The foregoing totals show a state average price of $0.923 per barrel for the year 1923, as compared to $1.249 in 1922. As already noted in a preceding paragraph, the drop in value was due to an overproduction in the higher grades of crude oil and a consequently greater proportional drop in prices for the higher grades.

a U. S. G. S., Min. Res. of U. S., 1886, p. 440, for quantities to and including 1886. b Values have been estimated for the years to and including 1886, after consulting a number of contemporaneous publications, including the Mining & Scientific Press, Reports of the State Mineralogist, and U. S. Reports. The figures for 1887 to date are from records of the State Mining Bureau.

Specific Gravities of Oils Produced.

The proportion of heavy and light oil produced in the various fields is shown in Table C, following, for which we are indebted to the Standard Oil Company. Under present practice, oil below 18° Baumé may be considered as largely refinable for fuel oil and lubricants, while the lighter oils yield varying amounts of the higher refined products with corresponding proportions of residuum and fuel oil. Specific gravities in California range from 8° Baumé in the Casmalia field, Santa Barbara County, to 56° Baumé in Ventura County.

California crude oils are all essentially of asphalt base, with a few i notable exceptions. In the following localities are wells yielding crudes containing both asphalt and paraffine constituents: Oil City field, Coalinga; a few deep, wells in East Side field, Coalinga; a considerable part of the Ventura County fields; Western Minerals area, south of Maricopa; Wheeler Ridge, Kern County.

Field, refinery, pipe-line and tank-farm stocks of crude, residuum and tops totaled 91,925,153 barrels1 on December 31, 1923, compared with 61,384,164 barrels on December 31, 1922, distributed as follows:

Total quantity of above products held in fields, pipe-lines, and tankfarms..

Total stocks as above..

91,925,153

61,384,164

Proved Oil Land.

The total proved oil land of the state increased to 116,868 acres in 1923, from the 112,761 acres of 1922. Kern County increased 3395 acres, and Los Angeles, 1089 acres. Of this 1923 total, 19,932 acres, being owned by federal, state and city governments or for other reasons, are not assessable for the support of the Department of Petroleum and Gas of the State Mining Bureau. The acreage in 1923 was distributed by counties as follows:

1Standard Oil Bulletin, February 1924, p. 11.

The production of pumice and volcanic ash for the year 1923 amounted to 2936 tons valued at $16,309 and came from properties in Imperial, Inyo and Kern counties. This is an increase both in tonnage and value over the 1922 shipments. The material from Imperial County is of the vesicular, block variety and was sold for abrasive purposes and for concrete aggregate; that from Inyo and Kern is the volcanic ash, or tuff, variety and was employed in making soap and cleanser compounds.

Total Pumice Production of California.

Commercial production of pumice in California was first reported to the State Mining Bureau in 1909, then not again until 1912, since which year there has been a small annual output, as indicated by the following table:

QUICKSILVER.

Quicksilver was produced in California in nine counties during 1923, to the amount of 5458 flasks, valued at $332,851, being approximately a 60% increase both in amount and value over the 1922 output of 3466 flasks and $191,851. The average price received during 1923, according to the producers' reports to the State Mining Bureau, was $60.98 per flask, as against $55.35 in 1922, and the record average of $114.03 for the year 1918.

The average of San Francisco quotations for 1923 was $65.68 per flask, the price declining from $70.70 in the first week of January to $59.75 in the last week of December. For the current year, 1924, the quotations are ranging somewhat higher.

According to the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce records, there was imported a total of 18,073 flasks of quicksilver in 1923, mainly from Spain and Italy; and there was 318 flasks exported.

The tariff act of 1922 provides for an import duty of 25 cents per pound, or $18.75 per flask (75 pounds, net), which became effective September 21, 1922.

The U. S. Geological Survey reports the total production of the United States for 1923 at 7937 flasks, valued at $521,302 (using the $65.68 average of quotations). Outside of California, the principal yield was from Texas, with a few flasks from Nevada, Oregon and Idaho. California's contribution was 69% of the total.

The increase in 1923 was due to resumption of production at the New Idria mine, San Benito County. There was no production from the Guadalupe mine, Santa Clara County, nor from the Oceanic mine, San Luis Obispo County. A rotary furnace has been installed at the Rinconada mine, in the latter county, and production begun. The 1923 quicksilver production of California was distributed by counties, as follows:

Kings, Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Clara, Solano*.

Totals__

5,458

$332,851

*Combined to conceal output of a single operator in each.

Total Quicksilver Production of California.

Total amount and value of the quicksilver production of California, as shown in available records, is given in the following tabulation :

Most of the salt produced in California is obtained by evaporating the waters of the Pacific Ocean, plants being located on the shores of San Francisco, Monterey and San Diego bays, and at Long Beach. Additional amounts are derived from lakes and lake beds in the desert regions, mainly in Kern and San Bernardino counties. A small amount of valuable medicinal salts is obtained by evaporation of the water of Mono Lake, Mono County.