The $100-a-Month Bosses: Mining Executives Earn More Than Presidents
A new report reveals that the average salary of mining officials in Washington Territory is $100 per month—double that of state legislators and far exceeding the wages of the men who dig the ore.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The average salary paid by the mining companies represented on the Spokan Board is $100 for presidents, $75 for superintendents, and $60 for secretaries. This represents a round sum of $235 per month for these top officials. The highest salaries paid are $100 a month for presidents, $75 for superintendents, and $60 for secretaries.
It is noted that the average salary of legislators in Washington Territory is only $4 per day during session, which amounts to roughly $120 for the entire two-month term. In contrast, the mining executives earn their monthly wage regardless of legislative sessions. The text highlights the disparity between the 'officials' and the laborers, noting that while the bosses count their gold, the workers remain in the dark.
In 1877, the wealth gap in resource extraction was already stark, with executives earning nearly $1,200 a year (a massive fortune then) while legislators earned pennies by comparison. Today, this echoes modern debates over executive compensation in extractive industries versus the wages of frontline workers and the public revenue generated from those resources.
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