Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1910-03-17
MUST ALTER MONT. SHELTERS
FUMES THEREFROM RUIN FOR.
ESTS.
Anaconda Co. Made Defendant in Ac
ton Brought by Wicker
sham.

Washington, March dissatisfied
that the present methods OF operating
it's shelters by the Anaconda Copper
Mining company are not only destruc-
tive in o widespread degree of the sur
rounding natural forests, but unneces-
sary. Attorney General Wickersham
caused bill in equity to be filed at
Helena, against the company. The
bill asks for permanent injunction
to compel the company to operate It's
plant at Anaconda in such manner
as to end the destruction complained
of.
The company has resisted the de-
mand of the government that the
methods of the smelling be changed
and among other contentious has re-
piled that it would cost millions OF
dollars to do so, besides the loss &C.
ruling from the temporary shutting
down of the plants. The attorney gen
eral. however, announces that the suit
will be pressed vigorously, unless the
company will cooperate voluntarily
with the government to bring about
termination of the existing conditions.
At the department of justice the
statement is made that the suit was
not filed until every possible friendly
means for securing a change OF smell
ter methods had been exhausted.
Started by Roosevelt.
Efforts to secure a cessation of the
injuries from the smelters were under
way some time before the close of
President Roosevelt's administration
and the mining companies were then
notified that suits would be brought
unless definite action was taken by
the smelters to stop the wholesale de-
struction of the forests resulting from
the distribution of sulphur and arsenic
fumes over a wide area of country.
Instead of attempting to remedy the
situation the companies represented to
Mr.. Roosevelt that they could operate
their plants in no other manner than
that then in vogue.
President Roosevelt ordered full
investigation and took a personal in
terest in the hearings. The claims adj
vanced by the Anaconda company I'M
der which they sought to avoid being
sued, it is declared, were not new,
but were Identical with those made in
two other suits under which similar
injuries were stopped, one case being
by the government against the Noun
tain Copper company in California and
the other by the state of Georgia,
against the Ducktown, Team, company.
In each of these cases it was claimed
that adverse action would mean the
closing of the mines and smelters and
the discharge of thousands of men.
Injunctions, however, were granted in
both instances, but neither mines nor
smelters were closed. Instead, the
companies spent the money necessary
to convert the harmful fumes into a
valuable product and many additional
men were given work.
On behalf of the Montana smelters
the contention was made that they
could not convert the fumes into acid
as had been done in California and
Tennessee because of their wholly diff
ferent character, but full inyestiga-
ton of this claim by leading experts
has satisfied the government of the
entire Feasibility Of converting the
fumes at Anaconda into acid and that
there are large phosphate deposits
near there which may be used in con-
nection with acid in the manufacture
of fertilizer.