The morning call., 1890-04-02
COAL FROM JAPAN.
The Part 1t Has Played in the
Local Market.
It Was Used Here During the Famine "A
Comparison of Its Quality With That
of Other Goals in Use.

The telegram in yesterdays CALL, an
nouncing the presence in Chicago of a rep
resentative of japanese syndicate, formed
with preliminary capital of $1,000 600 to
ship coal to San Francisco, has revived COM
mercial interest in subject that attracted
considerable attention year and half or so
ago, when coal jumped to such extreme
figures.
Spreckels Bros. were then tempted to
make an experiment in this direction and
altogether they imported from $4,000 to
$4,000 tons, not placing any, however on
the market, but using it in their own re-
fineries and steamers. The experiment
proved satisfactory though. the coal being
pronounced an excellent steam coal, rank
ing. in this respect, next after Nanaimo.
1t burns with great heat, gives out good
long flame, making it valuable for certain
boilers getting steam up quickly owing to
its promptness of combustion. The tug
boats made some complaint at the time at
the large quantity of ashes. ETC.. but as the
coal had been stored in the open all through
the winter months allowance was due for
deterioration by exposure. The Pacific Mall
Steamship Company's steamers all use it
and speak highly of it too.
There were, however, and are yet two
problems to be solved before the trade
in Japanese coal can be expected to
prove success. The first is the necessity
for careful selection, and the second is the
irregular tonnage to be relied on. The first
has been serious obstacle in the way of
further efforts thus far, and will prove so
yet, unless the syndicate lay themselves
specially out to cater to market that wants
coal, not rubbish. The second problem.
too, IS not an easy one to solve. A fitful
supply will not answer. II q trade in
japanese coal is established and a market
created here, the supply must be regular,
not intermittent Under the present state
OF trelShts ana charters a vessel, half a
dozen for that matter, might be secured to-
day, but then not another, maybe, for six
months. The usual disengaged tonnage in
Japan ports consists, in the main, of
vessels from New York, Philadelphia or
Boston that have taken out there cargoes of
case-kerosene. The number of lumber
vessels going there from this Coast is very
insignificant. And so long as vessel can
make the trip here from Nanaimo in five OF
SIX days with 81 70 freight, it would never
pay to make tfty-day trip to Japan in
ballast to bring back coal to compete
Then again, as Australian coal will al
ways come here for gas and other similar
purposes, it cannot come into competition
with it; neither with Nanaimo coal in the
matter OF price, unless sold for 80 to 70
cents per ton less in this market And
bearing in mind in this connection the fact
that out OF the total deliveries of coal in
this port for 1889. of 1,122, 800 tons, our
Coast supplies, including British Columbia.
were 100000 and our Australian receipts
were 299, 100 tons, making together total
OF 1.O59, 100 tons, and that with neither of
these two factors has it yet been shown
that Japan can compete, unless she can
produce gas coal as good as Australia, or
can undersell Nanaimo-and the PROPOSE
ton, so far as profit i concerned, looks ex-
tremely doubtful. Still, of course, if coal
went up and kept up here the scheme
might pay, although the high market neces-
sary to insure this to shippers would be
distinctly opposed to consumers interests
here.
On the whole it would certainly not seem
that japan is, anyway for the present,
destined to play any important part i'll this
city s coal trade, though she will doubtless
continue to prove of assistance in filing up
occasional gaps as she has done in the past.