The copper era. (Clifton, Graham County, Ariz.) 1899-1911, 1909-12-16
INJUNCTION FAR REACHING.

LII iOdUClI my us OCClSiOu III IuS
famous injunction proceedings
against the Arizona Copper company
of Clifton, in the tailings question,
the supreme court of Arizona will es-
tablish a precedent more far-reach-
ing than at this time may be real
lied, and for this reason alone the
supreme court should be cautious in
passing its official order. We say
far-reaching because the Arizona
Copper company, as well as other
companies in the Clifton-Morenci
district, are not the only companies
that must treat their ores by the
concentrating process in order to
operate their mines at a profit
However, this fact is more true of
the Clifton-Morenci district than any
other copper mining district in Ari-
IONA. If the supreme court rules
that the companies are forbidden to
dump the coarse tailings, or in fact
any matter from the concentrators
into rivers or running streams, it
means the closing down and destruc-
ton of manyconcentrating plants that
have cost millions of dollars to build
Not only that it means the throwing
out of employment of thousands of
men-not alone those who are en-
ployed in the concentrators, but in
the mines as well. Few companies
are so situated that they can pre-
vent the flowing of refuse from their
concentrators into the rivers or
mountain streams.
AS has already been intimated by
the court the companies must make
preparations to take care of the
shines or the refuse from the con-
centrators that has been proven to
be injurious to farming lands, and as
the Arizona Copper company has ex-
pended thousands of dollars in build
ing pumping plants and storage
reservoirs to separate the shines
from the gravel and water, it would
appear that this company has mas
tered the situation to the entire sat
isfaCtiou of all concerned. And if
all companies would take as good
care of their shines as the A. c. and
Shannon the ERA does not believe
that the farmers of the lower valley
would have any chance for grievance.
Looking at this proposition from
the farmers side the ERA cannot see
where it is policy for the farmers to
insist on destructing the very in
dustry that has been the cause of
making the farming lands of the
valley valuable. For instance, Just
close the concentrators and low
grade copper mines of the Clifton
Morenci district, and this now pros
porous community would be as quiet
as a graveyard; and the farmers
would go begging for a market for
their produce. What would the pro-
duce be worth if there was no market
for it? The ERA believes that the
companies should do everything
possible to remove the injurious mat
ter from the tailings before running
them into the river 1t seems like
sheer folly for the farmers to con-
tinually insist on the supreme court
passing an order that will not only
destroy the mining interests but the
farming interests as well. The ERA
believes that the supreme court will
compel the companies to take care of
the shines, but we don't see how this
official body can justly pass an order
rrill lu eli
Centrator in existence in the terri
tory, and destroy an industry that
has helped to make Arizona the
greatest copper producer in the
world.