The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1889-01-11
Michigan Copper.

Michigan has issued his annual report. II
Is filed with many items of interest. Cop
les can be had free by addressing him at
Lansing asking for sixth Annual Report"
From the report the following concerning
the copper business of Michigan is taken:
"A few facts from the statistics of the
copper industry will show the scope of the
report. Almost the entire labor, which in
cludes mining, surface work, the stamp mill
and smelling works, is foreign. There are
no Chinese or colored men. A canvass was
made of the Copper Falls, Allouez, Kear-
sarg, Quincy, Franklin, Huron, Atlantic,
Calumet and Hecla, Oceola and Tamarack
mines, and the smelling works at Hancock
and on Torch Lake In the above work
5,5l6 men are employed, according to figures
furnished from their officers. Of this num-
Der the bureau secured canvass of 3,O70.
The natiOnalities are: 63l Americans; 652
Englishmen; 1856 Finlanders; $50 Canadian
French; 221 Germans; 30 Irishmen; 1856
Austrlans; l20 POlanders; 104 Swedes; 103
NOrwegians; I'll Italians; 81 Scotchmen; ii
Swiss; l3 Frenchmen; Welshmen; Nova
Scotians; B Holdnders; 2 Danes; and one
each, Russian, Spaniard and Australian.
''Of the 631 reported as American born
only 81 are children of American parents.
l75 are children of English parents, 143
Irish, "a Germans, 81 Canadian French,
Swiss, Z Scotch, French. 4 Polish, 4
Swede, Norwegian, and II nativity of par
ents not reported.
II, S62 men out of the 3,070 are married,
and have 6,643 children, of which number
2,365 attend school. Of the total number
of the men only 3j9 have provided for their
families by carrying life insurance.
LAS the mining companies will not sell
land, theminers as class are not home
owners, but live in dwellings rented of the
company. They can, however, lease land
of the company, by paying an annual ground
rent and erect thereon their own house.
452 are reported as owning their own homes
% of these are mortgaged for total sum of
S10,3SO.
The intelligence is indicated by the num-
Der of papers read. 179 take daily paper,
971 weekly and 1919 a monthly.
'',rhe fact that 20 families out of 1862
own "a piano and 2SS an organ is evidence
OF beginning of home culture, while the
owning of a sewing machine by 1,344 fam
ines shows desire for modern household
cOnveniencies.
Woman and children labor cannot be
employed in copper mining, owing to the
nature of the work. No women are report
cd as working at gainful occupations out
side of household duties. The children in
ID families only are reported as earning
wages during the year, which amounted to
il total of $l3,43s.
Although mining is supposed by the
public generally to be unhealthy, according
To the statement of the men themselves,
they enjoy good health. 2937 said that they
had good health and two reported better
health than when they began work. Only
IS reported poor health. Their replies
were: Poor health, So; fair, 10; bad, 10;
not good, 5; sickly, 4; medium, q; very poor
1; delicate, l.
ITO the question: Are you as well off as
five years ago? only 1863 replied no. TO the
second question: If not, in what respect?
"a replied less pay, Is sickness, II loss by
fire (Which probably means loss OF work by
fire in the Calumet and Hecla minc), 2
financially, 81 less money, 4 larger family,
1 not so well, in debt, lost money that
he had saved, are older now, 2 lost money
in speculation, 2 bad luck. on account of
drinking (honest reply, 9 in every respect,
l poorer, more to provide for, 2 got hurt,
1 harder times . bad luck, and one poor fell
low pathetically gave as a reason 'am mar
ried now
''In one year in nine mines % men were
killed; 8 by falling rock, 5 by falling in
mine, by riding in the skip and the
cause of not reported"