The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1908-02-22
THREE HUNDRED MEN
LET OUT AT MINES
ALL SINGLE MEN LAID Off AT
cORRGAN- MCKINNEY MINES
MARRIED MINERS ON FULL TIME
A Few Married men on Surface Will
Work Hall Tims-No Family will
Have To Leave The District.

Crystal Falls got its second blow OF
the winter season last Monday when
announcement was made that all single
men at the mines Of the Corrigan-
Mckinney company would be laid off
&C once and all married men put on
half time. Supt Richards returned
from Cleveland sunday and brought
the bad news back with him. news
which. by the way. effects every Cor
rigan- Mckinney mine in the Lake
Superior district. and will soon effect
every working mine.
In conversation with Supt- Richards
Wednesday he gave out this interview
for publication.
There are on the lower docks
10000, 900 tons OF ore left over from
last season The papers state that
there are sixteen but inside informa-
tion reveals that there are twenty.
That ore is sufficient 10 furnish all the
furnaces being operated at the present
time.
''Should all Of the furnaces that are
now idle blow In at the opening OF
navigation, IL would require only
20. 600. 900 tons TO be shipped down the
lake this year to supply them. This
means that all of the ore over 20. OOO-
O0O. tons that may toe shipped the com
ing season will have 10 be put in stock.
For that reason the output OF the mines
will be cut in two and to do this forces
must be reduced.
"Our furnaces have been making
ron since last October for stockpile.
Their output is all stacked mp in the
furnace yards at the present time and
there Is no immediate prospects OF sell
ling IL. We haven't sold pound Of
ore yet, and we understand that the
other ore producers are in the same
position.
"Now as 10 the shut down We
thought ut first that we would have to
lay off the single men and put all Of
the married men on half time but after
we got at work we found that IL w1ll
not be necessary TO put any Of the
married men on half time excepting u
few of those on surface who nave kind
ly consented 10 that arrangement.
They are the higher class of labor.
You can say that there will be no
necessity for married man leaving.
the district. They will all be kept AZ
work as will also single men who are
the support OF widowed mothers or
families.
'All drills but two will be stopped,
one on the Donovan ard one at Iron
River. The Baker will be affected.
also. but not to as great an extent as
the local mines because we have mined
no ore there yet
"Of course. we cant say with "A
certainty jnst what our neighbors are
going 10 do but my understanding from
the information obtained at Cleveland
is that the other mining companies OF
this region viii take action similar TO
ours. which means that other places
in the peninsula will get the same dose
that Crystal Falls is getting
The work Of laying OFT the men be
gan on Tuesday and by Wednesday
night it had been completed. A count
shows that 800 men were let out All
Of these men were single and most OF
them foreigners many OF whom seized
the opportunity to make visit TO the
old country and the ticket agents have
been doing lively business since.
The big bulk OF the men came from
the Great Western but the Tobin fur
nished a good quota and the Dunn was
not far behind.
The work of laying up the drills be-
gan on Wednesday and has been about
completed The drill on the Donovan
lands was moved Thursday and hole
will be put down when that machine
also. will 90 out OF commission.
The business men of the city had
about gotten over the first shutdown
and were feeling cheerful when the
news of the last curtailment came along
and simply put everything at a stand
still Business ~ dead In all lines and
will probably remain 20 until the
people get over the scare
While the blow IL a heavy one yet IL
might bosmuch worse. There are about
400 men left At work az the Corrigan-
Mckinney mines, 100 at the Bristol
and anotner hundred At Tho HoiIistor,
south Dunn and North Armenia mines
70 which must be added about 100 a.
the Mansfield 80 that the working
forces employed at the mines in this
immediate locality will total today