The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1910-01-03
Review of Copper Industry for 1909
New Record for Production of Red Metal Set By Mines
of the United States and World.

would sooner pay fair stated pric
r for the metal at all times than an ex
3 cessively high price at one time an
an excessively low one again. The
feel that they will be protected an
/ demand this protection OF regulation
There may be and probably VIII be on
or two smaller mergers among some
the large producers, for matters seen
| to be shaping towards this end "a
present, but they Will not conflict II
any way with the antitrust legisla
ton.
one of the features of the marke
dealings in coppers during the pas
year was the operating of greatly
increased number of small investors
who displaced the spectators to
great extent Then, too. in almost al
of the higher priced issues and the
standard issues among the coppers
the holdings We're split up among O
larger number OF investors than dur
ing any former year. During the year
the low grade western properties be-
gan TO loom up strongly as a big fac
tor i'm the production OF copper and
they show promise that they will as
sumo an even more important posi-
ton. Their shares, therefore, came
into great demand.
Throughout the early part of the
year and up till about July there was
not manifested very optimistic feel
ing regarding the immediate future of
the copper manufacturing industry.
In July, however, things seemed to
brighten up perceptibly. but II was
not until November and December
that any material relief was felt Now
there is a boom i'm practically every
copper issue in the market and some
of the bad are benefittlng with the
good. Many stocks are quoted i'm the
market for greatly more than their
true value, while others are quoted
for less than what they really are
worth. There is certain to be re-
action after this little boom, but it
will probably merely steady the mar
ket and will not be of any great dur
alton or serious consequences.
With better metal prices practically
assured and with these prices main
tanned at "A stable level, as they UNI
doubtedly will be during the coming
year, there Is every reason to believe
that the market for copper issues will
continue i'm a healthful state and that
the copper manufacturing industry will
enter-is about to enter, in fact--an
EZRA of sanity never before enjoyed.
Matters have been and are tending
in this direction.
AS to the copper properties. In all
districts, especially in the Lake Super
Tor camp, in Montana and Arizona,
and i'm Utah and Nevada, all the pro-
ducing companies are i'm excellent
of them can greatly in
crease their outputs at any time, All,
almost without exception. show en-
couraging promise underground and
their finances are in the best of shape
The men are contented, are excellent
workers and good livers.
During 1909 a large number of new
fotations appeared. especially in the
'%''NN '''PNi''' NohHtiyt anu uli VI
them i'm this district have excellent
prospects. Within the next five years
IL seems almost certain round doz-
en- new producers will be brought for
ward. Several others, now well adj
vanced In the development stage. such
as Lake, Hancock, Superior and the
like i'm Michigan. and Superior and
Boston, Arizona Commercial, Inspira-
ton and others in the southwest. will
enter the ranks of the producers.
The production of copper next year
Will likely be considerably larger than
during 1909 but will not be what the
mines are capable of. Slight curtail-
ment of production i'm the Butte dis
trict will likely continue the first half
Of the year, probably not longer, for |
the metal situation certainly will have |
been righted before July 1. The cop
per producing industry is in better |
shape now than 1t has been for two |
to three years past and is steadily i'm |
The average cost of pro-
ducing copper the past year has been