Chapter 2 - The Coal Resources of the World

THERE are few things in this world which are the object of so many uncomplimentary remarks as statistical figures. They are called "dry," "uninteresting," "dull" and "cold" and many other similar names. In many cases this harsh condemnation of statistics is purely subjective and may be traced to a failure to really study the meaning of the figures.

In spite of this bad reputation of statistical figures we shall here describe the coal resources of the world almost entirely with columns of figures, which, in our opinion, are that much concentrated fascination. We claim that the following tables tell a more wonderful story than could possibly be conveyed in words or pictures.

Coal means wealth and. great possibilities. The absence of it means the opposite. Study these "dry" figures in detail, and you will find that they are the peep-hole through which you can look into the whole economic life of a country, and a key which deciphers its economic history in the past and gives a clue to prophesying about its future.

The world's coal supply is being used for the following purposes in the following proportions, approximately:

In the above few figures are compressed a large part of the useful activities of the whole world.

It certainly should be interesting to know in what countries this life-giver is to be found, and what countries, if any, have been "left out in the cold" by Lady Bountiful Nature.

The following figures have the further fascination of being authoritative, and as nearly correct as it has been possible for internationally organized geological science to make them. The tables and facts connected with them are extracts from "The Coal Resources of the World," which is the name of part of the printed report of The Proceedings of the XII. International Geological Congress, held in Toronto, Canada, in 1913, the year of highest coal production up to that time.

Anthracite, Bituminous and Lignite

Most of us have heard about anthracite coal, bituminous coal and lignite, but not everybody knows the exact difference. Anthracite is also called "hard coal," bituminous coal "soft coal," and lignite "brown coal." These names are a good help in distinguishing coal, but we will here give a short table, which gives the scientific classification in general use.

The above table will explain the meaning of the letters A, B, C, D, where they occur in the following tables. Please note that Classes B and C together constitute bituminous coal.

Estimate of the Coal Resources of the World
(Actual, Probable and Possible Resources Added Together)
In Million Tons

The above figures include everything, both what is actually now in sight and those coal measures which, according to the calculations of scientists, could probably and possibly be found. The figures—7 trillion tons and more—seem tremendous, but the consumption of coal is increasing at such a rapid rate, that, if consumption were to keep on increasing at the same rate in the future, the coal resources of the world would be exhausted in 200 years. But it is not considered probable that the increase will be in the same ratio. The following table will illustrate that increase up to date.

Table of Annual Production of the Principal Countries of the World
In Million Tons

The World's Production of Coal, 1910-1920
(Metric Tons)

The author of Coal, Iron and War sums up the situation in four points, showing what bearing the constantly diminishing coal supply may have on the world's industrial activities and thus on life in its entirety upon our planet:

(1) The coal reserves of the world are known to be very large, even as compared to a future increased demand. The period before which any trace of general exhaustion need be feared is to be measured, even from the most pessimistic standpoint, in centuries.

(2) As demand continues, however, we are steadily using coal of a little lower grade, and coal that is a little more difficult and expensive to mine. These facts have a direct bearing on future coal costs and on future manufacturing costs in other lines.

(3) The coal supplies of certain manufacturing districts and of certain countries are further advanced towards exhaustion than are those of some existing or possible competitors. There will, therefore, be seen changes in relative importance of manufacturing centers, and gradual but certain changes in kinds of industry practiced.

(4) In the very near future it is probable that the entry of new continents into the industrial field will make still greater changes in manufacturing, in world competition and in world leadership. These may bring about changes in social and industrial structure among the older nations, especially among those most hardly pressed by their own decreasing coal supplies and by the new competition.

Some pessimists might say : "Of what interest are such statistical tables and predictions to us workers? What do we care how many centuries the coal lasts? What concern of ours is it if whole industrial districts are bankrupted because their coal supply gives out? Why should we worry because industry may be moved to the tremendous anthracite fields of China? All we care about is to get a living wage, a shorter workday and decent conditions, and then let the future take care of itself."

That is the way workers have reasoned in the past, and that is the way many of them are still reasoning. But a rapid change is coming over the world. The burning question of our age is no longer wages, hours and conditions, but it is the taking over of the industries by the workers themselves through their industrial unions and the running of the industries (as well as the whole society) by the workers themselves by means of an industrial administration. Like a person who has suddenly come into a great inheritance, we have got to start to look over the property which shall soon be all ours, so that we will know what we are about, what we have got and what we ought to do.

