Show SENATOR mm CLARK REVIEWS IK MINING Says It is Hardly Probable That High Prices Will Soon Be Restored DISCUSSION OF THE PANIC GOOD SENSE OF AMERICAN PEO PEOPLE PEOPLE PEOPLE SAVES DAY will In Interest Interest There rh are n r ninny things which terest those thoc tho who aro engaged In copper mining In the Intermountain regions In InFormer InFormer InFormer Former Senator William Ullam A Clarks dla dis of ot the copper situation In the an annual annual nual financial review pf the New ew York T mes Senator Clay while optimistic presents pre the problems which copper pro producers producers must confront with absolute franK trank franKness ness hess lie He does not think It probable that copper opper will WIlT soon reach the th high prices prevailed early In the past pal year believes bellee that of ot small mIne mines which have hae been compelled to close down don the drop in prices will not Dot be reopened He lie also alEo reviews the recent recen financial conditions characterizing them as au the thc not mot ardor In the history of ot the world That the panic ended so soon ho he s to the good sense of at the peo pee pk pIp Due to Good Sense A feature ot of this panic which I exacts our nur admiration says sas Senator I lark Is the patience and forbearance forb if f the people at large whose funds are era arel l ld Iti In the banks and who have hae not been allowed to withdraw except in a n small w way ay for tor their actual necessities the money which they tho have hae deposited Senator Clarks review is headed head Cop Copper per Awaiting Revival of Business and ands andas s as UI follows 1 I look for tor a very eT healthy health condition of t he lip copper Industry in the west upon the revival of ot business e Copper is one of ot the staple and am most widely used metals and ana andi i probabilities are that in the course of three or four months when the surplus if 11 r the market has been absorbed the J prices es will advance gradually to 16 cents H t pound The situation Is something like this I IThe The demand for copper has very ery greatly increased particularly In the last lat ten ears pars because of the expansion of elec electrical I lines of all kinds Copper as a inductor is much to be preferred to ther ither metals and its consumption has been enormous For som some two or three years ears past the therlo production aid did not keep pace with the Consumption Hence copper became The price advanced from month to month until It reached the high point of Jb 6 cents a pound Naturally these th se high prices led to the thO th opening of or new mines that could not be worked profitably at atthe atthe the fie l w prices prevailing a few years ears ago The result was that production out outi stripped d consumption and copper began to accumulate Las summer when the reaction or re Tt restriction in business began the th holders of these surplus stocks of ot copper pressed their holdings on the market ant and prices started arted to go down The decline started In n July and was as very ve rapid until In n Octo October October October ber It had dropped to 12 i 1 cents a If pound or orless orless less Jess than 50 iJO per cent of Its selling price a afew afew few month before Below Delow Cost of Production This price was much below the cost of or p production of many mines in the country and they were forced to close down In Indeed Indeed Indeed deed the price afforded little if It any an profit to the larger companies and nd the owners of ot the richest mines Without any an concert of ot action all the great companies began hogan to restrict production by b closing down their mines mine nd works on a scale Calc ranging ran ln from about J 20 0 to 5 percent iler fero cent on all their usual output The result has been that a part of the larger arger accumulations which were esti estl estimated estimated mated to amount to pounds of opper has been absorbed and under resent present conditions the probabilities are that hat in the course of three or r four months this Ibis surplus will ill be entirely used up This will relieve the congestion In the market and give gle opportunities for prices to ad advance advance vance vanee gradually It lt is hardly probable that the metal n ill for a long lon time reach the high prices which prevailed In the early part of the year vear and It Is generally conceded that It ItIs ItIs Is a great mistake to allow the price to advance to such an extent At 15 1 or 16 rents a pound many of at the mines which produced at the high prices will be unable to resume and I therefore look for the th maintenance of the market at figures which are conservative Many Small Mines M Closed Hundreds of small mines in the coun ny Iry that by b reason of the low price of or cop copper copper copper per had hat been compelled to lose close down will not reach a point where here it will be possible for tor them to operate at a profit Only those mines that have large deposits will wiil wl l la again a aln produce copper at a cost within the present selling sellin price I know personally of ot almost