Telegram-herald., 1890-01-27
IRON Is NOW THE KING.
Csrs4is. wosi s2a 8oslsas Wssz. "Ails
trss h@s bsSEa Ca-ss@ th~'
A4y Frsseat ssasaa - Pros
PSTlty a FsE fraz goks-


coPYslesr Iss9.
TIE lstser half % Isss. taxen as =
-aole. a4s 1a1o- btsdly tae nost gr .
gero4s iB Industrial sad osemer-Az-
circles ln ths lnlted states since 80
aoom perlo4s ~ lsso-eI The early
half ot t1s year eas usrsed py
species 90 paving the w. tor the To-
creased tvansac Ions - tas --ter
months. snd he 0atlook new = ter
year II prosperous b-sinsss-so Ia as
1850 nay % g-uged IN advance
Blt ths question las arisen among
thinking men. are Ne nos going 700
fast ln special linss7 aud Nill not toe
prolonged weakness IA cereals. wool
and wcoiens. n sharp contrast vain
almost boom IN iron and steel, tend
T. prevent = season OF general pros
perlty2
Ii wIll be interesting first - draw .
rough comparison between the sEsrae-
terlsucs OF lsIg-si. and those OF 1855 90
% learn in so FAR ss we N ay the differ
ences as we'll As the lik enesses WITH
reference 20 general trade in the nlted
states IN those periods.
To begin. the earlier years named
found Europe In need OF large Quanu-
ties OF wheat from abroad. India. Aus
trala and Argentine had not then
risen % the dignity IS exporters OF
wheat which they have since attained.
and for thGt matter, neither had
Russia. And IS fortune would have
IL. the In "a States succeeded IN
raising large crops OF wheat and IN
selling the surplus abroad at good
prices This stimulated general trade
here and the industrial expansion and
railway building which followed, found
our iron Industries utterly unable 10
supply the home demand. Naturally,
large importations followed and We
being largely II the mercy OF foreign
makers, prices were prodigiously ex-
panded Then came the boom in gem
eral trade, which reacted sharply in
1883 and in 1884 resulted in a severe
shrinkage of credits and a financial
panic.
within the past year a pronounced
expansion in general trade has set in,
but under much m ore conservative con-
ditions our previous expansion in the
iron and steel industries had far outrun
the home demand, but when the gradual
and steady increase in reques. for pig
iron b~,ame conspicuous in 1888, for
iron pipes. for car wheels and other rail-
way rolling stock aUpurtenanccs for
bridges and for buildings, as well as
for mulyiform other uses, furnaces
which had been regarded as almost use
less found their product in demand and
new fur laces had q lie built, and for
that matter are still being constructed.
50 far as cereals are concerned, the
situation has changed also. Our aver
age annual production of wheat for five
years past has not been far from $50,
O0O. 600 bushels. a larger proportion OF
which has been required for food at
home than was so equired from an al
most equal average annual production
from 1850 to sS4, which has Offset 10
an extent the decrease annual export
alton of wheat during the latter half OF
the past decade. Thus the loss, in part,
OF a sudden or enlarged European de-
mand such e we had ten years ago
has not been lelt 20 SO large an extent
OF late years as it would otherwise have
been. Another element Of conservu-
tism al this time is found in the
check 10 unbriIled railway extension,
thus tending 20 restrict expecta-
tions OF steel makers The latter.
however, are fairly we'll supplied with
steel orders. me output of steel rails
for 1850 being about l.500. 900 tons
d, ,h,,,- ,,,,a1 ~ fI. 20 ord fo~ 1858