Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-08-09
NOT THE FIRST PLANT
A Rash Free Trade Attempt to Make
Political Capital Out of
THE INDIANA TIN PLATE FAILURE
4 Groundless Charge That Pittsburg Ma
terial Proved Useless,
ENTIRE LACK OF BUSINESS METHODS

Indiana free traders are endeavoring to
make political capital out of the insolvency
of the tin plate works at Anderson, Ind,
and in so doing have made an attack on
well-known Pittsburg firm. The Anderson
plant has just been disposed of at Sheriffs
sale, and the indianapolis Sentinel, the Dem
ocratic organ of the State, furnishes its
readers with two columns of matter under
glaring headlines, Of which the following is
Q sample:
The Anderson Tin Plate Works, the first
establishment in this country, were sold by
the Sheriff of Madison county to satisfy a
mechanics lien. The tin plate plant was
such an insignificant concern that few of
the farmers Of the county were aware of its
existence. The Republican leaders have re-
peatedly called upon the farmers tributary
to Anderson to vote against Mr.. Bynum be-
cause OF his vote in Congress to repeal the
tax on tin and thereby destroy an industry
worth thousands of dollars to the farmers Of
Madison county,"
When Deputy Sheriff B. H. Campbell
stepped out and from the east door Of the
nne court house read the notice of sale and
offered the Anderson Tin Plate Works, the
great original Mckinley tin plate factory to
the highest bidder, no one responded. The
court house officials and large number Of
farmers gathered around out of curiosity
and guyed the few Republicans who were
present. "Wbere is McKinley?" shouted
farmer when the sheriff had repeated the
offer three times. Finally A. P. Moore, for
his client, bid in the works for s2ls 30, the
face of the Judgment, and the great pro-
tected works which have furnished so many
good points for tin plate editorial was
knocked off, to Democrat
Attack On a Pittsburg Firm.
A list of the creditors is then given, in
which appears the Canonsburv Iron and
Steel Company, of Pittsburg. the amount
due being 81, 200. In speaking of this
claim the Sentinel says:
The Canonsburg Iron Company, Of Pit ts-
burg, furnished rolled sheets (black plate)
ready for dipping, but the company claimed
that this black plate was too rough to dip in
tin and worthless. The fact is that no black
plate made in this country is f1t for timing
purposes. All the machinery was imported
from Wales, and so were the machfnists who
set it up. The company employed four men,
three of whom were imported from Wales,
three boys ana about eight girls. The men
old not average $3.50 a day, the wages re-
ceived in Wales, the boys made about so
cents and the girls so cents a day. The
sneeus were imported from England and
dipped by imported labor in tin imported
from the Strait settlements, which COM
pr1ses the provinces of Singapore. Aalacca,
sula. The Malay tin is mined by coolie Ia
Dor, which receives cents a day. Not an
ounce of tin from American mines was used.
A call was made yesterday at the Office
of the Canonsburg Iron and Steel Company
on Wood street When the managers at
tentior was called to the statement from
Indiana that the plates furnished by the
company were unfit for timing he said:
1.-The only feature of our transactions with
the Anderson Works which I recollect of
hand is that we never got our money.
Hoverer, we have all the correspondence
here, and it will be easy to investigate the
matter"
Wanted More of the Same Plates.
''The first communication from the Indiana
concern was in April, 1891, and was in the
nature of an inquiry. This was followed by
an order for a carload of black plates, to be
shipped in July. The shipment was made
on July Z. -. ....-....f
'Now then, " said the Canonsburg COM !
psny's manager. 'the next letter on file is
in November of 1891. We had failed to re-
ceive q remittance and had been pressing
for payment. This letter, as you see, is
from Charles B Orvis, the President of the
company. In it he says that he has been in
Arkansas and that our bill has been
neglected for that reason. He asks us to
draw on him for the amount, with interest
This was four months after the shipment,
and there is not a word about our plate not
being up to requirements The only COM
plant be makes is that the head workman,
imported from Wales, proved incapable,
and for that reason they were behind in
their work.
Further than that, in March of this
year we received telegram from the An
derson concern asking us to ship another
car of plates. That does not look as though
our material had proved unavailable. In
the meantime we had succeeded in getting
a note for the amount of the first bill, but
no money. Under the circumstances we did
not fill this March order, but it is certainly
an evidence that our plates had been used
and more were wanted"
Not the First in the Country.
"What is your information as to the cause
of the failure of the establishment"
"We made an investigation which went
to show that there was no capital behind it.
The works were apparently started for the
purpose Of booming property in that vlcin-
fty, and no attempt was made to conduct
the enterprise on business principles. An
other thing, see that it Is stated from In
diana that this Anderson plant was the first
started in the country. That is an absurd
claim. The works at Demmler were in
operation considerably earlier. Why, we
were making some plate for timing even
before the Mckinley bill went into opera
tion.''
'What has been the effect of the tariff
upon this line, and how extensive have
your operations been under lt?''
'In round numbers we furnished 1000
tons of plate to the Ironclad Company, of
New York, during the past year. The re-
quirements in this order were particularly
exacting, better grade being needed than
for ordinary work, like that of the Indiana
concern, yet it proved perfectly satisfac-
tory. We have furnished about 800 tons of
material to two establishments in Pitts
burg, and have now in hand an order from
the Corrugating Company, of Piqua, which
figured so prominently in the Mckinley
Campbell campaign in Ohio last year. That
is doing pretty well for an infant indus
try"
To Bob Up Serenely
In the morning, feeling refreshed light
H. onrier1