The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-09-22
|GUGGENHElM
IS CRITICISED
Local Mining Men Declare His
Statements Were Intended
as "Campaign Tonic"

In an interview published yesterday,
Daniel Guggenheim, head of the American
Smelling & Refining company, made some
statements that were quite generally dis
cussed in mining circles yesterday, par
ticularlyNhose relating to what the Gar
field smelter has done and is doing and
the statistical position of copper. BY some
he was quite severely arraigned on the
ground that he was attempting a boost for
the prosperity campaign of Taft.
AT any rate" said one big operator
during the afternoon, '.he gives the Gar
field smelter credit for doing things that
conditions out there don't seem to JUSTIFY.
He says the smelter is now handling Co.
900 tons of ore month, when IL is known
by every company having business with
the smelter that the plant has never ex-
ceeded LOO tons day. and that the pres
ent average is under that amount. know
that the management has been at its wits
ends for months to get anything like rea-
sonable results from the operation of the
plant; nothing about it has apparently
worked out as expected, and the process
of changing. tearing down and rebuilding
has been constantly going on from the
day the first furnace was placed in COM
mission, and they are at 1t yet If they
get things Strengthened out in another
year they will be doing we'll. That the
plant will eventually be perfected and do
all that Mr. Guggenheim claims for 1t
now is just as certain as ii is that the
the talent to make it work right. 1 don't
care to talk about the details of the big
plants infirmities. but Mr. Guggenheim
might just as we'll have forgot to mention
the matter in his interview, which almost
appeared to invite criticism.
Mr. Guggenheim's argument that copper
is statistically strong because producers
have disposed of their reserves, which he
says are normally 100000 to 100000 tons.
and that the price would advance to IA
or Is cents while new reserve was being
accumulated, was also questioned. II was
pointed out that the total production OF
this country in 1906 was not more than
Mr.. Guggenheim considers a normal re-
serve; that the consumption last year was
small. while the production was only lOo,-
600 tons, or so. less than in 1905; that the
production this year has been fully up to
requirements, and that, could the truth
be known, there is plenty of copper with
which to feed the market in case the
price is advanced just a little. 1t is argued
that producers would have to hold every
pound they could make for whole year
if they were to build reserve such as
Mr.. Guggenheim states they have started
10 accumulate. and if they attempt that
the declaration is made by men who make
study of the situation. the price or the
metal will be depressed in proportion as
the accumulation grows until, six months
hence. instead of seeing lac TO ltc metal,
the price is more likely to be reduced TO
l0c or l2c.
There is no better way in the world
to stiffen the price of copper. said one
man, than to bring about revival OF
business that will require the use of sew
eral times the amount of the metal that
is now being consumed. Piling up re-
serves in the hands OF anybody. producers,
Consumers or spectators. will not advance
the price. A complete cessation of pro-
duction for a year or TWO would 90 IL,
probably. but every pound of metal that
accumulates anywhere in excess of the
country's requirements. is sure to help
in keeping the price down. Mr.. Guggen-
helm knows that. so ! take 1t his argu-
ment was intended more as campaign
tonic than anything else; at least that
would be a charitable construction TO
place upon it,