The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1918-12-05
GOOD TIMES AHEAD IN THE
COEuR D'ALENES.


There is nothing in the situation In
connection with the prices of lead and
zinc that was not fully anticipated
long before the end of the war. 1t
was clearly foreseen that after four
years of warfare in which practically
all nations were engaged, with every
energy directed toward the manufact-
ure of munitions, the building of ships
and the provisioning of the vast arm
les and navies engaged, the transition
back to the business and industries or
reace would involve changes in COM
modify prices which would require
time to adjust In the case of metals,
the sudden stop in government pur-
chases has necessarily made surplus
which must be absorbed by the indus
tries of the country. Inasmuch as the
great industrial plants have been en-
gagged exclusively in the manufacture
of munitions and other war supplies,
II is going to require considerable
time for them to change back to a
peace basis and during the interim 1t
Is only reasonable to expect more or
less fluctuation In metal prices. How
long this period of uncertainty will
last, no man can tell with any de-
gree of certainty The terms OF the
peace treaty may have direct bear
ing upon the final adjustment, but we
do not anticipate that business is go
ing to passively wait until the DELHI
erations of the peace conference are
concluded. There are so many ma
tions involved in the conference and
SO many conflicting claims to adjust,
matters in which the people of this
country are not directly concerned,
that many months may be required
to work them out on "a satisfactory
basis. In the meantime employment
must be found for our vast army that
even now is returning to civil life and
for that other army of workingmen
who have been engaged in war work.
Under these circumstances the in
dustria enterprises of the country
will proceed with all haste to restore
their plants for peaceful operation
and new enterprises which have been
held up by the war will now so for
ward with energy.
Locally even now the labor shortage
is steadily being relieved and 1t is on
IL matter of short time when the
mines of the district will begin work
with full quotas. Mineral production
will of course be affected by the prices
of the metals but we do not antici-
pate decline in prices sufficient to
discourage maintaining maximum
payrolls. The domestic demand FOR
lead and zinc will certainly increase
steadily during the winter, while the
European demand should in short
time be very large, the two sources
oe n at a sat
isfactory prices
1t is hardly to be expected that
there will be any general resumption
OF development on properties in the
prospective stage during the winter
months Most of these are financed
through assessments and stockhold-
ers generally are disposed to take Il
little breathing spell in order to re-
coup themselves for the numerous
war drives to which they have re-
sponded; and in addition the cost of
mining remains on a war basis and
there is a probability that conditions
will be more favorable in the spring.
At that time the Miner expects ire
mendous revival in mining operations
in all parts Of the district, which with
the producing mines working at ca
pacity. will mark the beginning or
period of prolonged prosperity in the
Occur dAlenes.