The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1872-10-03
Tie Coal Famine In England.

a recent letter from London says -
rgla1d has temporarily lost hor inter
est in everything except the price OF
coal. This commonplace question has
suddenly jumped into the first rank Of
knotty problems, and the political econ
OH lists of the country are vainly trying
to solve it. Politicians are trying to
prove to themselves and their constitu-
en- 8 that the advance in coal of eighty
per cent.-from twenty shillings per ton
to thirty y-six-arises from strikes and
other disorders in the labor market, and
is vt best but ephemeral and transitory.
Even the Queen, in her speech closing
tho session of parliament, takes this
roee-colored view OF the matter States
men, however, recognise tho facts that
England's coal is exhaustible despite
the report to the contrary of eminent
geologiets year or two ago; that the
best mines, if not prospectively exhaust
ed, are so nearly SO that the cost of pro-
auction must be greatly enhanced some
time or other in the near future, and
that veins of inferior coal, heretofore
ne elected, must be worked at once on
the score of economy.
Coal underlies England in more
senses than one. Her industries, direct
ly or indirectly, depend altogether upon
the price and supply of coal. All Eng
lal,d ft els that unless something is done,
and done at once, the great manufac-
tn ing interests of the country will not
merely suffer, but will be hopelessly de-
stI Dyed, and England lose her proud
title of the workshop of the world.
b II
cuiate what population the British Isles
will be able to sustain in case the coal
famine and the manufacturing stagna-
tion consequent thereon continue.
Meantime the cost of anything and
ev vrything, having the slightest connec-
ticn with coal is synsibly increasing.
The fares by the penny steamers is
nov two pence-a small matter, one
might say without reflection but it is
q undred per cent increase; and if we
ar compelled to stand that all around,
tn" case assumes gigantic proportions at
on }e. All the printed shillings" in
th restaurants bills of fare have had
"1d." or "2d." or I'D" neatly added
wi h pen, because it takes coal to cook
chops and steaks. Railwey fares and
tn ifs have foil wed suit. Rather, they
lee and the others followed suit, and
English Railway fares were higher than
they were anywhere else in the world
before.
Those remarkable specimens of bust
ness enterprise and rapid growth, which
find no parallel outside of the United
States, and which the average English
man is forced to pit against New York
and Observation-Disclosures and
taleybridge-have received harder
blow than Chicago did last year, and
one which will apparently last longer.
Birmingham and Manchester are to. day
selling goods at a less price than it costs
to produce them, in the hope of seeing
their way clear soon. Many smelling
establishments have stopped, either part
ly or altogether, and any iron man1fac-
turer knows how serious thing it is to
"cool furnace"
That wealthy corporation, the Lanca-
shire and Yorkshire Railway Company,
whose line connects Liverpool with
Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Bradford,
Sc, toek Time by the foreloel1 weeks
ago, and began the importation of an
inferior but cheap coal from Belgium.
The fiat has gone forth. Goals are car
ried to Newcastie-a fact so unexpected
and startling that we may now look for
all tho other old-time typical impossi-
bi ities--bricks without straw, purses of
sows' ears and Whistles of their tails.
Other corporations and firms have
emulated their example. The general
impression is that these ills are incura-
blc-that we have seen the last of cheap
cocl. Notwithstanding the history OF
Ell gland affords almost an exact paral-
lei to this coal famine hundred years
or so ago, far-seeing men point to cir
cumstances now that had no existence
then. England has never been so be-
thumped with strikers as she has been
this year. But every strike has failed
except that of the coal and iron men.
They have had everything as they would
have it, and what is the result? Per-
haps it will not be too much to say that
one result is that America will have an
immense increase in her immigration of
British operatives within year.