The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-03-12
YEAR 1890.
1,79j,95s 70

1Oldl--- S)o. ri =
Many other supplies such as powder, oil
candles, machinery and groceries, were pur
chased of Utah merchants
He adds note in which he SAYS that the dis.
bursements in cash per month from the Salt
Lake offices are SSoOo0; 8 per cent OF this is
paid out at Park City, is per cent. at Salt Lake
city and per cent. in foreign remittances Ii
Will be seen that the receipts of the mine last
year amounted to S1,742s OS44O The mine paid
in dividends 100000. The disbursements
amounted to s1,l17.O55.06 ard in Utah for
salaries, the pay roll, cord wood lumber and
timber. coal, castings, food, ETC., the disburse-
ments amounted to sos. 73152
Quite an amazing expenditure of money,
is it not? To the thoughtless reader this
array OF figures of the money this mine
expends here is quite imposing. for it comes
within sl50,0OO of the amount expended by
the city council of Salt Lake last wear. 1t
Is almost as great as the wages of single
class OF mechanics-the carpenters-in
Utah. 1t is one-third as much as the wages
of the day iaborers hired by the people of
Utah for single year and so on.
The reader would naturally expect that
after these mining statistics had been given.
there would be added the statistics of agri-
culture, of manufacture, of trade and trans
portation, ETC., SO as to prove the mining
industry the leading Que, if such be the
fact. But not sentence, not a line. not p
word of comparison, only the mere setting
down Of the amount expended in Utah nv
the greatest mine as proof that mining is
greater than any other And the paper
psrades this amusing ''proof'' as an ''object
lesson to TIE HERALD. Don't bother about
The HERALD, friend; stick to your proof,
and you will have enough to do. This pa
per is tolerabIy well informed as to the
mines of Utah, takes deep interest in them
and their welfare, and hence knows with
absolute certainty that mining is not the
leading industry.
The product Of the mines is ali sold:
every dollars worth is kept track Of and
the statistics of mining are easily kept.
Not SO with agriculture, nor even manu-
facture. The farm crop is all wages. The
part consumed by the farmers family and
the animals he keeps are as much part of
his wages as are the silver dollars received
by the miner or the mechanic.
Six years ago (the latest authority we
can lay our hands on at presently the value
of the hay, cereals and potatoes of Utah
for the season 1884 was 1885,, 300. What
would it be to-daya Nearly 1000, 900.
This was every cent wages. At that time
the value of the horses in Utah was
s., 1863, 70S, most of which represents the
earning of the farms, leaving out the city
animals used in transportation, etc. The
value of mich cows then was s., 800, 40S,
mostly farm earnings. The value of the
oxen then was So, $50. 797, earnings of farm
ers and ranchers. The value of the sheen
was 81 ,3l5, 94S; and so on.
This is the nearest approach that can be
made to the earnings of farmers, every
cent of which represents their wages. and
every cent of which may fairly be said to
be invested here as long as the farmers live
here. There are not as yet reliable stats
tics of the export of agricultural products
from Utah; but there are methods by which
the vast preponderance of agriculture over
mining can be shown.
First, there is the number supported by
agriculture, as shown by the census. which
is for adult males, six times as great as the
number supported by mining, and perhaps
eight or nine times as great for the total
number directly dependant upon it. because
so many Of the miners are single men, Then
there are the permanent possessions of the
agriculturists, their improved real estate,
homes and other property. as compared
with those of the miners. This, the surest
test, cannot be exploited because of the
lack of direct and authoritative statistics
on this point but we suppose people would |
laugh at US if we were to be 80 modest as |