28 6eocjrapbical Wotes on /l&ejico, 



is the principal one ; one at each of the cities of Guanajuato, Zacatecas r 

 and Culiacan, the last being the capital of Sinaloa. 



Besides the mint or coinage duties, silver was taxed in Mexico with, 

 an export duty which sometimes was as high as twelve per cent, on the 

 value of the silver, which, together with the mint duty, amounted to 

 seventeen per cent., not taking into account other taxes and local duties. 

 Only the rich character of the Mexican mines could stand that burden. 



The duties on silver have been readjusted and reduced consider- 

 ably, until now they only amount, as established by the law of March 

 27, 1897, to a coinage duty of two per cent, and a stamp duty of three 

 per cent., which are paid at the Assay Office of the Mint when coined, 

 or at the custom-house when exported in bullion, ores, or other com- 

 pounds. When exported in ores in their crude condition, the duty has 

 a rebate of ten per cent. A small duty representing the cost of the 

 operation is also charged for assaying, refining, smelting, and separat- 

 ing the metals. 



SMELTING PLANTS. 



The Tariff Act of October i, 1890, having levied a duty upon lead 

 ore, which prevented that Mexican product from coming into the 

 United States in the shape it had come before, the American com- 

 panies, who had been developing the lead ore in Mexico, established 

 smelting plants in the country for the purpose of treating there the 

 lead ore, and sending it as pig-lead to the United States. 



The smelting plants that have been established in Mexico, and 

 their capacity and output, taken from official data received from the 

 Mexican Government, up to December 31, 1896, are the following : 



Mexican Metallurgical Company. This company, of which Mr. 

 Robert S. Towne is president, obtained a charter from the Mexican 

 Government on March 20, 1890, to establish five smelting plants in 

 Mexico, two with the minimum capacity of 200 tons a day, two of 150 

 tons, and one of 100 tons. The first one is located at Morales, five 

 kilometres west of the city of San Luis Potosi. During the fiscal year 

 1895 to 1896, this plant received 62,370 and 020/1000 metric tons of 

 ore from the States of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Guanajuato, 

 Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Nuevo Leon, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi, 

 and Zacatecas. This plant yielded during the same year 16,019 an d 

 070/1000 metric tons of base lead bullion, with 3,198,924.14 troy 

 ounces of silver, valued at $4,882,177.50 ; and 8268 and 37/100 troy 

 ounces of gold, valued at $161,338.63. 



National Mexican Smelter at Monterey. This company, whose 

 president is Mr* Daniel Guggenheim, obtained a charter from .the 

 Mexican Government on October 9, 1890, to establish three smelting 

 plants in Mexico, two with a minimum capacity of 300 tons per day, 



