Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 19.djvu/759

UNITED STATES. for 1900 being estimates based on the latest reports of the United States Fish Commission:

In the New England States the principal products are cod, halibut, and mackerel. Massachusetts leads in the value of products, while Maine has the greatest number of persons engaged in the industry, Maryland ranked first among the Middle Atlantic States which are especially concerned in oyster and shad fishing. Shad and oysters are also the leading fish products of the South Atlantic States. The Gulf States produce oysters and sponges. Among the Gulf States Florida holds first place in the fishing industry. Of the fish output of the Pacific States, about half is represented by salmon. Herring, lake trout, and yellow perch are the leading products of the Great Lakes division. The period of greatest development in this region was from 1880 to 1885, when the number engaged in the industry and the value of the production increased 100 per cent. The yield of the Mississippi Valley exceeds in quantity and nearly equals in value the combined production of the remaining interior waters of the United States, except the Great Lakes. Buffalo-fish, catfish, and German cod are especially plentiful. Alaska is the centre of the furseal industry, and is also noted for its large number of cod, halibut, and other deep-sea fish. (For further details, see the several State articles: the articles on, , etc.; and also articles on the various fish species: , , , etc.) The exports of fish and fish products have greatly increased in value since 1870, but during the period 1890 to 1902 they remained practically stationary. The value of the exports in 1902 was $7,705,065. Europe was the destination of over half the output. Canned salmon formed the largest single item. The value of the imports of fisheries has increased from $5,457,785 in 1892 to $8,527,097 in 1902. The largest part of the import trade is with Canada. The main items of importation are pickled herring and dried cod in the cured list, while lobster is the chief product in the class of fresh fish. In the census year 1900 there were 348 establishments concerned in fish curing, packing, and canning. The total value of their product was $22,253,740. The curing of cod, herring, and mackerel, the canning of sardines in the New England States, and salmon-packing in the Pacific States are the leading fish interests in the United States.

. Prior to the nineteenth century the mining industry in the United States was quite

insignificant, and it was not until nearly 1850 that it began to be important. Since that period the industry has developed with a rapidity equal to that of manufactures and transportation. It is significant that the production of the mines constitutes over one-half of the total freight tonnage handled by the railroads. In 1902 the United States had advanced to first rank in the production of most of the useful minerals, and the total value of the combined mineral ou t put was far greater than that of any other country. The growth of the industry since 1880 is seen in the following table:

To the above should be added an unspecified, sum amounting in value to $6,000,000 in 1880, and to $1,000,000 in each of the other years given. The total mining output for 1901 was valued at $1,092,224,380. The United States probably has more mineral lands in proportion to its total area than any other country. Nearly every mineral that is needed in the arts is mined.

. Coal is the most widely distributed mineral and is far in advance of any other in the annual value of its output. It is regularly mined in thirty States. (For localization of coal areas, see article .) The area of the coal fields, not including those occurring in the Rocky Mountains and Pacific Coast States, is about 220,000 square miles. Of this only a small portion consists of the anthracite variety, which is almost wholly confined to the middle-eastern portion of Pennsylvania. Authorities have not attempted to estimate the probable duration of the supply of bituminous coal, but it has been estimated that the anthracite would last at the present rate of consumption one hundred years. Bituminous coal mining began regularly in 1750, while anthracite mining did not begin until fifty years later. The production of each was very small for a number of years. The rapid growth of the industry did not begin until after the Civil War. From the following table it will be seen that the output of bituminous coal has doubled for each decade since 1870. The output of anthracite was five times as great at the end of that period as at the beginning. The total production of coal in short tons in 1870 was 33,003,315; in 1880, 73,647,997; in 1890, 156,073,611; in 1900, 293,298,516. The following table shows, in short tons, the production of coal in the ten leading States in the years 1870, 1880, 1890, and 1901.

In 1866 Great Britain produced six and