Bisbee daily review., 1918-03-31

and more heavily, must continue Tn spite of all that can be done.
 Curtailment by Low Price
 The first serious curtailment of ex- tension plans by a large Arizona pro- ducer this year was noted recently m announcement of decision of directors of the Consolidated Arizona Smelling Co. to suspend shelter increases and betterments which have been under way the last two years and which were to culminate next year with ca- pacity of plant advanced to around 5 ,0OO, 900 pounds the month as compar- ed with present output of around l. 500. 900 pounds, advanced from around ], 100000 pounds a year ago. With its smelteI increases Consolidated AriZo- na Smelling carried forward much de veloDment of it's own mines, the re- sources of which have been greatly in- creased, and at the same time extend ed large encouragement to a great many small shippers on new develop ing properties in large northern area and west to the Colorado river The action of the directors in suspending extension work of the company con ulEn COSlc dDACA nal labor and supplies conditions, and the uncertainty of the metal market situation. So far as any actual know ledge is concerned, there may as read fly be a decrease ordered from the present price fixed for the metal as an advance Consolidated Arizona's surplus is limited. Its stockholders received their first dividend last Aug ust, after seventeen years of establish ment of plant It amounted to 10 cents the share, since when an additional } cents has been paid. The directors agreed that the stockholders had con servation of such funds as on hand and of earnings coming to them until such time as there should be some assurance of a higher metal price for a longer period than the gov ernment has thus far seen fit to give assurance that any fixed price would prevail. Consolidated Arizona has had efficient management dur ing the last few years of it's new con struction and development period and it is regretable from various angles that the necessity should exist for in reference with the progress of the plans at this time.
 Metal Market and Shares
 Eastern opinion is that the copper requirements of the government and its allies are at the present time the heaviest yet experienced. Domestic consumers without government con tracts are receiving little or no metal. This situation has broadened the be- lief that the end of the war will find supplies of raw copper and its pro- ducts practically out of existence so far as normal trade needs of the world may be concerned and that the metal as soon as it is released from goverii- ment control at the end of the war will make to higher price level than any known during the war. Copper shares have been much steadied by this view. The new up-trend in price of silver has added strength for those coppers mak- ing important side production of that metal. while bringing a new rush of attention to silver properties. All new financing for development of metals, however, is being seriously retarded by the inclination of investors to. take in consideration present abnormal cost of supplies and labor Assurafce of higher price levels for the metals: over an extended period is the onlythope for relief from this situation. S