The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1879-10-25

Says Mondays Lcdgcr We have little
that is new or interesting in the anthracite
coal trade for our weekly review to-day. The
question Of combination is dropped for the
/ present. That has not been discussed during
all the past week. 1t seems to be settled that
all the parties to the proposed compact or
agreement will not sign it, and anything less
than full unanimity is Intellectual of the
hoped-for result. The effort, however. to
agree and unite has not been without some
good. The consumers of coal have seen that
iour-flths Of the trade are in favor of remu-
neratiye prices and of uniting to enforce
them. The will to this end is apparent, and
already prices have been advanced without
special conditions or penalties The several
companies have now commenced todo what
we some months ago said they should 90 to
accomplish their wish, namely, to ask high
er prices, and they would receive them. 1t
is announced that general advance in the
price of coal will be made to-day. The Phil
adclphia and Reading, Delaware Lackawan.
ma and Western, Lehigh and Wilkes-Borre,
Lehigh Coal and Navigation and Delaware
and Hudson Companies have agreed to adj
vance the price of all grades 2j cents per ton,
and the Pennsylvania Coal Company will
make an advance of 90 cents per ton on all
grades except pea, which will be raised 10
cents. The issue of the coal trade as now
I I,I 10
will warrant the higher prices of coal now
demanded orders will come in for coal. II
there is more coal on the market than there
are buyers for orders will be withheld. This
is not, however, believed TO be the case. In
two or three instances we learn directly that
large orders OF certain kinds and sizes of coal
have been declined, and generally the stocks
of coal at some of the larger coal centres are
steadily lesscning. This too, it will be re-
memberei, is the ease where the thermome-
ter is, and has been for weeks togother,ang-
ing from 70 to 50 degrees The heat at such
temperature is not much of a reminder of
anthracite. With the first squirt Of cold
weather, which, in the natural course of
events, must soon be here, there will be a
materially quickened demand for fuel, and
coming, as it will, upon limited supply of
coal, prices will further advance. AS they
can scarcely sink TO lower figures than they
rule at present, consumers can scarcely go
amiss in purchasing their coal at once. The
better informed in the coal trade are ofopin-
ion that there can be no oversupply of an
thracite coal this year. There is not, as they
contend, the necessary labor at the mines to
produce an overstock of coal within this year.
y large increase in the price Of coal will no
doubt tend directly to increase production,
but possibly not to the extent OF the demand.
When the quantity that would probably be
taken this year was spoken Of some months
ago as over twenty-five or three millions of
tons, sneers and ridicule were heaped upon
the party making them. 1t is not so now.
At the present time the wonderful revival
in every branch of industry has created the
long looked for demand, and the market is
taking all the mines are producing, and all
they can produce, without forcing the out
put. Prices have already commenced to adj
vance, and, in the present condition Of the
whole country, they may be expected to con
tinue to advance. The promise obtained
from the Delaware Lackawanna andWc tern
people to sell no more coal at auction for
the present is a great point gained, and will
enable the producing and carrying compa-
nies to hold the market at reasonable prices.
Another favorable feature in the coal mar
het is that, we are informed, there are very
few old orders for coal to be supplied. The
business now coming on the market, as a
rule, is new, and has to be filled by the de-
livery of coal now to- be taken from the
mines.