7 isos tope netal to the tuns of soea ' " ( L1A2315 ypp* *=/ 1 ' i: *' >* 1 1 1 P 'i i j s -7- * 30,000 tons of load annually. Then, ire have bearing Mtala for railroads, autooofailes and other nachinery, which probably require about ItO.OOO tons of lead annually. Then, the nopper Industry, in various bronsst and brasses, uses substantial quantities of lead, perhaps 35,000 tons of lead a year. The steel industry uses it both in production and as a constituent of free nasalnine stool. v,' dil There ere so nsny einor uses of lead that we could spend thl , better part of an hour discussing their fascinating applications, for example, the use of lead In ceases for cera.ilc wars, glassware, fluoreeoent tubes, casollne refining, brake linings, and the,like, Jlery of these uses have beo> found indispensable with no substitutes svailabe. Often the lack of a s-iall quantity of lead nay nean failure to produce an important component part of, cay, an autcooblla. Recently the officer of an ieportant pottery coapany told ae tnat 1,000 of lead pifittest* acan i500,000 in eaployseat la his factory where the lead waa used In Jjixes. But I want to devote a aooent to a rather spectacular cooperatively nee and larLe use of lead which has grown Inc roesinjy important M the leal Industry, nsaely the use of tetrecttyl lead in gasoline which did yeooan ecrrlce durin^ the war in providing the high octane (U for airplane operation a-.d is year by year contributing to the production of better autoco&iv* fuels in the Urdted States. About 60,000 tons of lead are needed yearly for ethyl fluid. Indeed, if lc.au beouoea olentiful *r shall soon have gasolines of such high antiknock value that vs shall be able to run care with higher ocnpresa.on retloe at cooperatively high speeds, thc-t is 50 to 60 Biles or noro per hour, with eooncolos double thet of prewar dayr. This is one good reason wty we should increase our efforts to cure the lead shortage - we are wiping the Aaeriesn standard of living ecustantly to grew. 'S'; 'TWW..IH eii.l !WJ ossa 73 * - - .'- '*'-? '-rt __ -^r` / ^^23*-^ - '* - ` -- r*- r* -8- There ere (till other important uses,' far exanple, lneectioides. Lead arsenate, which li eo important in the ecoooqy of the northwest apple and fruit induetry, should contuse about 20,000 to 25,000 tons of lead per year. When I recently spoke to the convention of the Agricultural Insecticide and Fungicide Association in Hee Jersey, and'told them About the lead shortage, I felt that perhaps here was one use which we would have ' .* r' , to kies goodly because of the advent uf DOT but, to mj surprise, X eea !i > Inforoad that DOT is not yet a complete answer to insect pest control. Apparently it controls the coddling noth but not the orchard site, this was confined by a private cacrnmleatlon free the Departoent of Agriculture which estimates that DDT way displace 1/3 the lead arsenate used in the northeest this year. X think this brief analysis Indicates wfy there is such a huge dwsand for load todry. If you were to edd it up with ae you will find that the total accounts for over 1,003,000 tons and as the figure* X have given are purely approximations I think the ovcr.-ll figure should be used with sene reservation. The markets I have described to you are the result of research, invention and evolution reaching back deep in our history. They illustrate what can be done with one of nature's great natural resources. Ye want to keep these markets, and to develop others if need be. Indeed, that is the traditional American way - to depend on our own resourcefulness in creating a market for oar wares so strong that the lead aines will *r operate steadily and profitably rather than to depend on a Government subsidy to keep us going. Last year only 330,000 tons of lead were nined dumestlcally, tie 0 * lowest output since 19jli. In fact, lead produced from scrap was larger than that cosing from our domestic nines, or about 350,000 tons. If it had not been for imports of 125,000 tons, which were unfortunately Halted sen* miwm t, t:a- ~rr f P m r 'ygF '' V LI A2 3107 J -' <1 j:`J i -.` * ;i. ' -j'4 f. A i- -A 1 : { -:i 0 3 <i jggjgg mmm Wftiwryyiif* -9by the Oovsrraent as the sole importer, and for heavy withdrcwals from lead stocks in the hands of private Industry and the Government we would indeed be in a serious Jam today. As it was, the total available supply outside of stocks in the hands of manufacturers and refiners was only about 805,000 tons to meet requirements of roughly 1,000,000 tons* The rovemeant and private withdrawal froa/btocks is estimated at 150,000 tons in 19U6. Larger imports as well as increased domestic mins protection are needed to help o b out of cur difficulties and to hold our markets, as the s tocke of all description in the country have been severely depleted. The United States is now on a different lead economy than it was before the war. Then domestic production and conjunction were approximately in balance, but now, consumption has gram to such an extent that we g)all need imports to supplement domestic output. The tariff to protect the domestic mining irxtertry frankly becomes a needed revenue measure and a subsidy to the domestic miner to compensate him in part for his higher coat of production compared with low cost foreign operators, but it 1s a subsidy paid by the eona^aer and not by the public at large* I place ry faith lr. the operation of a free market to cure the lead shortage speedier than any fora of Government control. The price of lead will ultimately r ettle at a value which will create a balance between effective supply and demand, Ho one knows r!>au price will do tbs Job* la this connection I tiink we shall hare to revise our conception of what constitutes a high price for lead in the light of the greet rise in tta cost of farm commodities, house furnishings, wages, in fact everything relating to our economy except possibly rents, which are still under control. In looking at the Index of the Dureau of Labor Statistics recently, I was struck by the fact tiat load is oartainly not out of line with farm eomnoditias and other itsms. jyjU-j; LJJfWI.W^yJL^LLiUllLJMiLiJ #1Jli!U|My ..........II M il ll| !U)l II 1i 2 " i V v? ?' i -A M H ;j w -10 I hope you will shire with me the conclusion thst til the energies of the lead mining, maeltlng and refining Industry Bust be centered at once upon the problea of Increasing our lead production through the in* tensive working of known deposits and prospecting for new supplies. The high price of lead today warrant* extraordinary efforta on the pert of proapectors or ednera in looking for new deposits end demonstrating to the consumers thst we ere not * "hove-not-nation" but that in Colorado and elsewhere there la lead waiting the enterprise of the wlner. Same people, without thinking, had the impression thst once Goreranent controls disappeared the lead shortage would likewise Yard ah. But you and I know that it takes time to bring a new sine Into production, not to mention the difficulty of Increasing production in wdnos that operated during the war on a scale that subordinated necessary development sad ex ploration,, Let us now use extraordinary efforts to stimulate output froa every conceivable source. Ey doing so we shall hold our priceless markets end serve our own best Interests, as well as the public's. Vs cannot afford to lose our markets. Qpc# gone they may never be recaptured. There fore, In conclusion I urge all y mining friends In this wonderful Sooky fountain area, so bountiful In lead In the past, to demonstrate what they , can do In Increasing lead production ae quickly as possible. V w yy !- "*wiii iseejn H njjtij^gwjwwwe^ewwgwrt1 "III r WPfWPflWP}^"!!Wl<K