Monthly Consular and Trade Reports Volume 57, Nos. 212-215 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1898 Excerpt: ...much was shipped elsewhere, I have not the means of knowing. These mines continued in successful operation until 1867, when a combination of circumstances, and not the poverty of the mines, closed them up, and the various shafts, from 9oo to 1,200 feet deep, filled with water, all save 300 feet being below the level of the sea. In later years considerable copper was taken from these mines by pumping the water from the shafts to tanks, into which iron scraps were thrown. The copper held in solution by the water deposited on the scrap iron, which in time was broken off and the iron used again. It is generally believed that large quantities of copper still remain unmined in this locality. The iron mines of Cuba, all of which are located near Santiago, overshadow in importance all other industries on the eastern end of the island, constituting the only industry that has made any pretense of withstanding the shock of the present insurrection. The Juragua and Daiquiri iron companies (American), with a combined capital of over $5,000,000, now operate mines in this vicinity and employ from 800 to 1,400 men, shipping to the United States from 30,000 to 50,000 tons of iron ore per month, the largest portion of which is used at Bethlehem, Steelton, Sparrows Point, and Pittsburg, The ore of these mines is among the richest in the world, yielding from 62 to 67 per cent of pure iron, and is very free from sulphur and phosphorus. There are numerous undeveloped mines of equal value in this region. In the Sierra Maestra range, on the southern coast of Cuba, from Santiago west to Manzanillo, within a distance of about loo miles, are found numerous deposits of manganese, an ore indispensable in the manufacture of steel. American capital opened a mine about 20 miles distant, a...