Bisbee daily review., 1918-04-14

families and also in order to enable the mines and their plants to compete for. competent labor with employers engaged on government contract work are conceded points. They are of no less vital interest to the mine and plant operators than to their thou sands of workers, and in turn to the dozens of business communities and in fact to the entire industrial and business life of the state, all depend ent upon the prosperity of the mines. In spite of the best efforts that may be put forth, decline in metal output is certain unless the price is increased and advance in wages thus allowed. Failure to enable advance in wages will, also, restore to the German prop agandists some of the fuel of which they have been deprived and give them a chance for insidiOus edging in that 1t will be hard to combat. It is not believed that these and numerous other points calling for the more even balance of the scales that higher priced metal would bring about will !, be overlooked or fail of receiving flaw Orable consideration in June. Should an advance be made to 26 or 27 cents, q Arizona production in the last half of the year would be in fair way to go 10 the rate of a billion pounds of cop per annually, and because of the re- sumption of properties that have closed down and of the continuance of operation of newer and higher grade properties that have since been brought in, would engage more active producers than ever before identified with Arizona mining.
 Shattuck Production Higher
 Copper production of Shattuck-Ari- zona of 1,013,593 pounds for the month of March points strongly to the fact that output Is now back to pre- strike conditions. Not only is this output the highest for the current year. but also surpasses any previous month since last May when the com pany reported 1,3S5,669 pounds.
 Considering the fact that most of the mining companies are greatly handicapped by the labor shortage, and as Shattuck is no exception, this large production is most gratifying. . For the first quarter this year copper production totals 2,717.S35 pounds, as compared with 4,374,542 pounds in the corresponding period of 1917. This however, is hardly a fair comparison as conditions a year ago were entirely different In the first five months of last year copper production ran close 10 the 100000 mark, receding to ap- proumately 2O5,O0O in July when most of the company's miners went out on a strike Since that month, however. there has been a steady i'm provemeIt.
 Lead Output Low
 Although silver also made a substan- tial gain over that of February. lead output, while slightly higher than FeD- ruaTy. is still under the monthly aver age. The silver produced in March amounting to II ,429 compares with the preC eding month of only 6,599 ounces, and is the highest which the company has reported since last November.
 If present plans do not go amiss, 1t is exDected that the new milling plant will be in operation by the first of next month. This will give the com pany a plant capable of treating 400 tons q day. In addition, ShattUCk- Ari- | zona has secured a favorable license iron the Mineral Separation C;'mpa- ny for the use of its flotation patent | rights. With additional facilities for treat .ng ore, it is only natural tu eX- pect that mineral production oIgh. to show a substantial increase in the near future Moreover higher D production will greatly reduce mining costs whis h last rear amounted to 1924 cents Pcr pOUisu. as compared with S.il cents in 1916.
 Tucson Activities
 rfrf south of Tucson. is attracting more attention from mining engineers at the immediate time than any other district in the state. Among notable visitors to different properties in the district during the present week were engineers representing four of the largest copper producing interests on the continent
 The San Xavier district is not new tO the interest of mining engineers. They have been visiting it and keep ing their eyes in it's direction for years. always with the idea that the persistent development which has been going on out there at one point and another might prove up some thing they were unable to see from the surface and establish the fOunda- tiOn fer another big copper camp.
 Promising Properties
 Development on the Bush proper ties in this district has recently re- newed the active attention fengi- neers. Admittedly. F. G. Bush has opened a small mine that is attrac lively profitable at this time and may open into considerably better things. In the same area the Reiniger-Free- man property is receiving vigorous development and has shOwings inter esting 10 engineers at this time. car rying general bearing upon the dis trict The old General Morgan prop erty has also lately claimed new at tentiOn and is reported to he about to pas under bond to a large copper interest
 Area of Lenses
 Engineers have in the main held up to this time that the San Xaxier dis ;rict is one of lenses. the latter likely tO be rich while they last but pos sessed of no great extent. Admitted ly there is the possibility of enough cf these lenses being found on some Of these days 10 make up producing sul luuN ST lBUI -spnlrusBm 70 9uOZ
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