The Florence tribune., 1899-12-16
RAY COPPER MINES.

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 know that one of your own directors will pay 8 visit to the property, and will be able to give you report when next we meet. Clear, hsar.)
 A Shareholder: Is fuel difficult to get there?
 MT. Gordon: No; there is a good deal of wood on the higher part of the hills. Where we are, however, it is practically a desert. Some hard woods grow in the creek, but nothing to count upon. Mr. Hill writes that he has made contract by which he can get cord-wood foated down the Gila River to within six miles of the Ray Mine, and when the mill is put up t his wood can be delivered at the foot of the mill site. Its cost is $2 cord, and that will keep us going for long time. Another point which is rather favora ble is that the Southern Pacific Railway, seeing the interest that is be- ing taken in this district, are propos- ing to build branch line from Casa Grande, or Red Rock, to Riverside, a place within mile of our mine. In that way we can get coal in abundance, and liquid fuel is very cheap. Though at the present moment Mfr. Hill says he is b othered about fuel, it is because they had stacked good deal of cord wood which was carried away by the flood. have no doubt they will be able to get it collected and carried back again, but that takes time.
 THE LABouR QUESTION.
 forgot to mention another rather important point. When we first went there American labour was employed, but we find now that we can get 8 large supply of Mexican labour, which is m uch cheaper, and, for mining and ordinary rough work, it is quite as efficient. That is feature which, ] think, is of vast importance to the economical working of the mine. With regard to the means of transport supposiug that the Southern Pacific Railway takes some time to make this branch to Riverside, we have already bought traction engine from the Best Manufacturing Co.,, of San Fran cisco, companies in San Francisco. Traction engines are used great deal now in the lumber trade, and the road from either Casa Grande or Red Rock to the Gila river, where our branch will come in, is very sandy and hard. Except during the rains, which only last three or four weeks in the year, the Best Co. guaranteed their traction engines to do good work. At present the transport from the railway to the mines is done by teams, and costs are about $l0, or q. ton. With the traction engine Mir. Hill estimates that the total will be $l.75, or about Is. a ton, of course, is great saving.
 The Chairman: That, gentlemen, is all we can tell you, and I hope that when we meet you this time next year we shall have good report to submit to you. Personally think we have 8 big thing in this mine.
 MT. Murray proposed cordial vote of thanks to the chairman and Mir. Gordon for the lucid way in which they had explained the present posi- tion of affairs.
 A Shareholder seconded the motion. which was carried unanimously.
 The Chairman: On behalf of my colleagues and myself beg to thank you most heartily. I feel quite sure that if we get the machinery delivered in fairly good time, by this time next year we ought to be treating 800 tons of copper ore per day; and from what Mr. Hill says, we gather that there is not likely to be fall in the price of copper in the meantime.
 The proceedings then terminated.