The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-01-19
THE COST OF COAL.
The Effect Of the Miners Strike in tho Coal
Markst-Whst the Combination" Will
Aceompiiah-Coal to Open at Low Price
Next Spring, with . Prospective
Advance Of Ten Gents Pen Month.

The news Of the great miners strike In the
Wilkesbarre, Sugar Notch Hartford and Plymouth
districts, published in the HERALD from day to day
has excited Q great deal Of interest among the
coal companies In this city, particularly among
those VINO belong TO the famed combination" A
HERALD reporter conversed with the presidents
and other officers Of the leading companies Sat
urday, and elected facts and hints which are OF
great interest IN view Of the powerful ''combna-
ton" which has been formed for the ostensibe pur
pose OF limiting the production Of anthracite coal
and maintaining its price ut living rate.
Mr.. Sloan, the President OF the Scranton Coal
Company, at the corner Of william street and tx
change place. gave his views readily.
REPORrKR-What win be the probable eject OF
this great strike OF the miners ?
Mr. SLoAN-It must undoubtedly have ten
dency to advance the price of coal, and. If IL
should continue long. to diminish the production.
or course it Is impossible to say at present
WHAT PHASE THE STRIKE NAY ASSUME
and to what extent even prolonged strike would
be able to influence the prices and production Of
! COAL Thus far we have seen signs OF dtsadec-
ton in our district, although we are working on Q
| diminished rate of production.
| kRPoRTER-Win the price Of coal be higher or
| lower this year than 1t was lastP "a
| Mr.. SL0AN--Uh, 1t certainly won't be any lower.
You see, the very severe LOSSES year before last
compelled the companies to come TO this agree
ment, which is SO bitterly denounced as '.combt-
nation" and which simply means to maintain the
prices at "a living rate" that is all. We suffered
such heavy losses in 1872 that we have now agreed
to produce less coal and sell at rates that will pay
reasonable wages to miners and q reasonable
profit to the owners. The prices last year did not
advance materially, and trade Is satisfactory to
dealers, who want, first Of ALL steady prices and
dislike violent fluctuations. This new arrange
ment secures fair. reasonable profit to all par
ties, and there is not shadow OF truth in the
statements that the '@combinatonn means to allow
undue exactions and desires to exercise an undue
influence upon the coal market. AS to the troubles
among the miners, which threaten
TO ADVANCE THE PRICE OF COAL,
may state that we have about 10000 to IL, 900
miners and 5000 to 5000 employees on the railroad
and have thus far had no difficulty with them.
REPoRTER-Wnl the consumption OF coal proba-
bly, be great this year.
Mr.. SLOAN-I think it will be greater than 1t was
| last year. Pll tell you why. The iron trade was
very depressed last year and has begun to revive,
and this, Of course Is very important item in
deed. owing to the unprecedented mildness Of the
winter thus far the consumption OF the sizes for
| domestic use has fallen or considerably. The
anthracite beds, as you know, in q little dis
III
| become much more valuable in the future than 1t
has been in the past. Our coal lands are now much
| less valuable than they are in England and other
| European countries, and am convinced that the
comparative cheapness Of coal and iron ores in
this country WIN give US q very great advantage
great future in store for America IN its ores and
| coal.
| REpoRTER-lf the strike should spread would It
be dificut to replace the strikers by other minersS
| n
! labor. But it would certainly have tendency to
advance e., the R1iSes. In few days vets shall be
| THE uPsHor OF THIS DIFFICULTY.
MT; 9uintaTd the general genera agent Of the Reading
sso era '0 the miaoT cca
OF the Wilkesbarre Company in the strike we may
have considerable trouble. AS to the eject this
there are me now so many Of rs
to this port that the extent OF the advance could
Mr. OF The Ss and ID
Company this is 70 be the new name under which
the two old companies win do business, ct No: 80
strike had been exaggerated by some OF the news
| papers. Two days ago he had received letter
from his agent at the mines stating that there was
| no serious trouble among their men, In day or
| two he expected to receive accurate Information
regarding the cause and extent OF the strike If
REPoRTBR-what is the difnculty, then. at pres
| entY .
Mr.. TILLNaHAsr-We have stopped our works
! for repairs. as we always do at the beginning Of
every new year. Our men .
! ARE COMMENTED WITH THEIR WAGES,
and i do not think that they propose 10 array
thmseeves against US. We have not reduced
shall resume work in some Of our mines early
next week. and shall extend the resumption Of
the men on the schnylkill may go farther tnsn we
have thus far had reason to anticipate and spread
10 sa men this sa 1s
days.
rumOrs that the combination mean to bring about
coal famine, such as the English people have suf'
| tered frOmp
| Mr.. TnLINGgAsr-Oh, no; not in the least We
do not want ..coal famine" as you call it, we
only want fair prices-the prices Of last year:
next spring than it did last year. If the price Of
coal was to decline In the spring. with the chance
Of st further .S decline in the fan nobody would
while in the fail everybody would rush for coal,
thereby causing sudden and considerable ad-
! vance, In order to avoid this we shan open with
the same prices which we had last year. with an
OF TEN CENTS PER MONTH.
The prices on April !, 1873 with which we shall
| probably open this spring., were as follows:-
Stove S. sna CHESTNUT tn 8
me present prices are lump, IS o5 steamer;
sSesha * yoa ss g. % and
| REPoRTER-And as to the immediate effect OF the
Mr. TuLrNanAsr--f the miners Of one company
strike 1t does not necessarily follow that the strike
| must AFFECT the coal market to any extent. 1t
| would be quite different thing II the miners OF
| the other companies were all to 60 the strike,
| but this do not apprehend. For the present the
influence Of the STRIKE II there Is one, will not be
feared by the consumers and buyers OF COAL but II
| the trouble should be prolonged for q long time
the enects would probably be generally felt: This
| Is all that can say at present and until have
| trustworthy information direct from our Mines
Mr.. Moulton, the General Agent OF the Delaware
| and Hudson Canal Company No. II Brosdway, said
that nothing had thus far been decided upon by the
| companies constituting the coordination" except
that they had agreed to fix the price OF coal at @
uniform steady rate which was to conform to that
| OF last year. 1t would probably
| OPEN AT A Low RATE,
| gradually advancing ten or fifteen cents ton per
| month, as an inducement for people to lay in Goal
| early. The general impression relative to this
| trouble with the miners that they would come
! to terms and everything would be armonized.
He seriously doubted whether the strike would
spread among the miners, as he did not think they