The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-01-27
BUTTE News.
IT ALL ENDS IN SMOKE
Futile Efforts to Civilize the Butte
Reduction Works.
is A RELIC OF BARBARISM


In the did days every smelling COM
pany in Butte used 70 roast ore in the
open air The people found IL unbear-
able often. and in Difference to public
opinion most az the companies have
substituted other methods of roasting
the ores The Boston a. Montana com
pany which WIS one of the worst Of
the old offenders, adopted modern
methods in its new plant and discarded
open air roasting as a relic of barbar-
ism The Butte a Boston and the Colo
RADIO companies have also kept in line
with progress and years ago abandoned
open air roasting. Only two smelling
companies are left in Butte which now
roast i'm the open air They are the
Butte Reduction works and the Parrot
company. The latter company has had
ore roasting in the open air this winter
and will probably have more before the
winter is over. but no fresh ore has
been fired lately. The ore burning at
the Butte Reduction works Is now in
full blast.
The fact that the Butte Reduction
works is now building new stalls for
roasting ore in the open air Is unwel-
come news to the people Of Butte. sig
nifying that this company has no inten-
ton Of giving up the harharous method
of roasting ores. The Parrot company
will soon remove to its new smeitef a {
Gaylord. bur the Butte Reduction works
will remain in Butte and its plan seems
to be to keep on in the old way and let
the people Of Butte cough or get out,
as they choose.
If roasting in the open air were nee
essary for mining operations IN Butte
no one would object But the fact that
other smelling companies have discard
a 3fxskat -afkNxe
not necessary and that with small
expense the company could SO equip its
plant that the people of Bate would
have to endure very little smoke,
Mayor Harrington, Alderman Pasc0e
and Sanitary Officer WATSON suggested
TO the management of the Butte Re-
ductiun works that the open kilns or
stalls could be arched over with brick
which would prevent the smoke from
leaving the kilns and force 1t up
through the stack. The reply was made
that this would not be convenient To the
company, as Ii would not lie SO easy To
unload the ores into the kiins. IL was
then suggested that iron doors be
placed in the top Of the arches through
which the ore could be thrown, but the
company did not like this plan.
Mayor Harrington stated yesterday
that IL will be necessary to arrest the
manager of the Butte Reduction works
whether or not the company Is evading
the law. He is confident that the pres
ent plan of open air roasting is an eva
sion OF the ordinance against heap
roasting. If the ordinance does not
cover the present style of roasting IL
viii be changed SO as to do So 1t
would seem that whether the company
is complying with the law or not il
would be willing to do what ii can TO
alleviate the smoke when a few hun
bred dollars of expense can do il. Sew
eral people called a the Standard office
yesterday and offered TO subscribe small
sums towards a fund for arehing over
the open-air kilns of the Butte Reduc
tion works. but il is not believed that
the company would accept any such
fund or that II Is financially unable To
bear the expense itself Of changing
from the barbarous and ANTICIPATED
method of roasting ores To up-to-date
and civilized methods,