Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-12-30
'UR IRON TRADE.



y been prepared By James n.
general manager of the Amer.
IN and steel Association. The
{; 3ing OF the year was marked. be
3by a continuation Of the depres-
1884. There was a steady say
I. OF prices from January to JULY
- t for steel rails, the quotation,
Fhich improved a trihe in Nav.
& uly and August all prices stiilened.
~ in September 4 slight advance
established, steel rails taking the
8. and continuing until December.
- quotations for the four leading sta
4. Us for each month of the year will
- bw that prices at the close Of the
Z, ar were much more favorable ;han
q. ie close Of the first half Of the wear.
g. comparison Of prices shows that Dig
,on was els in January. sl1.10 IN
y ebruary, slS.25 in December steel
''sfsils. s27 in January. 326 in April. and
ss34.50 in December: bar-iron was
1902 in January, s36.0S in July. |
and $50 90 in December: cut.nails were
s2.l0 in January. s2.lj in August. and
S2.6j in December. These quotations
are monthly averages for No. |
anthracite foundry pig-lron and the best
refined bar-irOn per gross ton at Phla-
delphia 4; for cut nails per keg, whole
sale, at Philadelphia and for steel rails
per gross ton at Pennsylvania mills.
Steel rails, however, show the greatest
advance in price during the last half of
1855. In April the sales were made at
Pennsy lyania mills at 80 and $3.50.
and few sales said to have been made
at the astonlshingly low price Of 80. 80.
These prices were lower than foreign
steel rails could have been delivered al
Atlantic ports at the same date If en-
tirely free Of duty. In MAY the quota
tions advanced osl7. and the price
thus established was Substantially maiu-
tanned till tie last Of August, when a
further advance took place in conSe-
Quence Of an agreement among the man
ufacturers to limit and distribute the
output for lSsG. which was fixed at
$4,000 tons; but no restrIsiion
was placed upon the price, each
manufacturer being permitted TO make
his own price. The regulation OF
the output was found to be absO-
lutely necessary to prevent the further
forcing Of rails on the market at prices
below the cost Of manufacture. Even
the railroad companies did not desire
this state Of affairs to continue. From
August to November the price steadily
advanced, as a result partly of thu
restriction Of production which hat
been determined upon and partly of tn
general Improvement which had take
place in the business Of the country
and in the last-named month an
in December sales were made a
81. In December the manufacturer
enlarged the limit Of production 70
ls>6 TO one million tons. " II ever
uade combination was iu>tiab!e,
saws Swami. " this steel.rall combini
tion is entitled to be most ilyora1ly II
eaIded. 1t not only gave to man
lacturers living prices instead of loNir
= prices. but il helped wonderfully IN r
> storing healthy tone to all bushes
2 4 similar combination has existed +
It about two years among European steC
n rail manufacturers. But prices OF pi
/ iron. bar-iron. nails. steel-rail,, a.
Ie other forms Of iron and STEEL could n
l. have adyanced in the last half OF $50
$ there had rot been an increased Il
Of maud for these productions after {
d l., of September. This increased q
a mand became everywhere notceabI
N and it has continued without interru
I'd ton to the present time. This IS, at
is all. the most gratifying feature Of t
Ill wal in our iron and steel udustr'
U.oh urices are less 10 be desired IN
a steady increasing demand. With
ircreasin. demand prices at least
~ main finn. They cease to tend do"
10. wards. stability Is secured. and app
Nc hension is allayed. What Is P
no duced is sold promptly. The
A. creased demand for iron
! steel which occurred in the
- half Of ls~j. and which was one OF
". incidents Of the general improvement
~. the business of the country might c
"a ndently be counted on to conti'
l. throughout the whole Of the new y
'ra but for one little cloud upon the h
-, ron. Il there was no threat to-day
80 tariff revision, the promise OF /
~. would be bright indeed. Not to Dor
,oo trouble. however. it can most positi'
lie said that a feeling Of confidence
the future Of business now prev
err. throughout the entire country.
have entirely recovered from the Ell
IN of whatever panicky feeling preya
wn year or six months ago. The IN
lies tainty about silver ma excite hnaT
lay circles. but it is exercising no injurl
ar effect upon the general business.
dis Although complete statistics
At mot in. il is certain we made almos
ced much pic. iron and as many steel
way in l,s5 as in l,>4. The first haI
'isit le,j showed greater depression IN
or branches and in other branches tina
ON any other SIX months since the re
rett reiiod OF depression began, anc
shot course. with restricted conSumF
Jar and falling prices, the production
y Is OIL. In the first half OF 1883 the
production of pig-iron was 2,l5o
net tons Of 1900 pounds, az
100000 tons in the hrst
,rry Of Isl and 2,322,592 tons in
died second half. The production OF
;ter- .emer steel rails in the
r at half Of 1855 was 4j2.44t net
the AGAINST 500. $40 tons in the first ha
was lSs4 and j22, 2j7 tons in the last
fam Our production Of pig-iron IN loo !
hing ass. 6I3 net tons, and our Produ
the Of Bessemer steel.rails was Lit
she ne, tons. The stock OF pig-lron a
the close Of 1854 aggregated 593'Uo'
, his tons at the close OF 1889 there
rned certainly no increase and there
was probably slight decrease. kai
city building in 1855 was more active
had generally been supposed II Wou.
In 1854 We built 1857 miles oil