The Sun.
London, England, 1859-09-05 00:00:00

THE IRON TRADE.

Mr. Samuel Griffi'lls, in his circular dated Wol-
verhampton, Sept. 3d, says :-The demand for most
kinds of Staffordshire iron during the whole of the
past month, has been consiiiii•ably in excess of the
corresponding month of last quarter. A consider-
able impetus was given to the trade in August, by
the demand from Canada for nail sheets, boiler
plates, and angle bars, more' especially the former
kind, which kept several of the second rate works
fully occupied during the greater part of the month.
The demand for the home trade, the East Indies,
and Australia, has likewise been considerably over
the average, running upon hoops, thin sheets,
angle bars, best bars, and a few small orders for
boiler plates. Considerable quantities of nail rods
of known brands have also been slit in the district
for China, and a fair average weight of common
rods for consumption in our own district have
changed hands. The demand for superior horse
nail rods for the Belper district has likewise been
satisfactory, and a contract has been entered into
by a firm in the neighbourhood for 3,000 tons of
Staffordshire rails. On the other hand, the orders
from the United States have not come up to the
expectations of the best informed parties in the
trade. During the whole month the specifications
arriving here by each successive vessel have been
small, and even by the last packet the same feature
prevails with regard to the orders received. On
the whole the trade may be considered decidedly
more healthy and the demand satisfactory, being
entirely for legitimate consumption. Late prices
are well maintained, and for all kinds of finished
iron the turn of the market against buyers. The
market for pig iron during the month has been
good, and several large contracts have been entered
into in the early part of it by some of the leading
manufacturers for hydrates and first-class all mine
brands, which continue firm at prices below.
Nevertheless the market has, during the latter part
of the month, assumed a quieter tone, and con-
siderably less business has been done during the
last fortnight in pig iron, and the same feature
prevailed to a greater extent during the last week
-more especially with regard to pig iron of
second and third-class quality. The importations
into these districts have very much fallen off,
owing to the demand for finished iron now running
upon best qualities, which require our own native
hydrates and all mine brands for their mix-
tures. Shropshire and Forest of Dean are still
arriving ; and in favour with the manufacturers.
Melters, Nos. 1,2, and 3, have been in good re-
quest during the month, and more than an average
amount of business done in them at full rates.
Good qualities of puddled bars have been much
sought after, at slightly improved prices, and refined
metal has found a much better market at current
lees.
The official list of prices of finished iron is as
follows :-Common Staffordshire bars, 71. 10s., at
the works ; best bars, 8/. 10s. ; sheets, 91. ; doubles,
101. 10s. ; nail sheets, 8/. 10s. ; lattin, 121.; boiler
plates, 9/. ; best and best best in proportion , com-
mon rods, 71. 10F. ; hoops, Si. 10s. ; Canada plates,
121., and all other sorts in proportion.
urrent prices of pig iron, Staffordshire cold
blast, 4/. 10s. ' • best native hydrate pigs, 3/. 15s. to
41. ss. ; first class all mine grey forge pigs,3/.75.6d.
to 31. 15s. ; good mine pigs, with a modicum of
flue cinder, 31. 55.; mine pigs, deteriorated by cinder,
2/. 12s. 6d. to 3/. ; Melters, Nos. 1,2, and 3, 21.175.
6d. to 3/. 2s. 6d. ; superior makes of all mine melting
iron, 3/. 10s. to 4/., according to make and quality.
The Glasgow market for Scotch pigs " has been
comparatively firm, with a fair demand both for
speculation and shipment. The opening price was
525. 3d. cash, but a steady advance followed to
535. 9d., on the 11th ult., which was followed by a
slight re-action, since then, the price of mixed Nos.
warrants has fluctuated between 525. 6d. and 535."
The market yesterday (Friday) was steady, buyers
525. 6d. prompt; exports for the month of August,
63,906 tons against 61,165 tons for the correspond..
ing month of .last year, which must be considered
satisfactory.
Copper-The market continues drooping, with
little business doing, and although the stocks of
foreign are heavy, and prices giving way when
business is done, the English smelters are endea-
vouring to uphold fixed rates, alleging the present
standard as the barrier to a reduction in price.
Tin-The price of English remains the same,with
moderate demand. Straits has declined in price,
being now worth 36/. to 371. Banes, 1445., no-
thing doing in the latter.
Tin plates, the demand less active, manufacturers
tolerably well off for old contracts.

