The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1890-09-27

0)IrG 11gu001D- ~ 1<DUIDvI 100, 0)ogu
ha. bsen eeoody buying ourIo9 tbo
week With na1es u oome moment. several
transactions Of 3 thousand tons each
having boeu made. The demand los
prompt shipment b heavy, and isw
buyers nre In the market lor deliveries
running through the nr.t six OF eight
months ii neat year. IL h = peculiar ~
well IN very unusual spectacle that pre-
than IL did last TALL, when iron was over
50 a ton higher than now, and rig metal
continuing low. The situation among
southern furnaces h such that as soon
as money IL easier IL will be almost i'm
possible To keep the price Of iron mt the
present basis, AS furnaces having small
stocks, are beinR rapidly sold up, and
before long IL will he n question of OBJ
tanning the iron, provided the present
demand continues, which Is bound to
increase prices. A very moderate
amount 81 business I'm small lots. ear
loads and fifty tons, and no large trans
actions whatever, have taken place dur
ing the past week at Detroit. To offset
this To "A certain extent, however, num-
Der 81 good sized inquiries are in hand,
chiefly confined TO Lake Superior char
coal pig iron. These inquiries are from
manufacturers who depend upon lake
navigation for cheap ireights, so that
should they result in actual transactions
the material would be sold only for
prompt delivery. In view OF the TACT
that every charcoal furnace In closely
sold mp, IL Is fair to suppose that these
transactions will he at full market rates,
and possibly at some advance. A good
many inquiries keep floating around,
but mostly fail TO materialize. Southern
furnaces claim that their position con-
tinucs 20 he strong, both with regard to
stocks, and the run OF orders they are
receiving. In contrast with general re-
ports, the Chicago market continues in
active, and the past week has shown but
"A small amount Of buying. On the other
hand heavy consumption goes steadily
on and the foundries and machine shops
are well stocked with orders. All indica-
tons now point to healthy market
during the remainder OF the year. The
this week ut Pittsburgh is not
quotably different from what IL WAS at
the date of last report. Business is
rather languid and prices are unchanged,
but there was one encouraging feature in
the fact that during August the consump-
ton ofpig iron WIS greater than the out
put, and il this condition OF things will
bring about the long-expected improve
ment in prices. -Iron Ore.-The local
market in very quiet, for the presumable
reason that there is nothing Co sell.
say, two per cent OF the esti-
mated seasons output, the visible sup
ply OF ore has found n market, and the
quantity notas yet disposed
OF Is either held above the market price,
or else Tor one reason or another is
The demand from consumers
who usually depend on Lake Superior
ore for their stocks has been fairly well
supplied. but the furnacemen east 81 the
are in want OF considerable
quantities OF non Bessemer ore, for which
they are making active inquiry in this
market. No less than 10000 tons Of
that material could have been disposed
~ during the week at good prices, but
not single producer al ore dared 10 sell
pound, pending the filling OF
orders and contracts several months
old, and To carry out which several of
the ore men Will have a very hard time.
While the lake shipments are about $50
900 tons ahead OF the corresponding
season last year, the gain has not been
OF late, and in view az the
present delay ON the part OF vessels i'm
n falling off henceforth. II must be re-
too, that last year the rush
~ navigation was continued until the
very day OF expiration OF lake insurance,
SO that the calculations OF Those who ex-
pect n repetition OF those conditions are
resting upon a very slim foundation.
Charters are inactive and the going rate
is 81 from Ashland and Marquette, and
eighty-five cents from Escanaba.--Pig
considerable sales are
for the week. the market il dull
and weak In almost all it's lines. Pig
iron IN general seems to be pounded very
hard, but Bessemer il getting the worst
all around, selling as low as $l7.35,
cash, at Valley furnaces. All the other
grades are suffering in proportion, and
figuring up the high prices OF ore and
coke, one is almost tempted To believe
that the furnacemen are in the business
Tor the pleasure IL affords them, and |
without the hope al earthly reward. A
very large lot of mill iron has gone at n |
trifie below SIG, four months While |
everybody predicts better times thirty |
Or sixty days hence, the present is very
,hcerless indeed for the average furnace
man. There is much complaint ON the
part Of makers of pig iron OF their inabil- |
~ TO secure sufficient quantity OF
coke. The railway companies are short |
81 cars, and one local concern that con-
'umes fifty car loads 81 coke day, il in |
receipt Of less than twenty cars daily.