country, may be regarded as phases of
the conservation problem. It is not the purpose here to argue either for
or against the drastic exercise of government power in the conservation
of natural resources, but merely to call attention to the measures which
are being discussed.

CONSERVATION OF MINERALS OTHER THAN COAL

The discussion of conservation as applied to specific minerals might be
extended almost indefinitely; but perhaps enough has been said to
indicate the general nature of the field. Before the war careful
estimates of world supplies had been made for comparatively few
minerals, although these included some of the most important, such as
coal, oil, and iron. War conditions required a hasty estimate of world
reserves of most of the mineral products. The reader interested in the
problem will find an extremely interesting body of literature issued by
the various governments on this subject. Of especial interest to the
American reader will be the reports of the U. S. Geological Survey and
of the Bureau of Mines.

In recent years there has been increasing recognition of the
possibilities of conservational saving by concentration, refinement, and
even manufacture of mineral commodities at or near the point of
origin,--thus lessening the tonnage involved in transportation of the
crude products. Limitations of fuel and other conditions often make this
procedure difficult; but considerable progress is being made both
through private initiative and, especially in international trade,
through governmental regulations of great variety.

FOOTNOTES:

[42] Campbell, M. R., The coal fields of the United States: _Prof. Paper
100-A_, _U. S. Geol. Survey_, 1917, p. 24.

[43] Final report of the Royal Commission on coal supplies: House of
Commons, London, vol. 16, 1905.

[44] Report of the National Conservation Commission: Senate Document No.
676, 60th Congress, 2d session, Govt. Printing Office, Washington, 1909.

[45] Van Hise, C. R., _The conservation of natural resources in the
United States_: Macmillan Co., New York, 1910.

[46] Haas, Frank, The conservation of coal through the employment of
better methods of mining: Abstract of paper presented to Pan-American
Scientific Congress, Washington, Dec., 1915-Jan., 1916.

[47] Adams, Frank D., Our mineral resources and the problem of their
proper conservation: _6th Ann. Rept., Commission of Conservation_,
_Canada_, 1915, pp. 52-69.

[48] Chance, H. M., Address be