The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-09-12 00:00:00

THE FRENCH COAL TRADE.

The Paris Correspondent of the Ecosonti4t writea :

" In July, 1873, the French Assembly appointed a
Committee of 15 members to conduct an inquiry into
the state of the coal trade in France, and to consider
the measures to be adopted to increase the production
in proportion to the consumption. A series of ques-
tions in 22 articles was drawn up and circulated atuong
the coalowners and merchants, engineers, manufac-
turers, Chambers of Commerce, &c., and a report on the
evidence received was recently presented by M. Dwane,
Deputy and member of the Committee, to the Assembly.
An idea of the very complete manner in which the Com-
mittee discharged its duty may be formed from the
length of the report now issued, which occupies about
60 columns of the official journal. A first fact adduced
from the evidence taken is, that the rise in the price
of coal was both later and less intense in France than
in England and Belgium. It commenced in the New-
castle district in July, 1871, when the initial price rose
in the proportion of 100 to 120 in the fourth quarter of
the year, and reached its maximum of 256 in October,
1872. In Belgium and the north of France the
rise only commenced in January, 1872, and reached
its maximum of 220 in January, 1873, or a delay of
six months compared with England, and a lees con-
siderable maximum price; the same results are shown
in a still greater degree in the St. Etienne district of
France, where the rise only commenced in the second
half of the year 1872, or nine months later than
in England, while at the extreme moment of the
crisis the increase in October, 1873, was only in the pro-
portion of 100 to 151, or 50 per cent, in place of 120
per cent. in Belgium and 150 per cent. in England.
At the same time the normal progression in the pro-
duction of coal continued. In England the increase
was from 110 millions of tons in 1870 to 117 in 1871,
and 123 in 1872 in Belgium from 13,733,000 tons in
1871 to 15,659,000 in 1872; and in France, where the
output in the last year before the war was but
13,200,000 tons, it increased to 13,400,000 tons in 1871,
and to 15,900,000 tons in 1872. The cause of the in-
crease of price was, therefore, not to be attributed to
a decrease of production, and the more so that the
rise in price preceded the period of the strikes in Eng-
land ; and if at a later period some English coalowners,
being unable themselves to execute the contracts they
had entered into on the Continent, were forced to
purchase coal in the north of France, these were only
isolated cases of no general importance,

"The report next examines the question whether the
coal crisis in France was caused by the exhaustion of
the stocks during the war and the necessity of re-
-1 idBaishing them after the peace. It is incontestable
1 that the supplies accumulated in Paris before the siege
were entirely used up, and certain districts, isolated
by the invasion from the coalfields whence they drew
1 their supplies, were forced to live on their previous re-
serves. But, on the other hand, the diminution of the
stock was counterbalanced by the restriction in the in-
dustrial consumption during the war, and it is ad-
mitted that during the same period there was an as-
cumulation of coal in the places of industrial produc-
tion equal to the diminution of stocks at the centres f
ordinary consumption. Another reason which dis-
proves the supposition that the rise of price in France
was due to the diminution of stocks is that the north of
France, where the augmentation of value was the
greatest, did not suffer from the invasion, and coal
from England continued to be received in all the ports
on that coast. Besides, the report remarks, if the
exhaustion of the stocks had been the cause of the
perturbation, it would have been felt on the re-opening
of communications immediately after the war in 1871,
whereas it only commenced in 1872, a year after the
reconstitution of those stocks.

"The question of the imports is next examined. These
amounted in 1869—a deduction being matte for Alsace
and Lorraine—to 6,784,000 tons; in 1870, to 5,697,000
tons; and in 1871, to 5,664,0C° tone; in 1872 and 1873
the imports recovered to about 7A millions. The
deficit in 1870 and 1871 was thus about two millions
of tons, but, on the other hand, documents published
by the committee of ironmasters show that there was
at the same time a diminution of 800,000 tons in the
production of wrought aml cast iron, corresponding to
a consumption of more than two millions of tons of
coals; and as the decrease of production must have
occurred in all other industries which consume coal, it
becomes manifest that if France had not been subject
to the influence of the foreign markets there would not
have been at home any motive for the scarcity of coal,
or a rise in the price of it.
"Retelling to the production of coal of late years, M.
Ducarre shows that the rate of increase is more rapid
in France than in either England or Belgium. Thus,
in Belgium, the increase of production between 1860
and 1872 in twelve years was 54 per cent. at which
' rate of progression the production would be only
doubled in 21 years; in England, between 1858
and 1862, the increase was 90 per cent., or doubling
in 154 years; while in France, between 1859
and 1872, the production increased by 110 per
cent., or doubled in a little more than ten years.
With respect to England, however, it may be re-
remarked that the period with which the comparison
is made is less favourable than that given for the
production of Foal in France and Belgium. The
English Statistical Abstract shows that the produc-
tion between 1858 and 1871 increased from 65 mil-
lions of tons to 117,352,028 tons, thus doubling in
13A years. M. Ducarre also remarks that the coal-
fields of England and Belgium have long been known
and worked, and from the relatively greater facilities
of transport they enjoyed the extraction obtained a more
rapid development. In France the rich coalfields 44
the Pas de Calais, which yielded 2,700,000 tons in 1872,
have only been known during the last 20 years; there
are, besides, in the centre of the country a great num-
ber of small coalfields, which have not, or only re-
cently, been worked for want of means of transport.
On the let of January last the number of collieries in
France, not including Alsace and Lorraine, was 612,
spread over 49 departments, and of a total superficies
of 540,466 hectares (2i acres). Of that total, only 335
of 371,504 hectares were in working. A great portion
of the 277 not in working are, however, of little value,
for 87 are either exhausted or do not pay fm working,
from the irregularity or the bad quality of the seams of
coal, and 66 others, mostly producing anthracite or
lignite, are not worked from there being no market
for their production near them, and no facilities for
sending it to the districts where it would be of use.
The only remedy the report proposes for the insufficient i
coal sup, ly in France s certain modifications in the
legislation on the concession and working of collieries."