New-York tribune., 1897-01-30

than in 1894 and was more than one-half OF the
total output of pig iron. The money value was
about SCI. $3.50. .645. OF the total output NewYork
State made only II ,93S tons. while Pennsylvania
made 3. $50 tons: yet as has been previously
implied Greater New-York transacted much Of
the business connected with the Pennsylvania
output.
However, leaving out Of consideration this
wider survey Of the subject, the steel and iron
trade Of Greater New-York involved in the con-
sumption in and around the city. the demand for
exports and the purchase Of supplies by railroad
and other companies whose headquarters are
here. amounts IN money value to at least 900
600 900 per annum There are many branches
and subdivisions Of the trade but the most I'M
portant are iron and steel rails architectural
iron and steel. plates and sheets OF Iron
and steel, castings. bar-ron. ingots. bars
and rods of steel. iron ore. pigiron ana
car wheels. Every Of these items ex-
cept architectural iron and steel appears
on the export list. and the figures are in
some considerable. though. of course. con-
stituting only small percentage of the total
trade The business done in iron and steel rails
forms probably the largest item and the sum
total in dollars must be close to S1O.OOO.OOO. The
exact figures cannot be given. Next In order as
to aggregate value undoubtedly comes archi-
OOOG0O Steel, it may be remarked has almost
entirely supplanted iron for architectural pur-
poses The quantity annually employed In
Greater New-York is enormous. 1t has been
variously estimated by competent judges at from
100 600 to 100 900 tons. The latter figure Is prob
ably nearer to the mark. 1t is definitely known.
for example. that single structure-the Ameri-
can Surety Building at Broadway and Pne-st-
required $500 tons. The twenty-fve-story
building for which the foundations are now
being laid Park Row. opposite the Astor
House. will require about 5000 tons. Steel beams
are made Of various sizes but they will average
about 81 pounds to the foot. which VIII give
242-3 feet to the ton. The mere statement OF
the number Of tons employed in one OF these
great buildings affords only a vague idea OF the
quantity involved. When. however, the tons are
rendered in feet and the feet reduced to miles
better conception Is formed Let the reader
imagine. therefore, that the steel beams to be
used In this Park Row building are iaid end 10
end along the tracks of the Hudson River Rail-
road and they will form continuous line y
miles long. reaching from the Grand Central Sta
tion nearly to Peekskill. Following the same H.
lustration little further he will discover that
the quantity Of architectural steel annually put
into buildings in Greater NewYork assuming 1t
to he $50 coo tons will cover line more than
700 miles long That is to say. 1t will parallel
the rails of the New-York Central and Hudson
River and the Michigan Central railroads and
form an additional band of steel between this
city and Chicago.
Thus it is made plain that the steel and iron
trade of this city has reached stupendous pro-
nortions but il is safe to say that its present
nroportions will he dwarfed In a few years 1hs
trade in all its branches has shown unexamped
activity throughout the country during the last
two wears. but nowhere has it been more active
| than in this city. and here no branch has kept
nace in development with that of architectural
steel The first great impetus was gwen 10 IL
fifteen wears ago by the building of the elevated
railroads. and now the construction OF great
buidings has opened up line OF extension to
which there seems practically no limit Ihe ten
depcv of the time is to build larger and larger
| buildincs. and the number Of these buildings IN
creases every year. Without doubt they VIII In
the near future supplant every other structure
| an lower Broadway. and eventually perhaps
form an unbroken procession from the Battery TO
| Fifty-ninth-st.