Bisbee daily review., 1908-05-24
DIVIDEND IF
 !. 8A. MAY BE
 MADE LARGER
Houghton Sees Reason Why the Company Should Be Able to Pay at Least $2 Per Quar- ter Hereafter.

HoUGHTON, Mich, May 2S.-The
 directors of the Calumet & Arizona company will hold a meeting here
 this week to decide on the dividend for the quarter and to discuss several
 other matters of importance to the company. It is quite generally ex- pected that the directors will decide
 to pay a larger dividend than was paid last time. It is expected too, that g decision will be reached relar tive to the loan which the Calumet & Arizona treasury made two years ago to the Superior < Pittsburg company. Some of the directors of the Calumet & Arizona company never did --vor the loan of the money to the Superior & Pittsburg, taking the stand that is was not good business.
 However, money was easy at the time and nowhere easier than in the treasury of the Calumet & Arizona company, which had accumulated surplus of s4.00e. 900 in cash and cop per and was paying dividends which totaled a cool million dollars every quarter. Under the circumstances the request of sister corporation, doing business under the same man. agement, for funds to continue ex- ploratory work looked reasonable
 and the loan was made at per cent.
 When financial stringency came along the rate was raised to per cent and then to per cent, which is the rate now being paid.
 Now, It is understood that two large eastern banking houses are
 anxious to assume the loan at rate of per cent per annum, and the Su- perior & Pittsburg directors are -ath- CT anxious to make the change in order to put stop to the criticism waich has been quite general and to
 resent the accusation that they are doing banking business. The re- payment of this money will be quite boost to the treasury of Calumet < Arizona
 As a matter of fact Calumet & Arizona is now making money at a rate which certainly warrants the payment of at least g per quarter to the shareholders. The production of the company averages 1,400 tons vI
 blister copper each month-a fact 1 which is not generally known, for the
 managemtnt gives the public the total ] product of the Superior & Pittsburg
 and Calumet & Arizona, and the pro 1 fessional tooters have been asserting that each company got about half of | this. which has run over 2,000 tons a month for the past few months. This is an unfair rating R the Super for & Pittsburg product and may be
 based on the information that the
 companies are sending to the smelt- CTS at Douglas about an equal tonn- age of rock
 However, the Calumet & Arizona rock is now running better than at any previous time in the history of the mine, and the Superior & Pitts
 burg has not as yet opened single ore body which can show run of
 copper equal to the high grade class ifieation coming from Calumet & Arizona This may be attained with
 greater depth in the Superior & Pitts burg. but the fact is that the high
 grade stuff is not there yet,
 Costs at the Calumet & Arizona
 have been reduced lately, and I be lieve 1t is safe to say that with the increased tonnage of rock and the
 smelling plant the costs are as low If
 not lower than ever before in the his tory of the mine, and but one or pos sibly two mines in the country can produce copper as cheapiy as Calu- met & Arizona. Figuring the product
 at 1400 tons a month the costs at 6
 cents, with a 13-cent copper market, the Calumet & Arizona company is earning over a han million dollars
 each quarter, which is s2.50 or better for each share, or s10 per snare an
 nual1y.
 While it has been occasion for con
 siderable adverse comment, the plan
 of the Calumet 6 Arizona of spending some of the sarplTs in searching for
 other copper mines is rot tc be con
 demned. These expansion proposals
 depend usually upon the judgment
 used in selecting the object for
 benevolent assimilation. If good
 property Is chosen and 1t adds to the
 wealth Of the corporation, then the
 directors are deemed wise in their,
 decision If, on the other hand, they
 manage to secure '.lemon" Instead
 of a mine, condemnation of the pol
 icy es a policy is quite common The Calumet & Arizona directors l did spend about $200, GOO in the Lead
 vile property and they turned 1t
 down finally, but there are other properties in which they are inter tested which may turn out differently
 and then 1t will be another tale.