The Cordova daily times., 1922-01-25
MONTANA LOOKS FOR BIG YEAR
 IN MINING

HELENA, Mont, Jan. 2o.-MOn- tana greeted the New Year with open arms and is looking forward to rapid improvement over the condi- tions whiob were confronted twelve months ago.
 In agriculture, in spite of sagging prices, efforts are being made with a good acreage in fall grains, to make the most of winter which so far has brought plentiful moisture to every section and. with deep snows in the hills, insures an abundance of water for irrigation throughout the coming season.
 Livestock prices continue to show little improvement but many of the large owners of sheep and cattle point to the lower costs of produc- tion, with an abundance of cheap hay. little winter feeding this year and lower costs of labor. Several of he farsighted cattlemen are now quietly picking up all the breeding stock available and at pre-war prices, basing their judgment on the proposi- will continue to eat meat. While the wool growers, many of whom have not yet disposed of the 1921 clips, storing them instead, are complain ing of lower prices for wool, they are also congratulating each other on the passage of the era of $100-a- month sheepherders and spending half as much again to feed each man. Hogs are slowly forging to the front as source of revenue in Montana, and more are being raised in this state each year. Poultry and dairy products are finding ready markets, and their production is also on the increase
 While silver mining has been at a standstill since the white metal dropped months ago, and copper mining has been carried on in only a desultory manner, if at all. and the bigger operations dependent upon it at Butte. Aanaconda and Great Falls did practically nothing during the entire year just closed, one smelter stands out for it's ability to get new ! business That was the lead-silver shelter at Sast Helena which in- creased it's forces few months ago, doing a big custom business from many small individual producers who | shipped there when other smelters, nearer. were shut down
 Officials of the bigger operating companies. including the Anaconda however, hold out much better pros- poets for the new year, with the sur plus copper being absorbed, the Ana conda finding steady outlet for much of it's production in the recent announced merger with the Ameri- can Brass Company and slight in- crease in price for copper. New Years messages to several Butte or ganization also pointed out the re- sumption of work at least on a small scale in the near future.
 Montana's newest industry oil, is closing the year with sixty-nine con- mercially producing wells, two in the Devils Basin field, where oil was discovered; four in the Soap Creek field the last field to be brought in; and the Cat Creek field. with sixty three wells and a production with the recently increase in price to 19O barrel being increased rapidly. In addition to production, two refineries have started operations in or near the Cat Creek field two more have started at Lewistown. one at Bill ings, another is being completed at Miles City. and one each is proposed at Great Falls and Roundup. In ad- dition to the work in the producing oil fields, many tests will be started in "wildcat" territory in the spring and number of others are now be-