St. Eugene Mine

ST. EUGENE CONCENTRATOR CLOSED DOWN

            Moyie Leader: The St. Eugene concentrator was closed down this week, and the 160 men out of the 270 employed at the mine were laid off.  Manager Cronin, who returned from California a few days ago, when seen yesterday said that the shutdown would be for an indefinite time.  The company has finished its contract and has not signed any renewals.  The shutdown is due to several causes, amongst which is the difficulty of American smelters in obtaining dry ores for fluxing purposes and the excessive freight charges over the C.P.R.  This renders it impossible for the American smelters to treat the American silver lead ores at a profit, therefore they refused to renew their contracts with the mines on this side of the line.  As the smelters in British Columbia are unable to handle the ores of the district, the silver lead mine owners find themselves without a market for their produce.

            It is expected that the Dominion government will take some action at Ottawa this winter to have the freight rates on the C.P.R. reduced.  Here is an illustration of their treatment toward the mine owners.  The C.P.R. charges $6 per ton on ore between Moyie and Creston, a distance of 55 miles, while the Great Northern haul the same ore between Creston and Great Falls, Mont., a distance of 200 miles for $3.00 per ton.

            Mr. Cronin estimates that the returns on ore now is $12 per ton less than it was a year ago.  He estimates $6 a ton on freight, $4 per ton on labor caused by the difference between the 8 and 10 hour shifts, and $2 per ton in the fall in the price of lead.  To the present output of the St. Eugene mine this means a difference of $1,200 per day or $36,000 per month.

            Over 100 men will still be employed by the company doing development work, but Mr. Cronin says that this number will be cut down providing the trouble is not settled within a reasonable length of time.

            It is not expected that the trouble will be of long duration, as a speedy settlement is looked for.