Douglas daily dispatch., 1926-05-28
Tariff On Copper
Only Sure Salvation
Continued From Page one)


hanced in beneficial values.
What destructive forces confront
us today within the copper areas of
Arizona that were nonresident yes
terday? What economic phases are
there if allowed to go unchecked will
bring ruin and desolation to those
of us of the present-destroy the heri-
tage of those who follow in our foot
steps?
We locally all know and feel that
something has transpired very re-
Gently to check the past forty years
of continuously Increasing prosperity
within our copper areas. Until recent.
ly money flowed in uninterruptedly.
for our copper areas within the de-
veloped as we'll as the undeveloped
zones. The cessation of development
work and the low production value
rate of our developed copper mines
has brought about feeling, of de-
spondency never before existent in our
Industrial history.
Compare the feverish development
activity of the past within our do
mestic copper areas with that of the
lethargic present. You will find that
claim values are at minimum and
that development work is not alone
at a standstill but the present flu
ture holds no hope. This is not
alone a disastrous, but also a strange
and unique economic situation when
consideration is given to the present
colossal domestic consumption of cop
per, its aggregate exceeding the con-
sumption of the rest of the world
combined. The rate of increase per
capita of copper consumed domesti-
cally not alone far exceeds that of
any other country, but is likewise in
creasing very rapidly. Under the
foregoing circumstances, and if there
were no extraneous destructive forces,
our domestic copper mining industry
should at present enjoy degree If
prosperity never before existent dur
ing it's industrial history.
The development money of the
present is denied us within our domes-
tic copper areas. This money is
seeking other channels for gain.
Some of it has sought different
channel due to the fear that our do
mestic copper areas cannot compete
with foreign copper areas. Some of
this money has gone into the de-
velop1nent of foreign competitive
areas. ID ssg
Without continuous development of
our domestic copper areas, we of the
present will have but slight oppor-
tunity to gain a decent livelihood and
future competency. Likewise we have
a duty to the future to maintain
unimpaired the domestic copper re-
serves of the present.
In scanning the economic horizon
in search for the destructive force
that has brought ruin to our real de-
velopment and curtailed to low
stage our copper production values,
our gaze is fixed by the copper re-
serves developed the past decade in
South America and Africa. These
reserves were not competitive a decade
ago, but they are a deadly menace
to our economic welfare today. No
amount of optimism on our part will
remove this disastrous 4 competition
under free trade policy. Any de-
gree of watchful waiting indulged
in; any temporizing on our part to
check this menace, will decrease our
ability to meet it.
We should face the facts discerned
and bring a superlative degree of
mental courage and patience to bear
on this economic menace, with tho
object of eliminating it, and thereby
ever after continuing on the path
way of economic prosperity which we
once trod.
The menace of foreign copper com
petition has been analyzed and dis
cussed in, great detail by Senator
"a
United States senate on April 8, 1926.
Therein we find that Chile and Ka-
tanga alone have copper reserves
vastly greater than our domestic re-
serves. Their transportation costs to
our domestic market being less than
our costs. Their supply and labor
costs likewise being much less than
our domestic costs. In addition, the
grade Of their ore greatly exceeds
the grade of our domestic copper re-
serves.
The foregoing factors of volume,
grade, and costs, as stated by Sena-
tor Cameron, denote that they can
supply the markets of the world with
copper at cost about one-half what
it costs us to produce our copper
This denotes positively that we can
not sell export copper in competition
with the foreign product whenever
they desire this market for their pro-
duct. Furthermore, they can con-
troll our domestic market as well
whenever they are in need thereof.
A control situation of this nature
jeopardizes our domestic copper min
ing industry.
1t is automatic that the lowest
cost and largest volume producer
always controls market in the
absence of artificial barriers.
This is not alone true in the cop
per market, but likewise true in all
commodity markets.
The vast majority of commodities
produced in this country cannot meet
the unrestricted competition of for
eign-produced commodities
An artificial barrier termed pro-
tective tariff has been erected to
keep out the cheap labor products
of foreign lands. The tariff act now
in effect discriminates against the
domestic copper producer due 20
nrOtantiUa tariff