small mines that have hae closed down In the large companies that are enabled to continue operations because or if r superior facilities for handling the ore there here have been large reductions 5 Many small mines tad had to shut down don because It was Impossible to run without losing money Further because the large ones are arc not getting a fair profit they the have greatly restricted their output At Butte Mont the closing down of eleven of the mines to the extent of ot more than half hal of at their ordinary output has nas thrown out ou of ot employment nt or oct men mn In Arizona several thousand men have been blen made idle idleAn An As for the present financial condition or of the country It Is the most unheard of In the history of the world We Ve hav hays had panics time and again Jn the United States which have generally generall resulted from the scarcity of at money failure of ot crops and fall of ot financial institutions This was the case in lESt 1821 and 1893 1593 The I present condition does not result from scarcity of ot money and In that it is LI dif dlf different di ferent from anything that had preceded j it The banks generally had large de deposits deposits posits and were fully tully able to meet all de demanda I manda mands of ot legitimate business and there was no reason to apprehend such a dis die disturbance dIsturbance I as has occurred all over the United States beginning at New ew York Public confidence however has been shaken Patience of People The Th trouble began with the Investigation tion ft rif insurance companies The rhe dis disi I I closures demonstrated that some of ot them 1 had been managed dishonestly National and state legislation in the direction of ot authorizing investigation and enacting laws for tor the governance of at Insurance companies and their productive Institutions Institutions institutions suggested by the thc conditions that had developed was somewhat radical in Its nature This tended to create alarm In the minds of or the people In the early carl summer revelations as to the thc traction companies of ot New York were followed by one thing after another re resulting suIting in complete demoralization and distrust Thus people were Induced to withdraw raw their funds from the banks particularly In the large cities of the east This was wac followed by an investigation Investigation gation gaLlon and ond several of oC the companies were forced to eJ jd tt t their officers the clearing house houe Tie The TI s of clearing house certificates fol followed followed followed lowed runs on other banks hanks which were Indeed n excellent nt condition Tho Thiv New I Tori banks bank refused to allow their west western ern em correspondents who had placed funds with them in withdraw their I money mone Western banks bank also allo were com coat compelled I to adopt the th clearing house plan and were forced toed to refuse to allow bank bankers bankI bankers ers still further west to withdraw the he I funds they the had on deposit Thus Thull the wave swept over the country until It II reached the Pacific coast coasts clearing house hous certificates and scrip sc rip being used by even cen small amidi country banks b nl s It Is hi I hoped now I owing to the large importation of or gold goldI i I from nearly and the I kindly aid of ot the government In deposit depositing depositIng deposItIng ing its funds in national banks Janks and the Issuance of or Z per cent certificates upon which the circulation pf f the banks may maybe maybe maybe be Increased that we nay soon lIoon have a 1 1 Complete resumption of cash payments I throughout the tho country Of Ot course they the I have to begin at New York Y rk and properly proper I so otherwise the banks in the west wet could I Inot not safely resume cash payments until New York sets Jets the example and allows I the west wet to withdraw the large sums of or orI I I money it has on deposit there I Beginning of f Trouble I IA i A feature of at this panic which I i exacts our admiration is the patience and andi i i forbearance of at the people at large whose I I funds are re held In the banks and who have not been allowed to withdraw except in a aI I I small way for their actual necessities the I money mone which they have hae deposited People will be slow to invest their money mone In new enterprises and more par particularly particularly so on account acco of the presidential I election which is always alway a disturbing t I factor But the thc lesson will be wholesome to the nation at large We Ye have been living at too swift a pace Business has been unusually unusual prosperous for a number I of at years ears Wages ages have been increasing from month to month and people have I extravagant ant habIts Men have hae launched into enterprises largely beyond be ond their means thereby con contracting contracting obligations which were difficult to discharge We 1 will settle down Into more conservative methods A healthy health tide of ot prosperity will set In and continue continua undisturbed I trust for many years to come conw |