;.1.4‘
:64%
civic BANQUET AT LEE9.S:‘:;---f 4-mit,4l
. -
Sir Peter Fairbairn, the Mayor of Lee4i:jr;;,:
grand banquet at the Town-hall of that bo • 4 .
Friday -evening last to the Lord-Lieutenant of :
West Riding-(Earl Fitzwilliam); several Yorkshire
members of Parliament,the .Lord Mayor of York,
..
the Mayors of the West Riding boroughs, the local
magistracy, the members.of,the Leeds Town Conn- '
cil, and the principal gentry of the town and neigh-.
bourhood. Altogether upwards of 150 guests were
present. Civic feasts of this • character are almost
a novelty in Leeds, this being only the second of
the kind ever held, the first being one given by
his worship the present Mayor immediately after
the inauguration of the Town-hall by her Majesty
the Queen in September, 1858. In some measure
the banquet on Friday was a commemoration of
that auspicious. event, but the object-of the festivity
as stated in the cards of invitation was simply
" to meet the Lord Lieutenant of the 'West Rid-
ing." Among the gusts were Earl Fitzwilliam,
Mr. R. M. Milnes M.P., Mr. F. Crossley, M.P.,.
Mr. J. Greenwood,iLP., Mr. G. liadfield, M.P.,
Mr. E. Baines, M.P., Mr. Titus Salt, M.P., the
Ven. Archdeacon Musgrave:the Rev. James Atlay
(the newly-appointed vicar of Leeds), the Rev. J.
Bell, the Lord. Mayor of York, the Mayors of
Bradford, Halifax, Wakefield, Pontefract, and
Sheffield, Mr. -W. Beckett, Mr. I. Gott, Mr. R.
Markland, Mr. D. Lupton, Mr. W. Ferrand, Mr.
J-. W. Childers, Mr. H. S. Thompson, Major Waud, -
&c. The viands and wines, which were supplied
by Mr. Fleischmann, of the Scarborough Hotel,
Leeds, were all of the first character.. Mr. Harker
of London, acted, in his usual admirable style as
toastmaster. Lady Fitzwilliam and Lady Fairbairn
entered the hall during the evening and were
loudly cheered. Among the speakers after the
banquet were, besides Sir Peter Fairbairn, who, as a
matter or course, occupied the chair, Earl Fitzwil-
liam, Mr. R. M. Milnes, Mr. E. Baines, Mr. Green-
wood, Mr. F. Crossley, Mr. W. Beckett, Mr. J.
Gott, Mr. R.' Markland, Mr. Childers, Major Waud,
Mr. Kemplay, Mr. Thomson, &e. The speeches
were ehiefiy of a complimentary character, but one
topic was also touched upon by most of the speakers
—the desirableness of a closer union between the
town and the county; or, in other words, between
the manufacturing and agricultural inte.:-_ts. /Sir
Peter Fairbairn declared that he had that Object
in view when he invited the guests to meet him,
and the feeling was warmly reciprocated by all
present.

THE LOSS OF THE AEGO, NEW YORK
AND GALWAY STEAMER.

On Saturday the Board of Trade issued the re-
port of Mr. Porter, the magistrate, and Captain
Harris, the nautical assessor, who held the recent
inquiry at Dublin into the loss of the Argo, one
of the New York and 'Galway line of steamers, on
the coast of Newfoundland, and the decision of the
Board in the matter. The Argo was upwards of
2,000 tons, and was formerly one of the fleet of
the General Screw Steam Shipping Company.
She was on a voyage from New York to St. John's,
Newfoundland, and Galway:, with 210 passengers
of different classes on board, when she struck on a
rock on the morning of the 28th of June, and be-
came a total loss. After noticing the course and
progress of the ship, Mr. Porter thus reports :
" 11Iy deliberate opinion, after maturely considering all
the evidence that has been adduced, is that the master of
the Argo, having made the land of Cape Pine, and conse-
quently aware that he was approaching Cape Race, and
with a knowledge that the currents in that vicinity were
both strong and irregular, was not justified in continuing
his course at full speed during a dense fog such as the wit-
nesses describe, and as he himself admita. Again, having
passed one iceberg and seen another in Trepassy Bay, as also
others seen by the ice pilot about Cape Race, the master wasthe
less justifiectin running full speed when the fog came on at
4.15 a.m., and I look on it as a most providential circum-
stance that he fell in with the fishing schooner at anchor
when he did. Had not such been the case his ship.wduld
inevitably have been dashed against the eastern shore of
Trepassy Bay, and many lives would in all probability have
been lost, in which case Captain Halpin might now have to
encounter a more serious charge in a higher court. I am,
therefore, compelled to say that the omission to slow the
engine of his ship during a dense fog was the primary cause
of the disaster ; and I consequently find that the loss of the
Argo was occasioned by the default of the master. I trans-
mit the master's certificate, and, having thus performed a
painful and strict duty; and having also considered the
accompanying testimonials to the character and professional
ability of Captain Halpin, and being also aware by the evi-
dence that the catastrophe was unattended with the loss of
life, and that Captain Halpin has suffered severely by the
loss of a valuable personal venture, I earnestly entreat
their lordships of the Board of Trade to deal with his case
as leniently as may in their judgment be consistent with
the state of factswhich I have herein reported and submitted
for their lordships' consideration."
Captain Harris, the nautical assessor, expresses his
concurrence in the report. The Board of Trade
have directed that Captain Halpin's certificate be
suspended for nine months.