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Show THE COST OF PRODUCING THE PRECIOUS METALS. j I'uiiutiiolly vm iri'l uiakinj; tliu round of (In; iiL-w-jiaji'TH, in sonic form illustrating tlio ".-aw," tli:it it tuki;i a mini! to work a mine, a statement state-ment to the olV'.'ct that tlio cos-t of the production of tlie precious mM:iIrf ox-c,oj-.a tlio value of thorn. This vh'W as to tli'i nui(ri:tf:iU profit ol' mining ha h'H'n ho l'rc(ucn!ly staled with reference re-ference to iolati'if case, and unfair statistics sta-tistics yiven as evidence in support ol it, that many K'.'iicnilly well-infurmrd pcrsQiH cxpiv-vs a )nlii;l' in itf) truth; ami yet the i'aet.s, (airly given, hhow that the aj-'Hreatc prufi's in workint' Hticli minus are in csces.s of the profits of any other business in iho ountry, tlie capita! and labor iuw.-trd taken into eon-ideration. Wo have lately seen lloaiing in the columns of the press a ar:iRrapli that gives tlie gross yield of t lie mines on the Comstoek lode in Nevada, since discovery, at slr.o.OOn.OOO, the dividends divi-dends declarei at $J2,UnO,iHH), and then Iho statement thai, the assess mollis levied and eolleeted amount to considerably more than the latter sum; from which it is argued that silver mining is in the aggregate unprovable. unprova-ble. Hut tlicsc figures by do means represent the cost and profit of the silver production of the Corns took mines. It is within the limit of the actual truth to say that one-third ol the pross amount of bullion produced has been clear of profit. But then the question oocurs, how can suuh a statement state-ment be reconciled with the statistics given? This is very easily done. Kvery one familiar with mining matters mat-ters at Virginia city knows that not one-third one-third of the assessments collected were expended in actual mining; the remaining re-maining two-thirds have been squandered squan-dered for the personal benefit of the trustees of companies and their coconspirators co-conspirators in robbing iho stockholders, stockhold-ers, and for paying tho costs of thieving thiev-ing law suits. As a single illustration of tho foreign uses to which these assessments as-sessments have been appropriated, largo amounts were used in the construction con-struction of a railroad for a ring of trustee.'-; and in similar illegitimate ways a largo proportion of the assessments assess-ments levied have been devoted to purposes pur-poses tbreign to the objects for which the levy was made. Nor does tho amount of dividends declared represent the net profits of production. It only represents the amoiiut received by the stockholders which is but a portion of the actual profit. The contractu!-.-;, trustees ami other officials, their IVi-'nd.s, and I lie mill men, only limited their appropriation appropria-tion of llie profits by the consideration considera-tion that to steal another cantemplatod aessiuent it was advisable, to insure its prompt collection, to pay say a quarter or half of the amount of it as a dividend to tho stockholders This sort of management is, necessarily, no more a part of the business of mining than the robbery of a bank is a part of tho business ol banking. Statements have been made with respect re-spect to the cost of gold production in California, which are without foundation founda-tion iu fact. The profits upon the gold yield of California have not only largely aided in building up that State, but have appreciated the value of property prop-erty iu many parts of the civilized world. San L'rancisco is one, and only one of tho monuments of iho net profit of gold miniog. Actually but little capital was ever brought to the State. Foreign credit was imported, but it never was sold except for cash in gold. A draft on New York or Jondon was paid lor at a largo premium for cx-i change, in gold dust which was forwarded for-warded with the draft to meet its presentation. pre-sentation. What California is to-day the profits of her mines laid, the broad foundation for; and besides this she has squandered a large portion of her clear glains to the benefit of other States and foreign nations. But while it is an undisputed fact that much of tho profits of gold and silver mining have been absorbed by dishonesty, iheyhave also been largely reduced by want of skill in conducting mining operations; and while we hold that such mining does pay largely when honestly and skillfully conducted, novices nov-ices are as liable to lose largely by blindly iu vesting labor and nmney, as mining sharpsare certain to rob honest j-hareholdcrs and credulous capitalits when i hoy have the opportunity. |
