The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-09-25
LABOR AND COPPER.

A careful review of the copper sit
uation for the last few months will
give the thoughtful investigator
good opportunity of seeing now
closely allied are the financial and
the labor interests of the nation, and
to determine how a disturbance in
the financial world is quickly COM
municated to the labor world, and
how quickly it affects the business
condition of the country at large.
1t has been claimed for some time
by various telephone and telegraph
companies, particularly the larger
companies operating in the western
states, and the telegraph companies
operating all over the country, that
they could not use copper at a cost of
more than II cents per pound.
These companies, with their auxiliar-
les. have purchased through CEN
trail purchasing agency which fixed
the buying price of the red metal,
thousands of tons of copper, and
their demand for copper has ever
been a most important factor in the
copper situation.
Owing to the fact that the demand
for copper was enormous, these COM
panies were forced to pay in excess
of II cents per pound. Because of
this they curtailed as far as possible,
contemplated extensions of service
save where these extensions were i'm
perative, and instead of giving ind-
yidual telephone service, certain tel
ephone companies crowded many
subscribers onto the party line SER
vice.
This curtailment of extensions and
improvements was made in an effort
to curtail as far as possible the pur-
chase of copper, and the purpose was
to force the price of the metal down
TO the figure they had arbitrarily
named.
The producers, however, continued
to produce the normal amount of the
metal, and the consequence was that
there was considerable accumulation
of copper that was not marketable
at the prices that had been main
tanned.
The labor phase developed in Mon
tana, originally, where the one great
telephone company was nearly put
out of commission by reason of fall
ing off of patronage and inability to
secure operatives, until the demands
of the laborers had been conceded to-
In Montana one company was vir-
tually without business for several
months as the result of labor trou-
bles.
Then came the telegraphers' strike.
which demoralized the telegraph SER
vice of the companies affected.
In the face of these labor troubles,
the telephone and telegraph compa-
MES combined in a notice to the
banks of the country that they would
not purchase copper wire for pro-
posed extensions for at least one
year. They gave as their reasons,
the labor troubles that they had suf-
fered All improvements save those
that were imperative were suspended
The bankers in turn are said to
have notified the Amalgamated and
other huge copper interests that they
would not be willing to furnish
money to carry their copper stocks. !
This caused the malgamated, it is
Eaid, to get together with the pur-
chasers and attempt to reach a def
mite conclusion as to a fair and eQut- |
able selling basis. This consultation,
it is understood, brought no results |
as a basis of settlement could not |
he reached, and no contracts were
made for copper to be delivered in
the ensuing year, the buyers believ-
ing they could force the acceptance
of their point.
In retaliation the Amalgamated
decided to curtail it's product, and
naturally as a cOnciliatory measure,
cnrtailed it at the point where the
labor troubles had originated. The
consequence was that the Amalgam-
ated laid off fully so per cent of
their employees in several of their
districts. 1t has been stated that if
an agreement it not reached soon
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