The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1872-12-07
OUR COAL AND IRONINTEREsT,

OODS COAL AND 1xON I'M EN- ES1s
The development Of our Goa
and Iron interests, though still ii
their infancy, has been truly mar
velous, and the course OF event
this year is we'll calculated to i'm
part an additional impetus to these
great underlying home industries.
No coal was used in this country
for steam purposes fifty years ago.
wood being the only fuel employed
for generating steam for manufac-
turing and other purposes. In
deed, the entire production of coal
in the United States in 1920 was
but 800 tons! From that small be-
ginning the production has grown
to nearly twenty million tons,
valued ct scarcely less than $780,
100000. 1t is already ascertained
that the production Of coal this
year will exceed that of any for.
mer year. Foreign Goals are high,
manufacturing is brisk. and SO
home production has been greatly
stimulated. We have also ship
ped large quantities to the West
Indies, to take the place of Eng
lish coal; and from the rapid
growth of our manufacturing in,
dustries, the ratio Of increase in
our coal production will be much
greater in the future than it has
been in the past. AS to the latent
supply, there is practically nc
limit. There is scarcely q Stat
or Territory in the Union that doe,
not contain coal beds, although
outside Of Pennsylvania and Mary
land but little progress has thus
far been made in their utilization
and, for obvious reasons, cheap
transportation must precede cheal
coal. The coal in it's native bed in
the Mississippi valley, and be-
yond, cannot be utilized to any ex-
tent because OF the high cost Of
transportation. The production
of iron depends upon like facilities.
There must be abundance of ore,
cheap fuel, and way to get the
iron into the market at a moderate
cost Wherever these conditions
exist the production Of crude iron
will become a profitable business,
as it already is in Pennsylvania.
The time will come when the pro-
duction of iron may have more
business attractions than the pro-
duction of almost any other COM
modify. The uses Of iron have be
come so varied and extensive that
the article now ranks among the
indispensable necessities; and this
fact win operate more than any
other cause to stimulate its pro-
duction. The wonderful progress
made in the construc ton of rail-
roads, and the requisi'ion that
none but American iron shall be
laid on some of the most import
ant of them, has created q demand
for iron in this country without q
precedent. At the prices which
have ruled during the present
year, very few branches of trade
offer greater inducements to CAPT
tai than the production Of iron.
There is little doubt that a reaetion
will follow the extreme values OF
the last few months, but a return
to the exceptionally low rates that
have prevailed within few years,
is not probable. The scarcity OF
coal, and the advance in the price
of skilled labor on the other side
Of the Atlantic, are sufficient guar
sntees rgainst such q reaction, to
say nothing of the constantly in
creasing uses to which iron is found
to be adapted. It is not an exage-
ration 70 say that the iron interest
Of this country was never in a
more prosperous condition than it
lie to-day, in proof of which we
may state, on the authority of our
leading Pennsylvania exchanges,
that there are GO less than thirty
new blast furnaces in course OF
construction in that State; and the
production is making such prodi-
gious strides, that the export OF
iron from the United States, in
considerable quantity, within the
next five years, is deemed By saga
cious observers as being altogether
within the bounds of probability.
Disastrous fires have been so prevalent
of late Is to create nervousness and
alarm. Since the Boston conflagratior
there have been large fires in Brook yn
Jersey City and iu various Western
towns, destroying in the aggregate Z
large amount of property. Every fire
which sweeps away large amounts o
property, shows the necessity Of using
care in selecting insurance compani es
| The man wh0 pavs hio v,,nnov vaar f.o,