Mohave County miner and our mineral wealth., 1921-01-08


 Great Britain (for relief of British
 India during the war; $122,00O,OOO and interest at 5 per cent is still due this country which Great Britain is to repay in four yearly installments or about $34,500,000 yearly. The British government further has, eX- tended to this Government an option on rupee credits at the value of AS 2-9 cents per rupee. The $122,OOO,- 900 and interest can be offset in total or part through the exercise of this option but to make this option at tractive silver would have to sell above $1.41. This presents a rather interesting, phase in the question of silver price tendency during the next four years and probably in the next twelve months.
 Indicated 1921 Output and Prices
 As regards production for 1921 and its bearing on silver prices which is probably of the greatest importance, it is probably significant that both silver and gold production is con stantly dwindling. High records in silver production were established in 1911 and in gold, from 1913 to 1915.
 Increased silver production appears to be problem chiefly related to the still "workable" resources of this country and also because they are probably of higher average value than those in other "silver countries" Mex ico and Canada. Some of the London bullion dealers have forsaken their predictions about 20O,0O0,000 ounces a-year production in Mexico and silver boom in unexplored regions toward the Arctic circle is predicted but these prophecies appear to be even more remote than the huge anticl- pated increase in Mexico.
 Conditions in Cobalt and Mexico
 Productions in Mexico both for 1920 and 1921 will probably maintain the supremacy of that country as the leading silver producing area of the world with this country in a second position. Estimated output in 192O of 6O,OO0,000 ounces may be equaled in the current year but it appears evident that the deposits of "bonanza ores" are not the conspicuous features that they were previously. With low price foreign origin silver in the last three months of the past year ma jority of the Mexican silver proper ties have ceased to operate.
 In Cobalt silver production in 1920 was around 10,000,0OO ounces com pared with the more brilliant records of several years ago when yearly production was more than 30,OOO,OO0 ounces. Canadian producers have suffered almost to the same extent as those in Mexico as result of the lower price on foreign origin silver in the last three months of 1920. Ex- changes rates at New York and San Francisco have enabled these com panies to secure premiums as high as IA and l6 cents above the market price of silver and this has enabled many of them to remain open.
 In the rest of the world Austra- lasia has reported labor troubles and restricted operations for the past two years. Silver production in Central America is constantly decreasing and this is also true of Central America. In Burma and especially in Siberia larger output is possible when politi- cal conditions are more favorable than they are at present.
 In this country the greater portion of silver is obtained as a bi-product in the refining of lead and copper. High prices on American silver have made it possible for many of these copper and lead companies to operate even though copper and lead were selling at extremely low prices. The vice-president of the American Smelt- ing 6 Refining Company, recently de- ,clared that it was the Pittman re-pur- chase order that enabled that cor poration to continue the operation ot it's two smelting plants in Utah., treat ing chiefly lead-silver ores.
 Al'present copper and lead quota tions are so low that in most instanc- es it is unprofitable for these com panies to operate even though they secure silver as bi-product: Silver production of importance from this source in 1921 is still uncertain de- pending upon whether the prices of the two baser metals will improve.
 Reconsideration of operations at ex- clusively silver and gold-silver prop critics would appear to provide the soundest basis on which to estimate production this year. For the past two years considerable progress in re- opening silver properties in Nevada has been noted. Especially in Ro- chester, Cortez, Comstock, Eureka, Candelaria, Tuscarora, Unionville, Hamilton and other centers in the same state where operations were formerly highly profitable with sil- yer above 60 cents an ounce. There are properties of promise also in