The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-12-24
FARMERS WIN
SMELTER SMOKE
CASE IN COURT
Application for Writ of Ger
tiOrari Is Denied by
Highest Tribunal.
INJUNCTION GIVEN
FULL FORCE AND EFFECT
NEGOTIATIONS LOOKING TO-
WARD COMPROMISE WITH
UTAH CONSOLIDATED.


Especial to The Herald) 4
y Washington. Dec 3.-The supreme =
y court of the United States today de y
+ MED application for a writ of certio- =
y rari filed in behalf of the Utah Con- y
4 sOlidated Mining company. which \
y sought a reheaTing with a view to
y setting aside an injunction obtained =
y in the United States district court for
4 Utah by James Godfrey and 4OS other \
y farmers in Salt Lake valley. The in y
y junction restrained the Utah Con-
= soidated Mining company, the United :
States Smelling company and the
y Bingham Consolidated Mining d
4 Smelling company from operating
smelters in Salt Lake county. and y
y from permitting the escape there
= from of fumes, gases, etc, alleged TO =
y be injurious to crops, animals and =
i compliments themselves.
y The effect of tOday's decision is to y
Z continue in effect the permanent in y
y junction granted by lower courts. =
%%%<<%*&N%
The final ending of the famous so-caIIed'
'smelter smoke" injunction case came
yesterday with the denial of the petition
for a writ of certiorari presented TO the
supreme court of the United States by the
Utah Consolidated Mining company. This
means that the farmers have won a de-
cisive victory over the smelters and that
the shelters affected by the decision must
close at once.
Within a few days a mandate will be
issued as the result of this decision, conf
polling the smelter Of the Utah COnsOli-
dated Mining company, known locally as
the Highland Boy smelter, to cease its
operations. The smelters of the United
States Smelling company and the Bing-
ham Consolidated Mining & Smelling com
pany have already closed down. Suit
was also brought by the farmers against
the American Smelling a Refining COM
pany, but a compromise was affected 50
\ maerara hot
cOmpany's smelter
Case Is Hard Fought.
From its inception the case has been a
hard fought one, having been carried
through the lower courts by the court Of
last appeal by the smelter officials before
they would accept the original injunction
as final Judge William H. King and for
mer Senator RaWlins have represented
the farmers through the entire litigation
The smelters against which the suit was
brought had as their legal representative
Attorneys Dickson, Ellis & Ellis, Suther-
land VanCOtt < Allison. Street & Bra
mel and Howat & Mcmillan.
Concerning the negotiations between the
Utah Consolidated and the farmers look
ing TO a compromise by which the smelteT
can continue operations until the erection
of new smelter in TOOele county Judge
King said last night that the farmers
would probably insist on the acceptance
of the courts decision as final and that
no compromise would be arranged
Just what effect the closing of the smell
tiers will have on the mines of the state
is hard to determine. Some of the mines
have already closed down and there will
probably be others that will close. The
cessation of these mining operations is
partially due to the injunction against the
smelters and partially to the low price of
metals. With reference to the effect on
the mines Judge King said last night:
New smeIters May Be Erected.
1t is possible that the closing of the
smelters may temporarily affect mining
operations in the state, but the mineral
wealth of Utah is so great that other
smelters will quickly be erected in places
where no harm will result to vegeta ton.
| There are many places in close proximity
to the mines and accessible to the rail-
roads where smelters can be erected. Skull
valley beyond Grantsville is favorably 10
Gated and has an abundance of water, so
that number of smelters could be erect
ed there.
''Of course it is possible that the ad-
vance in metallurgy and the developments
and improvements in smelling plants may
soon alleviate if not wholly overcome the
evils resulting from smelling sulphide
ores However, this must be obvious that
| if the present smelters were to continue
operations in the same manner in which
| they have been conducted and they were
/ to continue to smelt the character Of ores
reduced by them within a few years the
vegetation of this valley would be largely
destroyed and the raising of crops would
be an impossibility. =
The history of the victory of the farm
! ers over the smelling companies is an in
/ teresting one. When interviewed last
night on the decision of the supreme court
Judge King outlined the steps in the liti-
/ cation from the commencement of the &C
| ton.
Farmers Commence Suit.
More than two years ago nearly 700
I farmers arranged to bring suit against the
/ four shelters to enjOin them from further
| operations unless they desisted from emit
| ting arsenic. lead sulphur dioXide and
other nOxious and poisonous gases and
/ substances. They brought suit In the CIR
| cult court Of the United States in the
I district of Utah to accomplish this end.
/ The smeIter companies answered. deny
/ ing that they were doing any substantial
damage and affirmatively aVerred that by
| reason of the large amount of capital in
/ vested and the great public benefit to the
state that even if some damage were done
to compliments the evil resulting from
/ closing the smelters would greatly out
weigh any damages which would result
Continued on Page 2.