The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1896-05-08
IT'S ABOUT SETTLED
The Powder Magazine Question Will
Soon be Solved.
AGENTS ARE ALL ANXIOUS
They Advocate Harmony in Ar
ranging for the site with the
CounCil-1 he Ordinance to be
ed-Expressions.

AhN oSNAOh VI the city council on
wednesday evening in ordering the or
dinance regulating the storage of DOW
der amended so as to permit its storage
at the site agreed upon in a canyon
back of the poor farm, which is a little
inside of the three-mile limit, promises
to bring about a speedy and satisfac-
tory solution of the problem. The local
| agents of the powder companies say
that this action of the council is just
what they have been waiting for before
taking definite steps towards the re-
moval of their magazines and that they
will proceed to comply with the wishes
of the council as speedily as possible
Immediately after the amended ordi-
nance has been passed.
In conversation with a Standard re-
porter on the powder question yester-
day afternoon, NJ. c. Harris, resident
agent of the Giant and Safety Nitro
Powder companies, said: THE amend
ing of that ordinance is all that have
been waiting for. l am on record as
wanting to move long time before the
council took the matter up. and want
to move now. AS soon as the ordnance
is amended so that we can lawfully
build our magazines on the site which
was selected by the council the county
commissioners and ourselves, l will go
ahead and build my magazines at that
place. / have no authority to speak
L
Will build my magazines there regard
less of what they may do. / consider
that site the best and safest location in
Montana for the storage of powder. ]
will put up my magazines as fast as
they can be built as soon as the amend
ed ordinance passes the council, and /
am satisfied that the Northern Pacific
will run a switch into the magazines
without delay. We only want to know
that we are right when we go to the
expense of building new magazines.
This moving around Is pretty expens-
i've. The two companies which repre-
sent have about $4,000 tied up in land
and buildings at the old site near the
Blue Bird. The county commissioners
ordered us away from there, and the
buildings and the present site out on
| the fiat cost us $500 more. The new
magazines will be built with three sides
in the hill and facing directly away
| from the city and they will be absolute
ly safe. We will have to have 35 acres
| of ground at the new location, and the
| price has been run up on us until IL is
now held at 500 an acre. have recon-
mended to my companies that they buy
the full 35 acres themselves, If neces-
sary."
The other powder agents are of the
same opinion as Mr.. Harris, and they
are in daily expectation of receiving
proceed with the purchase of ground at
the new location, the erection of new
| magazines and the removal of the DOW
\ der. In expectation of such instruc-
| tions, they have all allowed their stocks
| of the explosive to run down so low
that some of them are having a little
difficulty in supplying their trade. One
| of the powder men said yesterday af-
| ternoon:
I'VE all want to move and our COM
| panies want 70 move, but If the council
is going to get bull-headed about it, we
may decide to move our own magazines
straight out on the far outside of the
| three-mile limit. Then how much bet
4 ter off would the city be? II is "a good
deal better for us TO work together
tremendously. II the council will amend
/ the ordinance TO as to make the storage
of powder legal at the site which they
have selected, that win end the matter,
and we will move there at once"
Ii is probable that all of the powder
companies doing business in Butte will
unite in the purchase of the S5 acres re-
| quired at the new site. The necessity
i of buying so much ground lies in a law
/ which says that no powder magazine
/ shall be located within a quarter of a
/ mile of human habitation. The pow
der agents are afraid that If they
| bought only as much ground as was alb
solutely required. some enterprising in
| dividual would build a cabin within
| the quarter-mile limit and then compel
/ them to buy him off. This performance
might be repeated until the powder
/ companies were forced into bankruptcy
and. in self-protection, they propose to
/ buy up the ground for a quarter of a
mile I'm every direction from the maya
| zines.
The discussion about the removal of
| the magazines has brought on several
the ma gazines has brought out several
! interesting facts. one of which Is that
| the average use of giant powder in
| Butte is five tons a day.
| The powder men favor the site agreed
! upon for the reason that IL is the only
one of those which We're under discus
| sion which can be reached by wagon.
| Consequently. should there be a strike
on the railroad. or a wreck between the
magazines and the city, the powder
| could be brought in by wagon and the
| mines would not be comDellad TO shut