The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-11-30
SUSPENSION Of
ASSESSMENTS
Prominent Colorado Operator
Argues StrenuousIy Against
the Proposition.
WOULD HELP SPECULATORS
AND RETARD LEGITIMATE MIN.
ING ELSEWHERE.

Frank c. Smith, the Well known
Denver mining operator, who is ad-
mittedly one of the best posted men on
general mining conditions in this re-
gion. writes to The Herald asking space
In which to register his disapprOvaI of
The proposition to introduce at the ap-
preaching session of congress a bill to
suspend the annual assessment work on
all mining claims for the year 1907 He
contends that the move is one likely to
be of far greater detriment to the coun-
Try. IN general and legitimate mining
men and proSpectors as a whole than it
could possibly be of benefit to the few
lie combats the proposition that condi-
tons are now similar to what they
were in 1903, when assessment work
was suspended for the year. He says:
Conditions Compared.
In 1903 the crisis came in July. and
The results were such that there was
great depression in the value of all
property, large amounts of money were
lost through the failures of banks, Ia
bOrers quite generally were thrown out
of employment, and those conditions
continued for a long period; whereas
this year wages throughout the country
have been high and miners who were
ployment up to the 1st of November,
during which time a very large proper
ton of the work had already been done
on the properties held by legitimate
prOSpectorS or miners and even if it
had not been and they had the money
in the banks to their credit, a check on
The bank would pay for it, as the loss
through the failures of banks would af-
feet very few prOspectOTs or miners
holding claims on which the assess
ment work was not completed.
Would Only Help Spectators.
"On the other hand, the suspension
of assessment work for the year 1907
throughout the entire mining region
would be of far more detriment to the
mining industry than the present strin-
gent conditions themselves have been.
The fact of the matter is that il would
almost entirely rebound to the advan-
tage of a few spectators who take ad
vantage of the work and capital invest
ed of the miners themselves to the det-
Timent of the whole mining industry.
During the past year l have had Oc-
Casion to visit a large number of the
most prominent mining camps of Utah,
Nevada and southern California where
the new development has taken place,
and when a new field is opened up the
illustrate the general conditions exist
ing throughout the mining region viii
give one particular instance that is a
fair illustration of all.
A Point in Illustration.
Il had occasion to visit Granite noun
tain located about half way between
Cobre and Ely in Nevada and found
that the construction Of the railroad
between these two points something
over a year ago, which passed close
to Granite mountain. made that section
available for mining, and during the
last year a few energetic prOspectOrs
went in there. located a few claims and
Immediately prosecuted their develop
ment with such favorable results that
il enabled them TO begin sacking ore
of a sufficient value TO be shipped at a
profit before they had developed their
ground to more than from twenty to
fifty feet.
The news of these strikes soon
spread to the larger mining camps with
a result that many spectators sent
men to that field to locate the ground
in and around where these strikes had
been made; in some instances locating
as high as a hundred claims, on which
there is not one in ten where the legal
ten-foot hole was sunk. In fact, this