The chief political event affecting Yukon Territory was the abandonment of the plan to incorporate Yukon as a part of the Province of British Columbia. The plan was dropped for at least the duration of the war. Legislative developments were meager. In its annual session, held during April and May, the Yukon Council passed an amendment to the Compensation Ordinance, which will provide compensation for workers who contract industrial diseases such as silicosis, lead poisoning, and arsenic poisoning. The Miners' Protection Ordinance was also amended to require periodic medical examination, at the expense of the employer, of miners working in quartz mines or near rock-crushing operations in any mine.
Mining operation showed a considerable increase over the previous year. Production of placer gold in the first 10½ months totaled approximately 100,000 ounces, a 34-per cent increase over 1938. Shipments of silver, lead, ore and concentrates to outside smelters during the season amounted to 9,100 tons, valued at approximately $2,000,000. The first gold quartz mill to operate continuously in Yukon Territory was opened in the Mt. Fee Gold District. There was no unemployment in the Territory during the year.
