Although the known deposits of manganese in Africa are few and relatively unimportant, the continent offers an unusual prospect for the discovery of deposits that will contribute largely to the world’s supply. Inasmuch as the moist tropical climate of large areas favors extraordinary rock decay and surface concentration of manganese oxides, exploration will probably show the presence of many deposits, and where bedrock geological conditions are favorable, large bodies may be found. =Australasia.=--In _Australia_, there are deposits of manganese ore in New South Wales, in Queensland, in South Australia, and in Victoria. In _New Zealand_, deposits of manganese ore occur in the Thames district, Auckland. Deposits of manganese ore are known in _Borneo_, at Maruda Bay. [Illustration: FIG. 5.--Annual output of manganese ore in chief producing countries.] [Illustration: FIG. 6.--Percentage of manganese ore produced by chief producing countries.] It is reported that large deposits of high-grade ore have recently been discovered in _Java_. Some statistics of the production of manganese are shown graphically in figures 5 and 6. DEVELOPMENTS AND CHANGES IN GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION IN THE NEAR FUTURE The known manganese resources of Russia, India, and Brazil are so large and readily available for exploitation and marketing that there is little prospect of their being displaced as the chief sources of the world’s supply for many years. Since the war began, in 1914, several important new districts have been discovered and brought to the producing stage, notably the Gold Coast of West Africa, western Costa Rica, and Java. Although the Javan deposits are reported to be large and may become an important factor in the world’s trade, all that is known concerning the other deposits does not hold out much hope that they can compete with the established sources. There appears to be a fair chance that the equatorial belt as well as several other parts of the earth may yield additional important manganese deposits. The distribution of the manganese deposits of the world is shown in Plate III. POLITICAL AND COMMERCIAL CONTROL The table of production for 1913 on page 105 shows the part of the total that each country contributed and the known extent of commercial control. In contrast with deposits of several other important minerals, most of the manganese deposits throughout the world are owned by natives or residents of the respective countries in which they are found. German companies have acquired tracts in the Chiaturi and Nicopol districts, Russia, and Queluz (Lafayette) district, Brazil. It appears that although one of these companies produces a little ore, the main purpose was to stabilize an unorganized industry by financial assistance.