The age-herald., 1898-01-02

When one tires or accumulates a district, of the prevalent confidence in Birming- hams prospects, it is well to turn to man who does not indulge in spread-eagle- ism at all-one. who goes down at once to the solid stratum of accurate information. Such man is MT. James Bowron. As he swung around in a comfortable chair at the general offices of the Tennessee Iron and Coal company yesterday, he gave in his quiet, clear-headed manner the reasons of the faith he has in this district
 
 The real competitors of the district, said Mr. Bowron aliken England and out of it, are the Mddlesboro furnaces of the Cleve- land district in England. These furnaces load ocean going vessels at their own wharves from tram cars, which bring the iron out of the cast houses Their ores are only six miles away, and their coal thirty five miles. To meet these furnaces on good footing, it is very important that Bir- mingiiam ironmakers should be enabled to reduce the present freight rate to tide- water to 50 cents. Only waterway can give this district such rate.
 But is such a trade permanent? MT. Bowron answers this question in the af- firmative. English ironrasters are down to bcd rock now. They are not making much money, and the prices of coal, coke and ore advancing in England. The present prices of pig iron are within 50 cents a ton of the lowest ruling price ever known in that country. Give the iron makers of Alabama a reduction of one- half in the freight rate to tidewater, and they can meet the lowest English prices on record without farther curtailing their present slim margin of profits. Then, too, Alabama pig is new and untried product in England, just as it once was in Chicago and other northern markets. Alabama iron now sells in Chicago for more than many brands locally produced, whereas it formerly had to be sold at 50 cents per ton less, in order to introduce it. So it will be in England and other European coun- tries When they come to know Alabama pig well, they will pay better price for it. The export trade, added MT. Bowron, has not only come to stay, but 1t is rapidly de- veloping. In the seventeen months ended Dec. 1, 1897, 277 ,633 tons had been sent abroad an average of 16 ,333 tons per month, or about the product of three of the larg- est furnaces in the e ate. These ship ments have gone to points in England Ire land, Scotland, Wales, Holland Belgium, Germany, Sweden, France, Spain, Italy, Austria, India, Australia and JapaE Four steamship cargoes, aggregating 10000 tons, have within thirty days been booked for Japan, but the first of these cargoes has not yet been actually shipped.
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 In shipping to so many countries the cost of placing the products of this district alongside ship at tidewater is not the only obstacle-there is the difficulty of obtain ing vessels going to desired ports of des- tination. The English ironmasters have at command an almost countless fleet of merchant steamers. The Alabama ship per has not. At the present moment a gentleman from France is trying to ascer- tain from me, said MT. Bowron, how he can ship Alabama pig to his house in Buenos Ayres There are no regular safl- ings from any gulf port to Argentina or Brazil, and yet their imports of coal and pig iron should be controlled by produc-