Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-06-01
FIGURES Do NOT LIE.
The Increased Production of Coal in
Allegheny County Last Year
PROVES AN INTERESTING FACT.
What Natural Gas Has Done for Pittsburg
Coal Operation. ~-
SOME NOTABLE FACTS FROM STATISTICS

The report of the annual coal production
Of the State of Pennsylvania, and especially
of the county of Allegheny, has never been
SO fraught with interesting detail to the
general public and to the coal trade Of the
Pittsburg coal district as this year.
Prof. Charles A Ashburner, geologist in
charge of the coal statistics of the United
States Geological Survey, is now preparing
his report of the production of coal in Penn
syIvania during 1888, and. in an interview
with DISPATCH reporter last night. he
gave some very interesting information re-
garding Allegheny county.
The total production of bituminous coal
in Pennsylvania during 1888 amounted to
49, ]6, 728 tons, an increase over the previous
year of 2, ,277, ,S79 tons. This enormous in
crease in the coal production is especially
attributable to the coal production of Allie
gheny county.
During 1887 the Allegheny county miners
produced 1850, 924 tons and in 1888 the pro-
duction amounted to 5,575, 575 IONS, making
an increase of s94, ,5S1 TONS
AN .UNPRECEDENTED INCREASE.
There never was such an increase ex-
perieneed in the Allegheny county coal
trade, because it was double the increase of
the years 1886 and 1887.
The total production of bituminous coal
in Pennsylvania during 1888 represents one
third of the entire coal production
of the United States, whereas if the
production of anthracite coal from
Pennsylvania is added to the bituminous
coal production, it is proven that Pennsyl-
vania's annual coal production represents
go per cent of the entire coal production of
the United States.
To return to the production of Allegheny
county mines, it is necessary to state that
the enormous increase is not due to an in
crease in mines, but solely to the increased
average production of each mine. 1t is a
fact that only one new mine has been put
into operation during the last year.
This great increase of the production is
of the utmost Importance, because the con-
sumption of natural gas in this district has
also increased to enormous proportions,
which proves that the increase of coal pro-
duetion was not caused by a greater local
demand. There are nearly 10000 private
families using natural gas in Allegheny
county, and over !, 900 manufacturing places,
which demand daily supply of 5000, 900
cubic feet of the natural fuel. If this
amount of fuel were to be replaced by coal,
ii would amount to 100, 900 tons year. 1t
must, however, be remembered that this
amount of coal has not been actually dis
placed, but natural gas has caused num-
Der of new industries to spring up in ALLIE
gheny county, and, besides that, people use
more fuel since they have had the gas than
they would have done were they still using
coal.
THE CAUSE EXPLAINED.
But you will ask how is this enormous in
crease in the production of coal to be ac-
counted ior if coal is not used here. The
reason is very simple. The coal of Allie
gheny county has proved to be the best ar
ticle of its kind in the market That is all,
and the proofs of this assertion can be
traced as easily as anything.
In 1884 and 1885 the coal producers ~
Allegheny were very much alarmed at the
prospects of their trade. Why? Because
natural gas was being everywhere intro
duced here, and their local market went
down to the bottom notch. The price of
coal went down to 88 cents at the mines.
The operators thought the coal trade was
going to the dogs. At last they tried q
remedy.
They shipped their product into other.
markets. They became competitors to all
the other coal producing States, and the be-
ginning was a hard struggle. Why? be-
cause the efficacy Of Pittsburg coal in COM
parison to the other coal was not known.
But the next year already the scale be-
gan to turn. AS soon as the consumers over
the country found out that Pittsburg coal
is better than coal from Ohio, Indiana,
Michigan, Illinois, Tennessee, Kentucky
and Missouri the output increased and
THE PRICE WENT UP.
In 1887 the coal producers of the Pitts
burg district got 10 cents more for coal at
the mines than the year before, and last year
they got 5 cents more than the year previous
This proves that the coal from this dis
trict has greater efficacy and is of better
quality than any other coal in the United
States; it proves that Pittsburg coal is dis
tributed over larger portion of the land
than any other coal, and hence the increase
of the production of coal in the Pittsburg
district during the year 1888 Is unprece-
dented IN the history Of the coal trade in the
United States. This knowledge was gained
by the introduction of the use of natural
gas.
The following table shows the production
Of coal during the last year in the counties
comprising the Pittsburg coal district:
Tons.
Allegheny county. .................. 5,075.070