The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1921-02-17
Story of the Experimentation They
Entered the Smelling Business and
Gained a Dominating Position

loon smelling & Refining company
from the Guggenheims lends special
interest at this time to the story Oh
,n. cuegenheim family. This is toid
!, the last issue of the Mining ana
scientific Press and is here repro
duced:
The public controversy between MI
Karl Eilers and the directorate Oh INC
American Smelling * Refining COM
many provokes an inquiry INTO the Vi
DIN of the so-called smelter trust
and of the Guggenheim family Win
which the smelling corporation 10 %
closely identified. The Guggehhellh
Glory is typical Of the success OF aDle I
and energetic men in a coihilon-
wealth that aims to give an equali'y
of opportunity to all its citizens even
TO those newly arrived from overseas
The story starts with Meyer Guggen-
helm a moor immigrant boy VINO
c.me TO Philadelphia from SWltzer-
land in 1847. on board ship he MADE
the acquaintance of an immigrant
Girl Barbara Myers, who became ms
all of whom played noteworthy part
in American industry. Meyer Nus-
oenbeim started as a vender of SWISS
lace and other textile fabrics. HIS
FIRST participation in Mining is SAID
IN have been due to an accident In
1880. by which time he had become
afnuent in consequence of innate
ability and shrewd use OF the chances
offered bv his adopted country ne
obtained part ownership in a mine IN
Colorado by means of "a note OF mana
on which "a friend had been compelled
TO default to him. The mine was the
A Y. & Minnie at Leadville Accord
ing to "A more circumstantial version
he was drawn into this mining ven
ture by c. H. Graham, Philadei-
milan. who in 1879 bonded the A. T.
& Minnie claims. Graham had
mariner also from Philadelphia, nam
ed George Work; together they OBJ
tanned a bond on a half interest IN
the A. Y. and on seven-eighths OF the
Minnie property This bond was ioi
$4,000 and fell due i'm October 1873
Graham contributed his share of the
money needed. but Work was unable
to do so and two days before the eX-
piration of the option he relinqushe'
his part of the deal whereupon era
ham made haste to find someone from
whom he could borrow the sum ne
cessary. He met Meyer Guggenhein
on the street and asked him to len'
him the $4,000. to which Guggenheln
replied: IF the mine is no good, yo'
will not be able to repay me- era
ham had to acknowledge that TIM
was true; whereupOn Guggenheii
said: "All right I'll take Works hal
interest. and then if the mine is
failrre YOU won't owe me anything
The money was telegraphed to tn
Carbonate National bank, enabiin
Graham and Guggenheim to compiler
the deal forthwith The remainin
holdings in the property were held o
samuel Hirsh, of Leadville; the thr'
owners cooperated tremendously an
nroftablv until the mine workns
nassed from the oxidized into the su
phide zone. when the lower grade
the ore. It's refractory character al
the high charges for smelling put
Grimm i'm their profits Disagreeme
ensued and Hirsh was asked to s
price at which he would either st
his share in the property or o'
theirs. He placed the figure of sol
600 on his holdings, whereupon CIR
ham and Guggenheim promptly a
cepted his offer and became 81
owners This was in 1885. They a
said TO have made more than SOU
600 ont of this venture Guggenhe
was a man intensively acquisitive
information. keenly Observant; he Il
ticed the heavy charges levied by
smelling companies and concluc
that this was the better part of
mining business At this time he D
sent his fifth son. Benjamin to
mine at Leadvile in order that
might familarize himself with its
fairs and look after the family int
est in the enterprise, which was ms
aged by Graham. Benjamin beca
,couainted with Edwin $. Hold
who was then at the head of sn
sneiter named after himself at -
yer. In 1887 Holden, Arthur Chan
Malvern w Hes and Richard c
had built this lead smelling pl
with the backing of Dennis She
and Charles b. Kountze local oa
ers. Holden gave Benjamin a p
ton in the Office of the smelter
used him as an agent to persuade
father to purchase a block OF s.
in the company, thereby raising
additional capital that was n
needed Just then to put the bust
on a sound basis. Thus Meyer
eenheim obtained his FIRST foothol
the smelling industry Of the Ur
states. Within a year internal
sension caused him to buy Holden
Cline's shares in the Holden Sr
ing company which was then
eanized as the Globe Smelling
many. with Dennis Sheedy as p
dent and general manager the
principal stockholders being N