Show I Legislation Will Help U. U S. S Mining Industry I CJ I Mr Matt Leahy President p United Steelworkers of America C CIO I 0 Local I Park City Utah i iDear Dear Mr Leahy I I II I I want to thank you tor for your our letter I Ito of March and to assure you that I Intend to continue my fight tight back here hereto hereto I II to get protective legislation to put Utah I miners back to work J Jj j One of ot my first acts on back here last January was to meet with y yur ur urI I I Washington legislative representative Mr Frank N. N Hoffman to enlist his I II I support for legislation to aid our miners II II I II I I sincerely hope that with the assistance I of or your powerful organization the mm- mm I Ing associations and other groups we can reinstate the policies which have protected the jobs of Utah miners and nd which have made our nation the most mOlt powerful country In the world For your Information I am ant enclosing a few copies of ot my complete address to I Congress last week If you have further advice on this matter please dont don't hesitate to write and I will try to keep you Informed of ct I the progress we are making back here It would appear to me that the mining raining I situation In Utah Is of such a serious nature that The United Steelworkers of ot I America could take notice on the national national national na na- na- na level Sincerely yours WILLIAM WILIIAM A. A DAWSON AWSON M. M C. C 1 Mr Speaker I Today I have submitted to the clerk a Joint resolution adopted by the State Senate and House of Representatives of Utah A similar resolution was waa submitted recently from the Color Colorado do Legislature I The subject matter Is the fhe same The documents call the attention of Congress to the fact tact that a rapidly spreading I depression depression and and I use that word advisedly ad ad- depression depression Is hitting the west west- west west-I ern em mining states I Thousands of ot miners are out of work and and their unemployment compensation I benefits have run out Thousands of oC i ismall small businessmen b b a arb r b e r s grocers I pharmacists whose pharmacists whose livelihood depends depends' upon mining payrolls are In dire straits And what Is la more serious mines which have for more than 60 years year supplied the I Irich Irich rich output which has made this nation I great are closed down their underground underground underground under under- ground workings gradually filling with I water I draw the attention of this plight in Iii Utah Utah to Congress because both directly I and Indirectly Congress Is la responsible I i for Cor bringing the situation about Utah I II I miners are out of a job ob not because tit t grasping mine owners not because of of I avaricious labor leaders not because of I falling failing ore are supply They are idle because the Congresses and Administration Administration Adminis Adminis- i have followed policies calculated to make boom towns In French Morocco And ghost towns In Utah Colorado i Idaho New Mexico and the rest of the mining states Let me give you an example Begin Begin- I ning nine next month our government Is 1st Is' I II I committed to buy zinc from Crom a firm In Peru the Peru the Vol Volcan can Mining Company It ItIs Itis t Is committed to pay this foreign firm I 17 c per pound for this zinc for a period of three years The current market market market mar- mar ket price for zinc Is 11 lie c per pound Our mines In Utah could operate nicely If they could get 17 they c they cant They must compete on the free Cree market with foreign zinc production our nation paid to develop The Peruvian firm conversely converse converse- ly could get along nIcely with their SOC per day labor by selling zinc at but It doesn't have to Our government buys Peruvian zinc for 17 c. c We have havea a similar contract with a Mexican zinc producer Our mines close Theirs Their's oper oper- ate Our country pays 5 jC 5 c to 6 6 c more than necessary for zinc I asked the Office of Defense Mobilization to justify these contracts Acting Director Arthur S. S Fleming wrote back The assistance in all cases was WI justified justified justi justi- fied fled before the contracts were approved based upon a study of the then determined determined determined deter deter- mined future requirements requirements prospective prospective supply and the determined stockpile objective In other and simpler words words ton It looked looked looked look look- ed like a good deal at the time This is just one example of oC the ef effects effects et- et of at a a. program dimly program dimly perceived through a cloudy crystal ball that ball that has baa brought a great American Industry to Its knees Loans are granted foreign I mines tax considerations are given to those who invest rat In foreign mining development technical assistance grant grant- led I all ed-all all they want want free free of ot charge We Ve who are from districts whose I miners have lost their jobs because of ot these policies are of course vitally concerned con con- We have countless letters urging j I action But we Ve want more than sympathy sym sym- sym sym-l pathy front from the rest of ot the country The 1 rest reat of the country Is vitally Involved I Let me show you how vitally you are Involved In Utah's mines This country needs strategic metal production That was one of the reasons the Administration tion gave for adopting the program that has brought domestic zinc lead mining to the brink of at disaster What has the program accomplished A year ago we produced a quarter of our requirements In antimony Now we Import It all The antimony mine at Stibnite Idaho Is shut down Its workers scattered In search learch of ot other jobs Domestic antimony production has been destroyed Just as effectively as it if communists had taken over the mine In 1943 this nation produced all the quicksilver we and supplied all that required by our allies We now Import Import Im Im- un- un port 80 per cent ha hu happened to antimony la Is happening to zinc and lead Our mines mince are shut down Our workers are leaving lifetime Jobs for tor new occupations i There are boom towns In French Morocco Peru and Mexico They should I be booming They have been given by i our government a large segment of oC the Industry that made this country the strongest nation In the world But ut re remember re- re member they not only get our mining Industry Our steel plants our Jet en engine engine engine en- en gine factories and our brass brue foundries go too The Defense Department doesn't know It but in reality these production facilities ties could Just as aswell well be scattered physically around the world as as to be wholly dependent upon the rest of ot the world for their raw materials Shortly a bill will be Introduced In Congress to give our mines the protection protection tion they need to keep this country from being dependent upon the rest of oC the world for tor many of her vital metals It will not be a tariff measure really It will be a bill to maintain the defense and productive capacity of this nation |