The record-union., 1896-11-16
They Object to Being Disseminated
Against by 1t.

CLEVELAND, Nov. 15.-Cleveland
customers of the companies that last
spring formed the big steel pool are
contemplating the production of their
own steel because of the discrimination
by the pool in its prices against the
Cleveland factories. The Lake Erie
Iron Company is the company that
started the movement, and all but one
manufacturing concern here have
agreed to enter into the fight against
the pool The Lake Erie Iron Com
pany will erect an open hearth plant.
The Union Rolling Mills will also stop
buying billetS of the furnaces in the
combination. The combination here is
secret, and it's members are agreed on
the one point of war against the pool.
The ViceP President of one of the big
iron companies who are fighting the
pool gives the following history of it's
organization and workings:
The meeting at which the pool came
into existence was held at the Hotel
Waldorf in New York City last April.
A written agreement was signed by the
representatives of the companies which
formed the organization and officers
were chosen. The companies which
were: The Carnegie interests; Johns &
Laughlin, Pittsburg; L. AinSworth
Steel Company, Pittsburg; Bethlehem
Iron Company, Bethlehem, Pa; Cam
bria Iron Works, Johnstown Pa. !;
Lackawanna Iron and Steel Company;
Pennsylvania Steel Company, Steelton,
near Pittsburg; Shenango Valley Steel
Company, New Castle. Pa; Maryland
Steel and Iron Company, Sparrow
Point; Wheeling Steel and Iron Com
pany; Ashland Steel and Iron Com
pany, Ashland, KY. Bellaire Steel
Company; Junction Iron and Steel
Company, Mingo: Cleveland Rolling
Mill Company, Otis Steel Company,
Cleveland; the Johnson Steel Company,
Lorraine; the King, Gilbert and War
ner Company, Columbus; Oliver Steel
Company, Youngstown; Union Steel
Company, Alexander, Ind, and the
Illinois Steel Company Of Chicago.
These are virtually, if not entirely,
all of the Bessemer steel establish
ments in the country.
One of the features of that instru-
ment is the production by the several
companies, which is fixed at a given
per cent of the total production of all
the members of the combination. For
instance, the Illinois Company and the
Carnegie Company each was to make
about % per cent. of all the steel
turned out in the country. The Cleve-
land Rolling Mills per cent. was fixed
at about 10 per cent. In case that any
company produced less than its allot-
ted share the pool was to pay to it 81
q. ton for every ton by which it was
deficient but if produced more than the
per cent. it was to pay into the pool
50 ton for the excess In a certain
bank penalty fund was deposited to
which every signing company con-
tributed $1,000, to be forfeited upon
a breach of the contract. All the
transactions of the pool were TO pass
through the hands of a commissioner.
Another feature of the contract was
that the country should be divided into
districts or jurisdictions for the estab-
lishment of p~ice scales. Pittsburg was
made the Nasis of the schedule
Throughout the Ohio. Mahoning and
Shenango Valleys the normal rate of
$40 25 ton for billets was to be
charged Pittsburg, Wheeling and Bel
laire in this Jurisdiction are representa-
tive points In Cleveland, where. ac-
cording to demonstration, steel may be
produced with more economy than
elsewhre, the pool declared that billets
should be sold for $50 -. and in the
Illinois jurisdiction the price was
placed at S21 %. Thus the Cleveland
Rolling Mill Company and the Otis
Steel Company were to charge $50 -
at their very doors, though they might
send the same material to the Ohio
Valley, pay the transportation and
charge only $50 %