The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-11-07
MINE, MILL AND RAILROAD.

MINE, MILL AND NllLnJADs
The legal proceedings in connection
with the reorganization of the Penn
sylvania Steel company are proceeding
rapidly and the expectation is the prop
erty will be sold out early in January.
The new securities provided for under
the plan of reorganization Will not De
issued for several months afterwards,
as the subscriptions to the new pre-
ferred stock are payable in installments,
In tlse fiscal year that ended with Aug
ust, which was the worst year the COM
pany has ever known, the net earnings
were sufficient to pay all the fixed
charges, including interest on the new
preferred stock. The lowest estimate
that is put on the value of the preferred
stock is So which at the present market
price of the old assented stock would
make the new common stock stand at
$S6. The book value of the stock, ap-
praising the assets at a low valuation,
is $l56 a share. With the steady I'M
provement in the volume of business
and in profits in the iron trade, and the
termination of an expensive receiver
ship it is thought that the company
will be able to make a large amount or
money the present year, While a good
deal of the stock of this company is now
held speculatively there has been con-
siderable investment buying lately by
good judges of iron properties.
It is stated that Coils p. Hunting
don, of the Southern Pacific, has pur-
chased 5000 tons of steel rails for use
on his Pacific coast roads. 1t was pre-
dcted during the tariff discussion that
the bill would give this trade to Eng
land, but Democratic newspapers de-
MED it. Mr.. Huntingdon, it is said,
saves an infnitesimal sum and Ameri-
can labor loses a quite important one
by this operation. The new tariff bill
Is not working thoroughly, but already
the wool, iron, tin plate, lead, lumber,
glass and other leading industries have
of foreign goods.
The Railway Age, in an elaborate ar
ticle on the wages of railway employees,
discovers some curious facts. 1t is
found that fifteen leading railways
operating more than one-fOurth Of the
mileage of this country and employing
One-fourth Of the men in the railway
service, pays in salaries of over $4,000
the sum of $1e205, Isl per annum, and a
total amount for all salaries of Sl07,-
SSS,694. The total number Of employees
is 170,6j7 and the average salary is
$632.19 If the large salaries were wiped
out and the entire amount divided with
all the employees each mans pay would
be increased $706 per year. or Is cents
per week. These companies earned $S,-
94lOGS in dividends, and if this sum had
been applied to an increase of employees
salaries each man would have got an
increase of 81 per week. In other words
if the owners of the railroads gave
every cent of their profits to the en-
ployes the latter's salaries would be in.
creased about Is cents per day.
The Philadelphia Record thinks it
would be impossible to find in any
other section of the United States a
record of greater number of wrecks OF
failures of strong concerns engaged in
the iron industry than are to be found
in the territory within fifty or 100 miles
of Philadelphia. In Berks and Schuyl-
kill counties recent years have wit
\ messed the abandoning of nineteen blast
furnaces, while over twenty stacks in
montgomery, Lancaster Lehigh Leb-
anon and Carbon counties have either
been torn down and their machinery
sold for scrap, or stand today idle. Tht
failures during the past year of strCne
and pronounced concerns in the easterr
section are still fresh in the memory OF
persons interested in the industria
growth of this territory. The suspen
sion of the Pennsylvania and Maryland
Steel companies with their eight BIAS
furnaces and extensive mills; of Rober
II. Coleman, the operator of five fur
naces in Lebanon and Lehigh counties
William'M. Kaufman & Co.. the owners
of the Sheridan furnaces, in Berlis Coun
ty; the Crane Iron company, and the
Coplay Iron company, in Lehigh county
the Pottstown Montgomery and Nor
rlstown companies in Montgomery
county; the Reading Rolling Mill com
pany, in Berks county, and many others
exhibit to what extent the iron indus
tries of eastern Pennsylvania are at the
mercy of the south and west, which arC
supplied with the essential materials e
the expansion of great industry"
Coke production and output in tn,
ConnellsYille region have taken an up
ward tendency again after droppin,
back few tons each week for the pas
month, last weeks record showing
gains of 5000 tons in production anC
265 cars in output. Considering tha
the iron trade is in such an unsettlc,
condition, it is surprising the demand
there is for coke. For the last six week.
shipments have averaged over 100
cars a day. About month ago ther
was a little slump caused by overpro
duction and the firing up of too man,
ovens. There was a tendency to fore
the demand for coke, but just as sooi
as the operators found that the polio,
would not work they changed thei
plans and allowed the buyers to regu
late their sales according to their owl
ideas. The price of coke will underg
no changes now until the first of tn
year, when the new contracts are made
and it is hard to predict with any de
gree of accuracy how much of a chang
will be made then, if any. The mex
two months will likely bring some neN
features in the matter.
The detailed report of the operatio
and output Of the region for the wee
ending on Saturday, Oct. q, shows A.
354 active and 1920 idle ovens, with
total estimated production of 141,S
tons. Compared with the productio
of the previous week, this was an in
crease of 2,S16 tons. In the active lis
ovens there was net gain of thirty
one. The shipments for the week az
gregated 1882 cars, consigned as fo
liws: To Pittsburg and river tipple'
2,2G4 cars; to points west of Pittsburs
S,Sl1 cars; to points east of Connells
vile, 1,4O7 cars. Compared with tn
oh n,fe Nf 4 Al.