Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-02-25
Failures in the Commercial World on
the Increase.
Are They the Rumblings Of a CONNER
cial Earthquake
Questions too Great to Be Hampered
BY Politics.
The Woman Suffrage Convention
Advantages Of High License.

/
4 the rapidly recurring commercial
crashes are the distant but distinct
mutterings and rumblngs of an APP
preaching earthquake in the world OF
! commerce. Past experience seems 10
bear out the truth OF the common idea
/ that
CRISIS
! Of this nature occurs about once every
/ decade, and those who have vivid
| recollection Of the depression Of 1878
are beginning to show signs Of uueasi-
| ness, and are, as far as possible, max
1 ing things snug for a squall."
There have lately been some heavy
| failures in the grocery business, but
I the greatest uncasiness has been
I caused by the suspension OF so many
large iron and steel mills. BY many
/ who have been careful observers in
times past IL il claimed that the iron
industry is always the first to show
1 signs Of an impending crisis, and the
/ fact that so large "A number OF iron
mills have failed and suspended has
caused much alarm in all sections.
With desire of obtaining some re-
liable as well as authoritative nforma-
ton regarding the situation, New
York reporter called upon Mr.. An
drew Carnegie, of the fire of Carnegie
Brothers 4 Co. Pittsburgh. This is
without question the largest iron and
steel manufacturing firm in this coun-
try, employing about 1000 men and
having capacity of 1000 tons of
finished iron and steel per day. Mr..
carnegia ia answer to questions said {:
There are ut present fourteen steel
rail mills in this country. They en-
ploy an average of 5000 men each, in
GLIDING those in the mines and collnt-
eral branches. The total capacity of
the American works ut present Is
100000 tons per year. Last year about
80 900 tons of steel rails were made
in America
THREE NEW MILLS.
one i'm Colorado, one at Pittsburg and
one at Scranton have been completed
during the last year which will in
crease the capacity quarter of mil
lion from last years output, which was
the total capacity Of the mills then.
There are no steel rails on hand at
present. There never is. you know !;
the mills make steel rails only as they
have orders for them.n
Mr.. Carnegie continued:
The present depression arises from
II check to the abnormal growth of
railroad building In this country dur
ing the past two or three years Amer
lea Is n great country, but she cannot
continue to build each year as many
miles of new railroad Us the entire
world has done. This IL particularly
what has been done during the past
TWO years. The great demand for
l,t u ~.
wise extension of the works, and also
to the building of new ones, hut the
check has come none too soon, and
Is IN every way healthful one.
Rad IL been postponed, IL would
have fallen upon us in a much more
aggravated form. | consider the ca
pacity of the existing mills to he
EAR BENoSD THE LEGITIMATE WANTS
OF the country, therefore, there must
be restriction of the output, or some
OF the mills must remain idle. There
are four mills idle at present--the
Union Iron and Steel Company. Chi
cage; the old works OF the North Chi.
cage Rolling Mills Company, the Nul-
can Iron Works of st. Louis. and the
joliet (lll.) Iron and Steel Companvis
works. Should these continue to re-
main Idle, the business will return to
its healthful condition"
what influence has the tariff api-
tation ON the present condition of af-
fairs -
1T has some, OF course, but the
present condition OF affairs would arise
hau there been no tariff discussion.
the question of a tariff protection is OF
course ol the utmost Importance 10
manufacturers, Any reduction of the
tarlh beyond what the tariff commits I
sioners recommend will give the mar
kets OF the Southern Atlantic seaboari I
10 the Foreigners. Steel rails can bc
made in England at SO per ton. They 1
can he delivered In New Orleans nj 4
~ per ton, Add 10 this the proposed /
uaty OF Si0, which is the house bill as /
reads, and YOU have 1
steer rails IN New Orleans AT $40 per
'nh' mere never was time when
steel rail- mill near the Atlaatic coast
gould make and deliver steel rail i'm I
New orleans At this price,
THE REASON.
ny can rails he made so mnch
cheaper ahruad than nj home -
mere are several reasons. Onn IL
ehis: The iron stone out of which the
steei ran Is made IN England does nor
aTi ane-ilaH What IL does in this
country, Most OF Il for the eastern
mills has Ia be imported from
t,uralf- principally from spain
Skilled labor receives more than
vice The Cos fupensation here that
y does ~ Egland, ~ that as near ns
iiiF he figured the cOst OF rails AT New
J arH, Phiiaaeltihia. or Baltimore Il
us' Hhoul double ghat II is nj English
Nurk e''si'
h' question naturally arises. why
'nnnpi these pauics be averted when
ne Signs % the hines 50 strongly fire.
hHdow their coming
JNsi now, however, merchants and
hnuiarilrers seem TO be trying ~
'utae one another in Keeping IN n
'lS show store Rents arr va,,, :
',sh and eemPeiilion is pushed 10 the !
There ~ too much extraVav.ra, A.,
u branches Of business. Fancy and
otnTrraiively useless articles are ~ !,
~ imported at great c4,>t and. inaaad y
e ARE compelled 10 bay I'm fnra,g,' ! !
larkets many staple articles. surh ~
900 ior iuStanoe, which shnnld +,
9 grown AZ home.
on"aia There ee tightening OF
Tiis MONEY MARKET
4efe VIII sgneiv be a terrible rr,sh 4
.i.,iis merchants particularly. rs the !,
~ iit~s 81 to-day Is nun GA er,lit !,
.',st lssFil@ps 'han a. als other perlod i
ii.s history ~ the coantry. some i
' :, are who believe thst 'iinaneial \
...1ir<s sge ~ nasvly every case the /
4 sfsNSh q TIC cressli system which \
tstE' -.suis 10 Increase rather n
AZ aitN4aisa 81 simt ynss eu
t.Assiassz s1s1 have had e.ir ,var,.
. ftfrti' es4t IL $50 - ~