The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-08-22 00:00:00

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 22, Iri7l.

THE IRON TRADE.

WOLVERHAMPTON, Wednesday.

Business continues to present a steadily im•
proving tone, and the general belief is that the
worst of the depression is now over. Not only
are inqiries more numerous for several classes
of iron, but a greater number sf actual orders
are being placed. Less competition is experi-
enced on the part of Belgian firms than was
recently the case and local prices, as a conse-
quence, are marked by greater steadiness. In
the finished iron department of the trade the
chief of the current demand is for sheets, all the
makers of this class of iron having their order
books now very tolerably filled. The hoop mule
are hot in free activity, and partial operation is
still observable in the works devoted to other
branches of iron manufacture, but as compared
ith the state ot affairs a month ago a decided
improvement has taken place all round. Leading
firms continue to quote on the basis of £l2 for
marked bars, except the Earl of Dudley, who se
usual, quotes an extra 12s. 6d. per ton. For
common unmarked bars the current rates are
..tilo to.tlo 10s. ; and fxr hoops, .Rll 10s. per ton,
other classes of finished iron being in the usual
proportion, An improvement in the demand
for stripiron is experienced on account of the
increased requirements of the tube manufac-
turers, ln the pig-iron branch the demand for
foundry exceeds that for forge pigs, although, for
the latter description, there is a steady improve-
ment. Cinder pigs are offering at 60s. to 655,
per ton, and i hot-siri at 100 s. to 115 s,
per ton. Additional furnaces are about to be
put in operation, and it is probable that by the
end of the quarter the aggregate number blow-
ing in the district will not show a deficiency of
of more than twenty on the corresponding period
of last year. 1. he quoted prices for coal on the
Dudley side of the district are—second, 15s. ;
lumps, 145. 6d. ; and engine slack, 75. per ton;
but in the Wolverhampton district easier rates
are being quoted, and very fair quality forge coal
is obtainable at 12s. per ton.
The last settlement of the wages question,
whereby the finished-iron workers secured a rise
in wages, at is time when trade was dull, con-
tinues to be spoken of as a class anomaly, which
does not work to the itumediate advantage of
employers. What, however, the masters lose
today they will gain to-morrow; and with this
most of them are content. There can be no
doubt that at the Loa quarterly settlement a
very different state of things will be shown.
Happily, if at that time the operatives should
have less wages they will have more work. A
letter from an ironwork at (James, in the United
States, gives the following as the condition of
affdrs in reference to the Transatlantic mills and
forges : '' Soon after the panic we were called
on to suffer a reduction in our place of 50 cents
per ton, and 25 cents off the day, and, seeing the
state of trade, we at once accepted, and in a little
time the western scale fell off from 7 dole. 25
cents and 8 dol. 25 cents to 6 dol. 25 cents and
7 dole, per ton. Some accepted the reduction,
but others struck against it, with little or no
success, and in a short time the mills in one
district, or at least in the vicinity of Troy and
Cohoes, were called upon to suffer another re
ductiou, or have the millowners shut down the
mills, as they claimed it was impossible to run
them without a reduction of wages. And we.
knowing it was useless resisting, accepted an-
other reduetion of 50 per cents per ton, and we
are now working for 5 dole, per ton, with 25 cents
per day of six heats allowed. In Troy they are
working us low as 4 dole. 80 cents per ton.
Mr. F. W. Gerhard, metallurgical chemist, of
Coseley, continues to bring before the public the
method for making iron of which he is the
iuventor. He claims that " a finance working
with iron-coke would, I have reason to believe,
yield twice or thrice or much in twenty-four
hours as at present. It is so when the iron-coke
is converted into wrought-iron. The slack can
be purchased for 2s. W. per ton. Suppose
preparation, &c., :re., cost £l. per ton on the 240
tons (the weekly produce of two blast furnaces),
when coal was £l. per ton, their, would b a sav-
ing of 37 ,440. per antoirn ; and at the present
price, 16s. per ton, a saving of £29,952., or £3.
and £3. Ss. per ton. The iron-coke can be made
into wrought or cast iron. If the ores are pro-
perly calcined, and the materials carefully mixed,
iron can be made by this process equal in purity
to charcoal iron." It need scarcely be remarked
here that if all this is possible, it ought not to
be long before it is demonstrated.

A fair number of enquiries continue to be re-
ceived by the leading irunfoundry and engineer-
ing concerns and there is reason to conclude
that they will lead to the average amount of
business. Amongst them is one from the Wall-
asley Waterworks Company, who are soaking
tenders for the supply of about 1,750 yards of
12in. east-iron plain socket pipes, including sec-
tions.

BI RMING Ere m, Thursday.

To•day's meeting on 'Change was largely at-
tended. and the general tone of business was
de ifk.lly healthier, ,ilthough it can scarcely he
said that a large number of orders changed hands.
Makers are not, ass rule, anxious to book more
orders at current rates than will suffice t keep
their establishments together, and there is in
consequence less underselling and competition
for orders than for some time past. In the tin-
iahed iron department the demand is chiefly con.
spicuous for plates and sheets , and all the mills
engaged in these classes of production are in very
steadily sustained operation. Some large ship-
builders' orders for sheets are, it is understood,
cooling to hand. rube strip is in steadier request
principaiiy for local consumption, and the colons!
markets are taking steady supplies of galvanised

sheets for roofing purposes. The hoopmakers
continue to experience a good deal of foriegn
competition, and we understand that even the
Burton cask manufacturers are obtaining their
hoops from Belgium. Quotations are nominally
unaltered alike for pig and finished iron. Ihe
number of blast furnaces in operation is likely
soon to be further increased, rather in anticipa-
tion of better trade than as the result of an i.n-
provement actually experienced.