Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1893-04-14
UNIQUE B1sBEE.
renco ]. O'Drlon in Tucson cItlzen.

tains towering abruptly 800 feet high
all around, with its red adobe houses,
its red stone fences, its dark red com
pany buildings, everything closely and
irregularly huddled together with no
pretense to a straight street, IL pre-
sents an individuality as town the
like of which cannot be found.
Then there is the company, the
great Copper Queen Consolidated Min
ing company, who have tunnelcd and
shafted and drifted the mightiest
mountain Of copper which overlooks
the town until they have made an
underground city, with numerous mar
row, winding streets, and populated
them with prosperous army of stur-
dy miners, and whose present prosper
GUS condition is in no way more surely
attested than in their conservative
philanthropy.
As evidence OF the latter there is
the immense Copper Queen store
where everything is sold from a chick
en- to a chair. 1t does a business of
over $50, ,000 every month, and pays its
lG or II employees salary in toto Of
$4,000, averaging over $lOO to each
monthly. Ninety-eight per cent. Of
the GOO employees, besides their wives
and families, trade at the company
store, not because they are compelled
or coerced in any way, but because
merchandise Of every description is
sold at as low figure as is consistent
with meeting current expenses and
making a slight profit. Everything is
bought for cash and advantage is ta-
ken Of every possible discount. An
account therefore Of the extent Of the
business and its philanthropic man
agement it is absolutely impossible for
small individual storekeepers to com
pete. The managers Of the enterprise
are asked by stockholders from time
to time what per cent. profit they are
charging upon certain articles and
frequently recommended to reduce
the rate.
The company owns its own railroad
of some So miles and transportation
over it daily except Sunday carloads
of coke, mail, passengers and besides
its own freight, that of the public at
the moderate rate Of 10 cents per hun
dred pounds IN carload lots.
Then there is the magnificent COM
pany library of which every periodi-
cal Of any importance or merit in Ari-
zona is provided for the people Of the
town free Of charge, also all the prom
inent monthly m5g8zincs, weekly il
Illustrated papers and everything Of
merit from all over the country in the
periodical line without regard to ex-
pense, besides a splendid assortment
Of books of science, fiction, history,
etc, in English and not few in Span
ish. The building itself is modern
two-story structure of brick, slightly,
well-windowed and ventilated, heated
by steam and lighted by electricity, a
triumph of modern industry and a
magnificent monument of the admir-
able disinterestedness and solicitude
of the Copper Queen management.
The Copper Queen mine has fre-
Quently been pronounced by wide
travellers and competent critics the
finest in the world. One thing is GER
tain that the character of the ores is
superior to that Of the Lake Superior
region in that it is more easily mined.
1t is susceptible to blasting, breaks
with comparative readiness and there
fore carried to the surface with much
greater convenience than that Of the
north which, while frequently more
solidly metal, is as a consequence very
dificult Of dislodgemeut and trans
portation to daylight. as both have
to be smelted into bars the superior
desirability Of the Arizona product is
palpable.
1t is refreshing after having visited
silver camps stagnant from the condi-
tion Of the silver market to come up
on thriving and prosperous settle
ment like this where copper is queen
Five hundred miners drawing $3.50 q
day, which is rate of wages unsur
passed in the territory, if equalled
has ensured a fair degree Of prosperl
ty. That the people are comfortable
is evlnced by their cosey little home.
on the mountain sides ranged above
each other like shelves on whatnot
and by the numerous little gardens
and flower plots which are certain in
dications Of a settled, homelike sentl
ment.
1t is at night, however, perchanct
by moonlight, that Bisbee attains tn,
height Of its picturesqueness and ap
pearance of romanticism.
From the great smelter comes tn,
subdued roarof machinery. The elec
trio lights glisten numerously likl
gems in the semi-darkness. Anon
furnace door is opened revealing th'
o immense, bright, red bed Of glisten