Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1882-11-26
General Stats Of the Iron Market
hsslthy---Eo Cause Tor
Alarm. g
The stssl Trade What Caused
the Drop---Iarreit on. s
Wages.
The Miners Strike---0il Market
Shaky-.-Some Lambs
Flescsd.


q sensation in this king city Of the iron
trade. Therefore, when the announcement
was made Tuesday morning that Bessemer
steel rails were offered at $40 per ton, and
S43 delivered in Chicago, by the Scranton,
Pa, Steel Company, thrill Of consterna-
ton ran through the whole community.
What does it mean? Is the bottom about
to drop out OF the iron and steel business2
And many other questions we're asked the
answers TO which were various. The uuob-
serving class OF manufacturers thought
panic stared them in the face; the work
man shuddered at the thought OF closed
workshops and no pay in the dead OF win
ter; merchants of all classes pictured TO
themselves loss OF trade and unpaid bills,
and the people trembled at the prospect Of
general depreciation OF values. So in
separately is the prosperity OF Pittsbdrgh
linked with the prosperity OF the iron
world that every pulsaIion- the slightest
that may be- IN the arteries OF its system,
is ins tan tan eously felt here, and here Is the
best place to study the symptoms OF any
actual or threatened attack.
Your correspondendent has talked with
q number of gentlemen prominently iden
titled with the iron business IN reference 10
the meaning aud probable elect Of the
present move. Collecting all their views
aud making a general average, am War
ranted in declaring there Is
NOCause for General Alarm.
1t is true that the immediate prospect for
/ man nuiacturers of Bessemer steel rails is
not particularly rosy, but it does not seem
that the decline in prices will extend to
other branches Of the steel and iron busi-
ness. Inauiry in the various avenues OF
trade developed the fact that the general
state of the iron market is healthy. Nail
manufacturers have no troable in selling
al their product at card rates, the speciality
trade is good, and the demand for nsavy
work is exceptionally large both for steel
and iron. In the single department OF rails
depression exists and the general belief OF
manufacturers is that the change is the re-
suit of over production in that line. Mr..
Thomas Carnegie, of the Edgar Thomson
Steel Works, who.is regarded as one Of the
shrewdest men in the business, said, Re
trenchment seems to be the order with the
railroads. There will not he 1900 miles
of road built this year, and there Will not
be as much money spent on improvements.
Bessemer rails can't be made for $40 in this
country, particularly in the west where
they must ship their fuel from Pennsyl-
| yania. But there has been large over pro-
dustion, and We may expect a $40 market
for some time yet. This will force
the western mills 70, close, and will thus
enable eastern manufacturers TO get rid OF
surplus stock and may prevent the market
from going lower. With free trade England
could easily undnrsell us at SO per ton.
| Rails are there worth S26 per ton, and can
| be laid down in New York for 81 more,
| making $2S, Now, before we began max
| ing rails in America foreign ansfacturers
| charged American roads Sl20 per ton, which
allowed them very generous profit ln'
| less there is lowering OF cost of pTodnc-
| ton can see no way of tidng over the
difficulty except by shutting down
The Resse mer Mills
| all over the country" Taking the "lrwer-
ing Of cost of production" TO include re-
duction in wages, Mr.. Jarrett was asked If
| the men would submit to such measure.
| He said that whenever, in the regular
course Of trade, q reduction of wages he-
comes an absolute necessity, the members
| of the association will offer no objection TO
| a reasonable pruning Of the scale, always
| being willing 10 bear their share Of lesit'
innate decline.
Secretary Joseph D. Werks, of the West
ern Iron Association, thinks the drop has
|
| demand, due to the expectation ut the rali-
| read builders tbat Congress will reduce the
| tariff. Willie the gentleman Is Of the
| OF ipion that the tariff commission VIII
! recommend some reduction in the tariff on
| rails, now $28 per ton, il would be nothing
| like one-half, which would sull permit
| American makers TO keep out fo.eisn rLits,
| which can not be laid down in Neg YORK
for less than $2S, or $26 clear of t"riii.
| Jsmes N. Swapk, secretary ofthe Ameri
| can Iron ard Steel Association, takes a
more gloomy view OF the situation and
believes the situation is one Of marked and
increasing depression, both in the steel and
iron trade, indicating injurious effects upon
other trades and lower prices for labor. de
sees the same indications that preceded
| the great decline Of 1873; poor hsryeSts;
retrencbment by the railroads, and q turn.
ing OF the balance OF trade against US.
James s. Bennett, Esq, and George
Singer, ,Jr., two prominent iron mlnuta;'
turers, see nothing in the scare but the
natural depression OF business at this time
/ of the year, and do not look for any dc
cline in the iron market. The firms rep
resented by these two gentlemen. employ
ing about $500 men, have all the work
they want to do
Cheaper Ore IL Predicted
are,msking no new contracts, and gen.
tleman who is a large ore broker tells me
that the producers expect to sell OF much
lower rate in the spriug, and . consequent
reduction in the price OF pig irJn may be
expected.
How Is the strike progressing" j
asked Of President Jones this afternoon.
The strike is knocked out OF tint, "
was the reply. The miners do not seem
TO want four cents, at least they won't
stick. They ought to have IL. IL was
promised us last Spring and we shouid
have il now. But the men seem to have
lost their staying quaiities IL they bad
tsk,n nv advice they would not have had
this trouble ahd would baye received the
four cents"
Whist 'my adv ice" was, the Presideat de-
| clined 10 say. At all events the strike Is
| not success and the men are all going
back TO work at 81 cents per busheL
/ The oil market continues very. shaky.
and the lambs have been woefully feeced
and turned out into the wintery blasts of
sdversity. Instead Of going 70 81 80, oil has
dropped steadily, cent by cent, 70 SIZE.
Those who bought on margins at VI ~ are
now bes ailing their shortsightedness and
cursipg the manipulators. IL is pitfui e
4 OOk HI IDe pOOT WV 80
their balance. but the balloon ascension
| of the market caught on at the high fights
| and could not bold until she struck the
bottom. Bradford has been setting tn
price for the Last week In stovn Of tha'
size
The Msufpaiatess
have It pretty much their own way. %
account Of the limited banking facilities
the large operators can set the carry
ing rates to suit themselves. Thu
Diodsa ope~undi is ss follows: Those vht
want TO bear the market, form q cosnbina
tion and ell take certified checks for theii
deposits. This closes mp about all tbs
available money for oil operaiions, ant
then they squeeze the small bolders uuti
they have TO let go the oil they cannot &c
the money TO carry. In q city OF tht
size, that game cannot be worked success
fully, but Il has answered Of Bradford z
set the prIce here. Eev low the price VII
20 no one can tel CAe gentleman, wh'
vas O prominent operator tvo weeks slnee
is now handling bell punch on stree
car.