Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-05-07

=
lowering Prices.
- reduction Of one dollar ton on
u iron, which Is announced by the
noenas iron company, Is rather the re-
~ Of price than the making Of Que.
~ competition Of the Southern fur
49, has put the price of pig iron on
- Eastern scaboard TO even lower fig-
~ than the Thomas iron company
oOw names, and II has been necessary
the Pennsylvania furnaces TO meet
hem. The quality Of their iron and
heir customers' appreciation Of 1t, will
b - 3 certain way in securing them n
1afger price than the Southern iron CON-
nands, but in the present condition Of
manufacturing industry, when cheap
neS CT product must he closely con-
/ eidered, there is little room for indulgence
Il u preferences for materials, that,hre not
& sounded upon their, absolutely greater
value. The Thomas Iron company il n
lnr8e manufacture of pig iron, enjoys the
I lpeputation Of leading the industry, and
Il IT. quotations are supposed to Ak values.
In this instance II has not been espe-
4 cially alert to reduce quotations, but
waited until they had reduced Them
\ selves but 1t deserves the credit Of re-
ccgnizing the situation and of being
ready to face the music.
q Pig iron is about as low In price now
~ II has ever been; but there is
great difference between the con-
ditions prevailing I'm previous Pc
Fiods ofdeprcssion in the price and those
now ruling. Then il was lack of de.
mand that caused prices to drop and
they speedily revived under a more ac-
tive market and went ballooning up to
high figures. Now the demand for pig
Iron 10 great, the production last year
having been over seven million tons. and
nearly three times as much as ten years
before when pig iron was at its lowest
price
The lowering of the price now IL dis
unctly caused by the great increase of
productive capacity, caused by the
many large furnaces Of the lat
est kind in the South, and the
fact that their product necessar-
Aiy comes into this market, there being
as yet no sufficient consumption nj
home. Under this situation il Is clear
that the Eastern Pennsylvania furnace,
must bc ready tomeet the prices at which
the competing iron Is offered and that
they cannot look for any great advance
IN price, to help them out, IN the near
Mture. The booms of the past are for
oidden by the very great increase in pro-
ductive capacity; for there IL no reason TO
suppose that the present great conslImp-
taon ofpig iron will be suddenly stimulat-
ed SO as to get ahead Of the productive
capacity that has had its stimulation in
the development Of the iron and coal of
thc south. There may be change i'm
supply and demand which will advanc
prices, but for the immediate future Il
looks as though our iron-masters would
have to place their hopes upon lower
Ing of cost rather than on increase OF
price. Prices may fall still further unless
the demand is increased, for there seems
to be more pig iron made than the
market will at present take and under
such a condition prices will fall until
demand increases or production de-
creases.
Our iron-masters have a natural pro-
tNtion against the Southern product. In
their home market, from the freight,
which amounts to about three dol'a.s a
ton, that being the excess of the cost of
carrying the Southern iron into this
market. This ought to be quite sufficient
Tor them, and will be when their rail-
roads give them as low freight rates
upon their materials as the Southern
furnaces enjoy. II seems to lis that the
whole question of the success of this COM
petition rests here. If their fuel and
ores are carried to them at fair rate Der
Ton per mile, aud one that will be profit
able to the carrier, there will be no
trouble in keeping our furnaces in blast.
Ihe lowering OF iron values is a good
thing for the country, and one that was
bound to happen. The opening of the |
Southern field has fastened the day of |
rs coming. twill not bo long before
" make iron as cheaply us England
does. There is no reason why we should
not. We have better ores and fuel and
are getting rs much capital, Wages
Afe higher but our labor earns more.
Ihe tariff about which our PenpsyI-
vania iron masters have been SO much
excited, is no longer as element in their
business. Europe is no longer their com
petitor. They have found one in their
pwn country that they cannot shake of,
There is no such thing possible as put
ing up prohibitory tariff wall against
ne importation of Southern iron into
and our iron masters
must prepare to meet the conlpeti-
ION IN some other way. And there is
70 way but to reduce their expenses
vhich they are doing, and to reduce
heir cost, which they can do. There
III never again be any great importa-
ION OF foreign pig iron into this coun-
y. II the tariff Oh pig iron was taken
q altogether, the iron industry here
aight be embarrassed bat il would not
9 killed. 1t could rally to meet The
ew condition, as it must pull itself 10. /
ether now TO meet the flow of Southern
on into It's market. The iron industry !
pennsylvania is here to STAY,
Differiuv niso..fso.. u