Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1921-08-14

Attorney r. X. West, Project Man
ager George o. Sanford, and C. l..
Bailey, farmer of the project, ap-
peared before the board in support
of the lower assessment Mr.. West
said he thought the farmers we're be-
ing made the goat" in personal
fight between the assessor and the
commissioners. He said there were
between 1900 and 1900 acres in
the project and he believed if the
whole thing was Jumped he could buy
all of it at $50 an acre. He quoted
figures of assessments of irrigated
lands in various counties of the state
and said that at SO the Fort Shaw
lands would be the highest assessed
of any reclamation project in the
state
Mostly Homestead Land.
Mr.. Sanford said there was about
Ia per cent of the Fort Shaw land
held under patent and that the rest
Of it was homestead land with from
% to s., per cent of the government
charge for water rights remaining
against the land He said these wa
ter rights were costing from $50 to
Sis an acre.
Mr.. Bailey was questioned as to
the value of the land and he said that
n l9lS he had bought 40 acres for
ZOO, which. after figuring the i'm
provements at 500. would make the
land cost $50 an acre. This land ad-
joins the townsite of Fort Shaw. He
said that in 1920 he bought another
40 acres at 500 an acre, the improve
ments being worth about $500. Upon
all of this he must pay the remain
ing installments of the water right
charge.
A. C. NJ. Official Heard.
L. q. Evans, general counsel for
the Anaconda Copper Mining Co. and
John Gillie, general manager of the
companys mines. apparently succeed
I'd in impressing the board with the
fact that it would be impossible to
furnish separate returns for each of
it's mines or group of mines. as had
been demanded by the board in its in
depreciation of the law.
Mr.. Gillie. verbally and by reference
to maps. explained the workings of the
company's mines in the Butte district
and made the statement that it was the
most intensively worked section of the
earth's crust in the world He said
that all of the workings, totaling over
$500 miles, of the numerous mines were
connected and that regardless of the
claim from which the ore was taken
it was hoistcd through that one of the
company's 26 shafts by which it could
be most economically handled.
Drained by Two Shafts.
He said that the hundreds of miles
of workings were drained to two of
these shafts, through which all of the
water was pumped at an annual cost
of 100000 to 100000 whereas if
each of the groups was pumped separ
ately, this would probably cost $500
600. He said that the compressed air
and ventilation systems were operated
for the whole from central plants and
that the entire sysem of mines was
operated as unit with general ad-
and accounting system
He said that at the present time, al
though not taking ton of ore out of
the mines, the Anaconda company is
being put to an expense Of about $540.-
600 year in maintaining its shafts
and workings and in keeping them free
of water.
He said the Emma mine, which is
being operated by the Anaconda. was
the only mine to return profit last
yenT uIiu tHdt IL scpHIAtc TeluFu u0u
been made for it for tax purposes.
Protests at False Report.
Mr.. Evans protested at a newspaper |
.eport which he said had been sent out /!
rom Helena. intimating that the COM
,anies were seeking to evade taxation
N properties which might have re-
urned a profit, and called Governor
0ixon's attention to the fact that the |
mining companies had accepted, with
ut fight, an increase oEa haH ~