Arizona republican., 1902-04-18
THE ALHAMBRA SHELTER
Lime Creek Copper Co.'S. Plant Began
 Operations Yesterday.

The smeltar of the Lime Greek Cop per company at Alhambra was blown in yesterday for trial run and whether or not a custom smelter will pay in this valley will now be given a practical test. Yesterdays experiment. was entirely satisfactory, with the single exception that the well affordinS the water supply is not quite deep enough. There was not sufficient Wa ter to run the plant a its full capacity.
 It is a fortY-ton water jacket and was run yesterday on twenty-five ton basis. The smelter will shut down again, probably today, and the well will be sunk little deeper. Already the water runs in almost as fast as it is pumped out. but there is not sufii- cient reservoir capacity. This is very small matter. and the smelter was started yesterday for trial run to test this and q dozen other little things that are usually not discovered till the last minute As above stated the well proved the cnly thing that needs fix ing" II. H. Udel. q practical smelter man is in charge. The com pany has considerable ore purchased and expects as soon as the well is
 
 if the ore to supply it can be obtained, and there :s little doubt hat it can be.
 The smelter is nicely situated three CT four hundred feet from the railroad spur running to the Alhambra ware house. and which will be extended if all plans carry. There is good boiler. blower, jacket. ore bins, rock crusher, and in fact everything needed. and all new and paid for. The company owns four acres of ground, giving ample room fer the works for a long time to come. and lime and iron for Aux are obtained within a few miles of the plant.
 The Lime Creek copper mines are situated some distance from this val ley-. and no d0ubt many have wondered if the company intended to haul it's ores to Alhahbra to smelt. The ques- ton was asked yesterday of the man. agemenr, why the smelter was put up here instead of a t the mine. The reply was that in the first place they had an opportunity to get the plant so cheap they did not have the moral courage to reuse to buy it. as they could prob ably never get the same offer again. Then they have other properties ad- jacent to this valley from which. if they prove or value, ere can easily be brought in. The smelter will enable them to develop these properties if they are worth it. In the mean time they can be testing the question whether a custom smaltar will pay or not.
 At the Lime Creek mines a shelter i5 contemplated as soon as possible and ores from there will be brought down in small lots, if at all. The road to the mines is not yet sufficiently worked to permit of the hauling Of heavy freight over il. and will not be fer several months. By putting up the plant at A1hahhra they can set every thing in working order at much less expense than at the mine. By the time the road will admit of hauling the smelter to the mine they will know better what to do. If the custom work pays. the Alh2mDra shelter will stay where it is and another one will be erected at the mine. If it does not pay it will simply be knocked down. every piece marked, moved to the mine and re-erected. at a cost not ex- oeedinS the price of q new shelter pun chased under ordinary conditions. Altogether the prospect seems to be a good one for the company and if there is as much good copper ore available in this vicinity as has been represented u should prove a good thing for the pTospector and the valley in general.