The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-01
UNDERsELLING ENGLAND IN TIN.
Savannah the Distributing Point of
Three States.

InEee St1IeSs
Comparatively few people in Savannah
are aware of the fact that this city has,
within the past three years, become the
chief distributing point for tin plate, in
the southern portion of Georgia, Florida
and part of Alabama. 1t is fact that
Savannah is underselling England in the
tin plate trade, in spite of the claim
of the high protective tariff opponents
that the Wilson bill would destroy the
American tin plate industry.
A Morning News reporter saw Mr.. ].
n. Goddard, who has charge of the
branch warehouse here of Charles A.
Conklin & Co, the largest tin plate
dealers in the south, yesterday. The
headquarters of this firm are in Atlanta,
where they were established some years
ago on a small SCALE and have grown
TO be the largest firm in the south.
I'VE are now selling American tin
plate" said Mr. Goddard, cheaper than
England can in this country. This state
ment will doubtless be looked upon with
some feeling of doubt by some, but it is
fact A few days ago we gave an order
for LOCO boxes of tin plate to a Pennsyl-
vania manufacturer of tin plate. at a
cost OF 50 per box The same order Tor
English plate would cost us $500. There
is q difference of 80 cents, which is a good
croft on that article.
Tin plate cost go at the mills at Swan
sea, England Under the Mckinley tariff
law the duty OIL a box was 81 .25, and the
freight about Is cents delivered at New
York, making a total of SO delivered here
at the New York port. The American
manufacturer found that If he could make
IN plate as cheap as it was manufactured
N England and delivered at New York.
the duty of $40 paid, he would be able to
successfully compete with the English
manufacturer. The problem was worked
OUT successfully under the Mckinley act
4y the American tin manufacturers.
IN tact under the act they were making
handsome profit; and when the Wilson
nlIl was being considered by congress,
lnese American makers of the plate set up
q howl in protest against the passage of
me DILL which made uniform cut of
ABOUT 30 per cent. of the Mckinley scale
IL u u taIsss' claiming that a reduction OF
Lhe tarl1 would close up every tin plate
I1iI IN America, since competition with
NE English mills would be impossible.
Inc wilson measure was passed, how
ever and the result has been in favor of
me mills in this country. While they pros
pdred under the Mckinley tariff, their
prosperity under the Wilson bill has been
NouuIy great. Many new mills have been
SIeGted and number of the old ones have
COUPLED their capacity; all are in full op-
f 81 tp3 turning out American tin plate
" lhelr full capacity. There are now
ABOUT seVentyfive tin plate mills in this
country. predict a hundred before 1897.
ii All OF this, too, in the face of the fact
mat the duty now on English tin plate is
94ly "; 10 or half of what it was under the
ac hlnley tariff bill. The effect of this
STATE OF affairs has been a death knel to
NE English manufacturers. But very few
~ me many large tin plate mills in Eng
Iald are now in operation. They can not
compete with the American mills conse-
quently had to shut down in many in
Slances: The plate, you know, is rolled out
rom pig iron or steel. We have no tin
Lllhes in this country in operation. We get
Uur TN metal in pig from England and put
~ ~ on our sheets or plates in this country.
mere rs a very small per cent of tin used
IN sheet of plate. The plate is either
IRON or steel
Now, to be more specific. A box of tin
pIdte contains 112 sheets. There are differ
eet grades, of course. The duty ON a box
" English manufactured plate, under the
w llson bill now in vogue, is Sis. which.
alqed to the cost of manufacture, SAG
ana the freight to New York, Is cents, ag-
sIegates the total cost of $780, instead of
100 under the Mckinley bill. We sold this
.Ih plate for from S10.25 to $11O0 according
70 Grades. of course there was an addi-
''nal freight from New York to dealers