_ ‘Little shareholders’ of B.C. metal mines

By EMILE BIARNASON

Tirade Wnion

and BERT MARCUSE
Research Bureau

Ie ALL the gold, silver, lead,
of British Columbia are money-makers.

copper and zinc mines
Ask any of

the yictims of the high-pressure wild Cat Operators, or ask

the little investors who

into some salted gold mine.

Money-makers to the tune of
ing the short mining history
there’s no mistake in this figur

bia’s hard metal mines have pro-
duced in dividends alone over a
Guarter billion dollars). Since
1917 they've been yielding divi-
dends at the average rate of $10,-
600,000 a year, :

These mines are not owned by
the®suckers—nor by British Co-
lumbia’s thousands of widows
and orphans we hear so much
about through the voice of the
mine Owners’ hired “publicists.”

e
To has been much bleat-

ang by the Committee of B.C.
Mine Operators about the 45,000
widows and orphans whose in-
vestments are being wiped out
by striking miners who have the
all to go on strike to raise their
Miserable 793¢ an hour to 2
half-decent wage of $1 an hour—
a demand, which, for want of a
better explanation, company
mouthpiece Bob Morrison Says is
Soviet-inspired.

The Trade Union Research
Bureau has been trying to find
out who these 45,000 sharehold_
‘ers are.- We have not yet dis-
covered who they are. But what
we have discovered is that 4
handful of interests have been
. reaping the profits of B.C. mines
for the past 30 years. And this

have had their life’s Savings sucked
But there

$258,000,000 in dividends dur-

are money-makers.

of British Columbia. (No,

€—since 1897 British Colum-

handful doesn’t five a continen-
tal for the smajil shareholders
who have been 8iven absolutely
ho say or vote
uffensive against | the people’s
living Standards, or for Inter-

in the present.

national Union of Mine, Mill and
Smelter Workers, whose 2,500
striking members are Carrying
On the militant traditions of gen-
erations of miners who toiled to
produce this gigantic harvest of
Sold, silver and copper.

e@ i :
ES truth is that the rich hard
metal mines of this province
are Owned by three main finan-
cial groups. And these facts are
readily available for all to pon-
der. Here are the three strong-
est tentacles of the B.C. Metal
Mines:

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY

Owns Consolidated Mining
and Smelting Company Limited.
This company has Paid out
$134,000,000 in dividends to
date. In 1945 this company
paid out over $2,000 in dividends
for every Man employed. Im
1945 it took 2 man three hours
of every eight hour shift to
earn his wages and pay over-
head and operating costs. The
other five hours were clear
gravy for the CPR.

WALL STREET

The United States does okay
for itself with controlling in-
terests in the six big. mines
shown in the chart, not to
mention a dozen smaller ones.
Assets of the Big Six alone, in
1942, amount to $35,000,000, di-
vidends to date to $61,000,000.

But G Et Lock, who is the
Spokesman for the hard metal
mine owners (except for CM & S)
and who is also a director of
Granby, has preposed during the
current hearings to cut gold min-
ers’ wages by 10 per cent. Tocke
bewails the 10 per cent cut in
the U-S. exchange value which
brings gold down from $38.50 per
eunce to $35. But he conveniently
neglects to mention the fact that
gold in 1932 was only $23.47 an
ounce and yet millions in divi-
dends were paid. (And no one
knows how high gold may yet
=o.) :

He forgets to mention also, the
fact that the cut in U-S. exchange

Means Canadian mines can buy.
U.S. machinery and equipment 16
per cent cheaper than they could
before.

Perhaps Morrison, the strike
breaking boy actor from Toronto
and the hireling apparently of
any boss who chooses to war on
Canadian workers, can produce
am answer for this out of his
Pandora’s box. Or better still,
perhaps. he will accept an invi-
tation to a public debate with the
writers of this article. s

VANCOUVER CAPITAL

A careful search of available
Mmaterial failed to produce’ the
highly publicized orphans and
widows. That is, unless among
poverty stricken investors like~
Austin Taylor, Colonels Spencer
and Fell, Dr. James (mow de-
veloping Canadian mines im
the Fiji Islands) and Tait,
Jukes, Farris and Bull, there
are perhaps a few orphans.
hese Vancouver sccialites have
done all right with their mod-
est investment. Indeed, the
way to invest in the stock mar-
ket and run a fair chance for
a return on your investment
is to invest in any of the mines
these men have money in. (This
is at your Personal risk of
course—the TUREB can accept
no responsibility). Profits of
Vancouver capital holding in
1942 were comfortably over
$5,000,000. : j

—Continued on page 12
See LITTLE SHAREHOLDERS

AUSTIN TAYLOR COL. VICTOR SPENCER
WHO OWNS B.C.is METAL MINES?
CPR
Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company t
Acces 1) ae ee ee ee $ 66,000,000 :
IIMS, SEN see a ie ee 19,000,000
Dividends Mtoe 15 een Ge ee ag 134,000,000

Austan C. Taylor; Col Spencer; D. S. Tait; Dr. H.

VANCOUVER CAPITAL

T. James; Col. J. P. Fell;

A. E. Jukes; A. BE. Bull; Sen. Farris; et al

Bralorme Mines Ltd.

Sheep Creek Gold Mines Ltda.

Pioneer Gold Mines Ltd.

Assets “42 .....
Profits “42 - =
Divs. to ’45 ..

ASSCtS py 42s Cece ene $ 1,210,000
Protits) 42-2 e eS Se ee 500,000
Divs Sto 4b meee | sees 2,500,000

Aescts 210 ee eS $ 2,750,000
Profits (ae eas 900,000
DIGS LOv A ee ie ee emaet 9,300,000

Gold Belt Mining Company Ltd

Privateer Mine ‘Limited

Hedley Mascot Gold Mines

Cariboo Gold Quartz Ltd.

i 2 ONE a eae aben sees: 2,600,0G0
’, ASB ets (42 ae ee $ 870,000 ASSCts 42 Bre ee $ 2,750,000 Assets 2 AROS SRS ONO Babs $ 2,600,

ee ae ce eet : reniong Profits: 242 ae ee 300,000 Prolite g4 2 ce cae pte eee 175,000 Profits 222) ys ee 360,000

ae ye Port et eee e eee Ben OOD Diss RO oe ee ee 1,900,000 IDS, a MS 55 ss 1,290,000 Divs toy 45s ee 1,680,000

WALL. STREET

Granby Co Vd Mining Howe Sound (Brit:)* Goa. Surf Inlet Gold Mines Silbak Premier Mines Island Mountain Ltd. Premier Gold Mining Co.
orF2: MSO: bask *.
, 000 ets “41 ....$ 1,000,000 Assets “42 ....§ 3,800,000 || Assets 42 ....$ 800,000 Assets “42 ....$ 3,000,000
Fssets “42 ....§ 4,000,000 Sars oe eee oO ene 7441 66,000 | | Profits 742 370,000 || Profits °42 320,000 Profits “42 .... 400,000
fee a Seat pees to °45— 14,500,000 Divs. to 45 120,000 Divs. to 745 2,350,000 Divs. to “45 1,100,000 Divs. to “45 _.. 18,850,000
IVs. = 5 5 2 3 2 2

*Britannia Only

Sources: Financial Post Survey of Mines —

Compilation: Trade Union Research Bureau

B.C. Report, Dept. Mines, 1945

ERIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1946