amount of ore still remaining untouched was estimated at 80,000,000 tons. The stocks of ore ready for sale on July 1st, 1900, amounted to 500,000 tons, and the number of workinen employed was 72,401.

The ore is in general some form of hematite with occasional deposits of magnetite. It occurs as a highly inclined bed, usually in long boat-shaped pockets, tapering at the ends. The various pockets lie approximately north and south, and, so far as local geologists have been able to decide, may be classified as five or six parallel beds, each bed being represented

either being carried up long zig-zag inclines by carts and horses, or else drawn in narrowgauge cars up an inclined railway by a horsedriven drum or a steam engine. When the depth exceeds 200 feet, it is more economical to work underground.

The richer Krivoy Rog ores are sent to distant points, such as the Donetz district and Poland, while the poorer qualities are used locally at the Krivoy Rog Blast Furnaces, or at one or other of the large works lying between Krivoy Rog and Ekaterinoslav. The ore is usually extracted by contractors, who find

by a series of detached elongated pockets, to some extent resembling each other. The hanging and foot walls are of quartzite, which is sometimes also found embedded in the ore in the form of small pockets, but which can be easily separated by hand. The ore contains from 45 to 65 per cent., and sometimes even more, of metallic iron, the sulphur and phosphorus being somewhat variable. The covering is usually clay or sandstone, with limestone immediately below, resting on the top of the ore. The depth of stripping varies from a few feet to about 100 feet, but it is seldom too great for open working. Consequently, most of the Krivoy Rog mines are worked as open quarries, the ore

SHALTAIA REKA IRON MINE. (Krivoy Rog District)

labour, implements, carts, horses, &c. Where the mine is near the surface, such a contract can be made for 3s. 4d. per ton, including delivery at the railway. In a small mine, where pumping is not required, and the mine is shallow enough to dispense with hauling machinery, the contracting system is convenient and economical. In large mines, where steam engines are used for pumping and hauling, and narrow-gauge railways or aerial tramways for transporting the ore to the nearest main line railway, it pays to dispense with the contractor and his somewhat primitive methods, or to restrict his sphere of action to certain well-defined functions. The miners

work ten hours a day, and nightwork is unusual.

In many cases the land is the property of the village communes, and royalty is payable to the peasant proprietors, being generally from 8d. to is. per ton. The peasants are prohibited by law from selling their land or from leasing it for more than 30 years. The average cost of mining ore on a moderate scale and delivering to blast furnaces in the Donetz district is about 13s. 1d. per ton, the details being given in Appendix II.

Quality of ure.-Appendix III. gives two typical analyses of ores from deposits at the extreme southern and northern ends of the Krivoy Rog district, and made for the author by Messrs. Pattinson and Stead from samples selected by him. The southern analysis shows an ore with too high phosphorus for the acid process of steel making, but well adapted for making foundry pig iron. The northern analysis would be suitable for pig iron containing a sufficiently small amount phosphorus to be classed as Bessemer.

of

Railway Communication.--The railway facilities for the carriage of ore have recently been much improved. The mines to the north of Krivoy Rog have for some time been served by that section of the Ekaterine Railway between Karnavatka and Shaltaia Voda, about 38 miles long. Previous to June, 1901, all the mines south of Krivoy Rog had no railway nearer than Krivoy Rog itself, which necessitated expensive cart transport over long distance. But in that month a new railway was opened from Krivoy Rog southwards to Nicolo-Koselsk, at the extreme southern end of the deposit.

An alternative route will be provided by another new railway now under construction, which will run from Nicolo-Koselsk via Nicopol to Alexandrovsk, the highest navigable point on the Dnieper river. The route thence to the iron works of the Donetz district will be either by the existing railway system through Sinelnikova and Debaltzevo or by a projected new line direct from Alexandrovsk to Debaltzevo, being a continuation of the Nicolo Koselsk - Alexandrovisk Railway already referred to, and intended to relieve the congestion of traffic on the Ekaterine Railway. New railways are also under construction from Nicolo-Koselsk to Odessa and to Kherson, thus giving an easier access to the sea than now exists.

Donetz Coalfield.-The Donetz Coalfield, which lies at the eastern extremity of the

Ekaterine Railway, supplies coal and coke for smelting and metallurgical purposes. It is one of the largest coalfields in Europe, covering an area of nearly 9,000 square miles, and contains almost every variety of coal, comprising gas and cannel coal, caking and coking coal, semi-anthracite, and anthracite. The output of coal in the Donetz district increased from 2.2 million tons in 1888 to 6.68 million tons in 1897. Generally speaking, the soft coals of newer formation lie to the northwest, while the older beds of anthracite lie to the south-east. In one colliery, near Lugansk, visited by the author, both bituminous or steam coal and coking coal are worked, being obtained from neighbouring seams. The steam coal, which represents a fair average of its class, contains 35 per cent. of volatile matter, and 3 to 4 per cent. of ash. This coal is used for steam, locomotive, and gas making purposes. It is unfortunately somewhat friable and subject to disintegration from the weather. As a result the Northern Russian Railways find it difficult to use it, as so much breakage occurs during transit. It is also difficult to build walls of blocks of coal round the stocks, as the weather causes them to crumble. Imported English coal, therefore, still holds its own, especially near the Baltic ports. The coking coal on the above mentioned colliery contains 20 per cent. of volatile matter, and 3 to 7 per cent. of ash.

The coal seams are generally 3 to 4 feet thick, and often inclined at a considerable angle or nearly vertical. In such cases the coal is worked by an "overhead stoping" system. Vertical shafts are sunk, from which run galleries in the direction of the dip, cutting several seams. At each intersection side galleries are run, from which the coal seam is worked upwards in slices of 80 to 100 feet thick. The cost of coal and of coke, of which details are given in Appendix IV., are about 7s. 11d. and 13s. 10d. per ton respectively. The mining methods and appliances used are largely Belgian, as also are the foremen. The coal is mined by an ordinary pick, and each miner can get from two to four tons of coal per 10 hours, according to the thickness of the

seam.

There is an almost inexhaustible supply of coal of all qualities in the Donetz region. Mechanical haulage and coal-getting is not usual, owing to the cheapness of labour, and the scarcity of skilled mechanics to maintain and repair machinery. While the physical quality of the coal leaves much to be desired,