Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1880-03-26
The Iron Outlook.
Pitaburgh TelSsrAph.

tue w SskeEn Nall ASsOclAtlOnS Ut luciE
meetings held in this city last week, was
not only the most important OF any OF
the acts Of these associations for years,
but u most significant indication OF the
real condition Of the iron market. II
will be remembered that the Nail Asso-
citation, by a unanimous vote, and with
but little discussion, the meeting being
IN session less than an hour. agreed to
stop all their nail factories for two
weeks, beginning last Monday. The
Iron Association, by vote that was
practically unanimous, and alter a thor
Ough discussion and review Of the stu
alton, affirmed the action of the meet
ing OF February 2, fixing the card at &c,
having refused very decidedly to reduce
it to 81 cts.
What do these meetings and their &C
ton indicate as to the present condition
OF the merchant iron trade and Its pros
poets for the near futurep
IL is useless TO deny, what Is AN EVIL
dent fact, that there has been a lull in
the iron trade for the past three or four
OF the last half OF December and the first
three weeks Of January have fallen of,
or, as II is usually expressed, there has
come n lull in business. This fact is not
denied, aud the action oil these meetings,
which is the action of a. Ose who are the
best posted and the most interested, is a
most emphatic denial o. the explanation
OF those whose interest IL 10 To- see a
break in the iron trade, and who assume
and affect to believe that the iron
parket is irretrievably gone and that
a panic and heavy reductions in the
prices of iron are at hand. What is the
cause Of this lull? Ii can be ascribed to
two causes, both OF which are Temporal
~, both Of which are rapidly disappear
ing. The first was Overtrading in the
last OF December anu the first OF Janu-
AIRY the second the state of the coun-
try roads That there was Oyertrading
in the months named above cannot be
questioned. This is true, not only OF
the iron business but Of all trades.
Merchants and consumers bought large
ly in excess oil their usual and ordinary
wants, and the records OF business show
a volume of trade never before known
in this country. This was largely a
slttulaAAht bh llASt AAbN W oANoNltAo bNt
BY those regularly in the line OF bust
ness IA consumers or distributors, and
only meant an anticipation Of their
wants in the belief that goods were soon
to advance, "a they did. When this adj
vance came, the natural result was to
check orders until some Of this stock
that had been bought in anticipation Of
this advance, was sold or consumed.
This is the true explanation of the lull
i'm orders as compared with December
and January. These stocks are fast dis
appearing In Chicago alone, It was
stated at this Iron meeting, stocks in
iobbers' hands had declined 1000 tons
since January LIST. and the same ~ true
all over the country at every point. At
St Louis ten lots OF nails, for example,
$1,000 kegs that had been held iorkan
advance, and that had been bug,
bear" 10 the market, have been sold
and are out OF the way. Ii also should
be said in this connection, that half the
stories about large stocks Of iron and
nails held for speculation are absolutely
false, aud the other half are very much
Oyerstated, For example, 1t IS reported
all over the west that Field, Letter <
Co, Of Chicago had bought all the way
from $1,000 to 100000 kegs On specula-
| ton. This story, repeated over and
over again, has led buyers to believe IN
an uyerstock. The facts are that Field,
Letter ( Co.'S purchase was two car
| loads, 1000 kegs IL was reported last
week that three parties IN tins city held
$1,000 kegs. The truth was that the
three never held hut 1000, 5000 Oi
which were sold in January. tits such
| ialSchOOdS IL these that have kept the
buy-a-boO oi heavy stocks before the
trade. In view OF these facts which
were before them, and in view OF the
added fact, though, IA compared with
January. there was decided falling oil
ui orders, yet AZ compared with the
same months OF other years there was a
! decided increase, the association wisely
concluded that IL was no time to he
frightened, and took the only sensible
course lcit-maintain their prices.
The second cause Of the present con
ditiun III the market IL the state OF the
country roads. These are horrible.
The oldest inhabitant' haas never seen
the like. Il il an embargo on the trade
chat IL severely felt. This, however, II
also. like the other cause, only tempo
rarv. Ii some points in the west 1t Is
removed. and the business from some
points is, in volume, far VA excess oil
any previous spring And the mdica'
tons are that when this embargo Is re-
moved the same report will come from
all sections.
There is a third cause that effects the
iron market but not the nail, cause
that will tend to keep iron ut a lower
figure than that to which itwould have
gone. We refer to the fear Of foreign
importation. While this is All element
that must be carefully watched, much
/ more has been said Of 1t than 1t will lc'
ultimately bear. Some iron has been
and will continue 10 bs imported, but
the time, the delay in filling orders, the
large amount that must be purchased u
ordered direct the ignorance OF It's GUAM,
ty,the impossibility OF getting.shapes and
special irons, all Of these and other lacts
will keep this importation within small
| limits.
We have gone into the situation IN
SOME detail. that our readers might Judge
of il and the future themselves. To us
the indications for the spring business
are that it will he larger IN volume than
has ever been known, and that the price
will bc at least what It Is at present
b - for nails, &c for bar iron.