The Parker post., 1917-05-12
ARIZONA To AID
|NDUSTR|A[Ly
METAL INDUSTRY OF STATE
PREPARED TO MEET PRESENT
WAR NEEDS FOR COPPER AND
OTHER METALS.

Arizona, with it's small population,
Is not going to be an important fac
tor from the point of view of fur
nishing men for the gigantic defense
and preparedness program outlined
by the government, but industrially,
it will be one of the largest factors
entering into their plans. War
preparations have brought Arizona
into the limelight as never before.
The fact that it produces almost one
third of the copper produced in the
United States makes it a most i'm
pOrtant unit. It's ability to supply
copper, the greatest of all war ma
terials, will cause more attention to
be paid to Arizona and the mobiliza-
ton of it's industrial forces than
many other parts of the country.
FOOdstuffs are important-that is
well knOwn-and the conservation
OF agricultural products more impor-
tant, but no greater amount of food
stuffs are consumed during war than
during times of peace; the conserva-
tiOn of foOdstuffs is important at all
times. During war, however. 'he
actual destruction of metals. which
does not happen during times of
peace, make the metals and their
conservation doubly important.
Fortunately, the war that has
been going on on the other side of
the Atlantic has so taxed our min
eral resources, mainly copper, that
the metal industry is better prepared
now than virtually any other indus
try, with the possible exception of
munitions manufacturing. The
splendid cooperation that eX-
iGts between copper producers and
the freedom from labor troubles in
the state of Arizona are two of the
notable things that will allow Ari-
zona to do her part in the best pos
Arizona jumped from a produc-
tion of $50, 100000 pounds of cop
per in 1915 to 675,OOO,OOO pounds
in 1916, but this is not the limit to
which it may go. The sound bust
ness policy Of Arizona mines has
lead to the working of lower grade
ores during the past two years than
ever before. With copper at thirty
cents, rock whose metal contents is
low would be profitable, while the
same material at sixteen cent copper
could not be worked at a profit.
Hence, deposits that few years ago
were not ore, in the strictest sense
OF the word, are now being mined
profitably. Arizona producers are
truly conservative, for it is good
business to be conservative. Ad-
vantage is taken of the high price of
copper to mine low grade resources
which would not be possible to mine
under normal conditions of the cop
per market.
What does this mean? 1t means
that if the United States government
should require in it's program of pre-
paredness that the copper mines of
Arizona produce twice as much COP
per, it could be done by handling the
same quantity Of ore that is being
handled at present, only twice as
rich. While this would not be good
good business policy, it is an impor-
tant asset to the government Twice
as much copper would be produced
for the same tonnage handled and
by the same number of men as are
employed at the present time.
The fact that Arizona is to be
cafled upon for greater production
Will not alone stimulate the prOduc-
ing divisions of the mine, but also
the developing divisions; miles and
miles OF new underground openings
are being made in every mine in the
state every month. Not only with
in the we'll established mines is
this development progressing rapid
ly, but financial interests are taking
care of the possible producers in Or
der to whip them into shape for
production and for government SER
vice in as short time as possible.
Heretofore, the production of cop
per has been limited to the capacity
OF eastern refineries, and while new
units have been added to them as
rapidly as possible, it has not been
done as fast as the demand for the
red metal has come OF great i'm
nOrtance In this nnnnantinn ia tho