The tables given above, as well as those which follow, are nothing but a general survey of the great inheritance which will soon fall to us when "old man" Capitalism turns up his toes, as he is liable to do one of these days. The better the workers are posted on the details of the inheritance, the better they will be able to solve the social problem with which they will be confronted. The pessimists and short-sighted porkchop philosophers, who would put up with capitalism if they only got a better feed, are out of luck. The workers will have to take over the inheritance whether they want to or not. It is either that or social destruction. Under these circumstances we need not make any further apologies for presenting these general survey tables of the coal inheritance, which is now being fraudulently and maleciously withheld from the right owner, i.e., humanity.

We will then first note that nearly all the coal is in the northern hemisphere. The figures for South America and Africa are so small as to be nearly negligible. We will get them out of the way first :

The Coal Resources of South America (Estimated Total Reserve)
In Million Tons

The Coal Resources of Africa (Estimated Total Reserve)
In Million Tons

In regard to this African coal reserve it is well to note that the most important part of it is confined to, the southern portion of the continent which is controlled by England. The northern portion of the continent is practically without coal:

The Coal Reserve of Oceania,

totalling 170,410 million tons, is also largely to be found in territory over which the British flag waves :

The Coal Resources of Asia (Total Estimated Reserve)
In Million Tons

We will get a better conception of this high figure by stat ing that the Asiatic coal reserve is over 11/4 trillion tons. Since we got the bolshevik ruble we are getting more familiar with the word "trillion."

For the sake of comparison let us note here that of the total anthracite world reserve of 496,846 million tons, Asia has 407,637 million tons, the largest part of it in China. Put these two facts together, that China has nearly 400 million people and nearly 400 billion tons of anthracite, and more than that of other kinds of coal, and we have the foundation for an industrial era the like of which we have never dreamt of before. We cannot avoid asking ourselves the question : Are those masses and those tons going to be exploited by international capitalists, or are the Chinese work ers going to wake up out of their slumber of centuries and burn that coal in industrial furnaces of their own? In either case the Chinese are sure to "rock the boat" of society.

The Asiatic coal reserve is distributed as follows :

The report of the International Geological Congress says that the reserve of coal in Asia is probably underestimated, as many of the Siberian and Chinese coal fields have not been sufficiently explored to admit of an estimate of their reserves being made.

Estimate of the Coal Reserve of Europe
In Million Tons

As we see from this table, coal is found in commercial quantities in practically all the political divisions of Europe. In some countries the reserve is nearly exhausted, as in Switzer-land. In others the large production is rapidly depleting the re-serve, and in Europe as a whole the duration of the coal supply, in view of the present output, is a matter for serious consideration.

It should also be noted that the high figure for Germany has been considerably decreased through the peace treaty of Versailles in 1919.

The principal anthracite fields of Europe are in the Donetz basin in Russia and in the Welsh fields of Great Britain. The largest reserves of bituminous coal are in the Belgian-German basins, although the British fields may be more easily exploited and a larger percentage of the reserves extracted. Germany and Austria have about equal amounts of the D class coals, which constitute a large part of their present output.

In this connection it is well for the thoughtful student to again remember the trillion and a quarter tons virgin coal re-serve of China and Siberia and the FIVE TRILLION tons coal reserve of North America, to which we are now coming.

The Coal Resources of North America
In Million Tons

As will be seen from the above table, North America is well supplied with fossil fuel, the Palæozoic deposits of the East and the Mesozoic and Tertiary deposits of the West containing about two-thirds of the estimated coal reserve of the world.

In addition, some lignite has been found in Greenland, Guatemala, San Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Trinidad and Santo Domingo. A moderate reserve of coal is known in Mexico, but no estimate could be obtained for the report of the International Geological Congress..

After having made this condensed inventory of the coal re-sources of the world, we are now in a better position to judge what we ought to do, in order to come into possession of all this almost boundless wealth, which is so necessary for the welfare of humanity. And the first thing that sticks us in the eye is that we need organs, industrial organs, by means of which to take possession of the coal resources and work them. Such organs are the Industrial Unions, with their job branches and councils, organized by the I. W. W.

On to Chapter 3