Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-06-29
sILvER's GLOOMY PROSPECT.
Mines Being Closed in the West on Account
of the Falling Price.

Mines Being Closed in the West ON Account
of the Falling Price.
SPOKANE WASH, June 29-There Is consider
able excitemen. in Ceur dAlene county over
the silver question. There are three things
which are disturbing the great mining district
price Of silver, lead and labor. Several Of the
largest mines have shut down within the last
few days and others threaten to.
A few days ago miners in the Gem and Frisco
mines threatened to strike for an increase Of 50
cents per day and the troubles of q year ago
are feared. At the same time silver dropped,
and now the mines are closed Workmen in
the Last Chance have now agreed on a graded
scale of wages, taking part pay in per cent Of
profits, and the mine was opened yesterday.
Mine owners talk freely and say that with
miners working ut $3.50 and car men and
shovelers at 50 day with silver at 20 cents and
lead at 4, all the mines in the Ceur dAlene
country can be worked proftably and will con-
tinue to run. But there must be an equivalent
for this. Lead or silver must raise or wages
must 60 down. There is . great deal Of
anxiety, and mining men hold daily confer
ences. Unless there is an advance in silver or
lead in q short time every mine in the CGur
dAiene country is likely to close. This will
stop the daily output Of about II 900 ounces of
silver and $50 tons Of lead.
Mine owners generally want the Sherman law
repealed at once, and . majority favor free
coinage az an experiment.
KANSAS CITY, No.. June 2a-August R
Meyer. president of the Consolidated Kansas
City Smelling and Refining Company. the big
gest concern of the kind in the world, said
yesterday that the fall in the price of silver
would have no effect upon the company's bust
ness, it had anticipated the fall Of silver over
a year ago and had reduced its silver work and
begun to smelt copper and lead instead.
DENVER, Col. June 29-The Mollis Gibson
mine at Aspen, the largest silver producer in
the state, closed down yesterday and will not
resume operations until the outlook for silver
Is improved. All the big properties in that
place have reduced their forces, nearly 500 Iaen
being discharged yesterday. A meeting of
mine managers will be held today to consider
the situation and take some concerted action.
SHELTERS have ceased buying ore and will con-
fine themselves to that on hand or contracted
for.
OMAHA, NEB, June 2s-There is Q strong
probability that the big Grant smelling and re-
inning works in this city will be closed on &C
count of the decline in silver. E. w. Nash,
treasurer of the company, said yesterday: I'VE
have quit buying and shall buy no more silver
until matters take a different turn. II we can
not afford to work silver We shall have to shut
up sho -
ST. Louis, No., June 2s.-rhe st. Louis
Smelling and Refining Company, one of the
largest in the country, has decided to shut
down work, owing to the silver troubles.
LONDON, June 20, 2:15 p. m.-An e1-
traordinary decline has taken place in the price
of silver in the market here. The fall was 23Id..
making the present price 81 I'D.
SIMLA, June 29.-The Indian government is
discussing the claim of the various banks which
have FL 500 900 in silver now on passage to In
dia, and which want compensation for the de-
probation in the value Of the metal arising
from the action Of the government in stopping
the free coinage of silver. 1t is said that the
government is inclined to secure the banks
against loss.
AMSTERDAM, June 29.-The market here for
silver has been, with the other markets Of the
world greatly affected by the action of the gov
eminent of India in dealing with the currency
question in that country. In the open market
the price Of fine silver has dropped from So
guilders to go guilders per kilo.