Morning appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1877-1906, 1881-02-16
MINERS WAGES.

The question Of reduction Ill miners
wages is being intslligently discussed by the
Comstock papers. The Enterprise has q
long article on the subject, and last night the
Chronicle contained = long editorial relative
to this important question. Regarding the
proposition to reduce wages, it says:
Most people believe that the amount paid
for labor Is the heaviest part Of 3 mines e1-
pense. There is great mistake about this:
Firewood, timbers, machinery, railroad
freiphtS, salaries of officers, taxes, ETC., con-
sumo by far the larger part of the annual ex-
penditures on every prominent mine. If a
reduction of expenses is to be made, let 1t be
general. A mere reduction OF miners wages
will not enable the companies to work ores
of any appreciable less value than they can
work at present rates.
The proposition to make reduction gen.
eral contains the gist of the whole argument.
At present it is preposed to reduce only the
wages of the men who slave in Inc lower
drifts, while the superintendent "Aheep-
ers and secretaries, who ge; fat salaries for i.
very small amount of work, expected to
draw their pay as before. Every miner who
has made money out of the Comstock, has
done so by expanding vast amount of sweat
and muscle; he has worked for it and RISK ed
his life for it. There are many other men who
have realized fortunes out Of the lode by an
outrageous system Of robbery and chicanerv
and practicing the thousand and one tricks
incidental to the nelaIious calling of the stock
manipulation. These men are now bowling
fora red ucton in wages, because. III the gen
eral depression, they do not find money so
easy to bag.
The Chronicle advises the Miners Union to
make he first advance toward a com promise.
The advice is good, and if any agreement is
to be settled, the miners should make the
terms, and put them III such shape that
they conld be annuIled by them as soon rs
the necessity :or their enact ment passed.
So far the mine manages have not designated
where the low-grade ore which they propose
to work is situated, or shown any figures to
suhs,antiate the statement that by handling
such ores above the SutrO tunnel level hun
dreds Of men could be put to work at s. a day.
There is doubt that the miners would be
willing to accept a temporary reduction of
wages above the tunnel level, provided the
duction did not outlive the depression; but they
dare not trust the other side, for fear Of treach
cry, believing that any concessions made might
eventually lead TO the breaking up of the Union
al Together. If the Miners Union should pass
out of existence to day. there would be good de-
velopments on the Comsfoc inside of a month
THE STATIsTICAN.-Tbe annual Statistcan
for lSSO-Sl edited by l.. p. Mccarthy, is now
out The edition Of this year is a we'll printed
book of 625 pages, containing an amount OF
statistical Information hard to fiNd in any
other book of similar bulk in the world. 1t
contains IA Chronological! history of the world
down to the election of the last President and
of America from its discovery by the North |
men in 9S5 down to the present. the name, |
vocal ion, etc, of 4,250 Of the most prominent |
men for the iast 5000 years; revenue eXpen |
diture and pubic debt of all the principal |
nations Of the glohe; almost cornplete poiti- |
cal and financial history OF the United States: |
nearly every weight and measure; complete |
analysis of the metric system and measure |
ton; equivalents of money units; interest and |
discount; day of the week OF any given date; |
all the gold i'll the world all the most i'm
portant Inventions, discoveries and organiZa-
tons, etc. Glover and Cooper are tho Carson
agents.