New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-08-17
THE SHORTAGE IN STEEL.
NO BIG ORDERS CAN BE ACCEPTED
FOR THIS YEAR
LEADING MEN IN THE BUSINESS IN THIS
CITY DISCUSS THE SITUATION AND
GIVE VARIOUS REASONS
FOR ITS CAUSE.

I
orders unless they be for delivery next year OF
are for a small quantity Of steel In other WINS
The orders they already have in are sufficient 10
-,,, ,be,r mills AT full time until January next
and later. 1t is an unprecedented condition ana
,.noaLs volumes for the material prosperity or
the country The prices Of steel of all xmas are
&c 70 natural under the circumstances, hlSher
than for several years This really means 'ha'
were the great St Paul. American Surety or
En,nire buildings only planned and not actualIy
built. the construction Of them would nave 10 oe
DELAYED for year, because 1t would not he pos
s;ble 70 obtain the necessary material sooner
This holds true of any great work requiring steer
IN large quantities for its construction, ana any
such that may be in contemplation must be oe-
layed until next year.
While il has been known for some time that
the iron and steel mills throughout the country
had an overplus Of orders and were uhaoie "
turn out the finished product in time 70 supply
the demand IL was not realized that they were
as overcrowded with work as this. dlspa'ch III
Yesterdays Tribune shows how serious IL Is TOT
a great manufacturing firm using large quaii'l-
ties OF steel to be caught without sufficient ma
,orial n carry on i,s work For In such case
neither love nor money will obtain IT, and the
only alternative is to cease labor
HOW 1T HAS AFFECTED THE CRAMPS
A disnatcb in Yesterdays Tribune states that
the great shipbuilding firm Of William Cramp ~
Sons. Of Philadelphia, has been compelled TO lay
off fifteen hundred employees from sheer inaph-
fly to get iron and steel rapidly enough TO carry
on its work, and Of the thirty-seVen Vessels
now in the course Of construction along the Del
aware River. fully twenty-one Of them VIII De
delayed owing 70 lack Of material cable mes
sage from London on the same date states that
" The Pail Mall Gazette to-day. noting the
American inquiries for Scotch steel says
ranarksbire firm has secured American orders
for ten thousand tons for shipment to the Ohited
States" Inquiry among the steel men here con-
firms the Cramp dispatch. but with regard TO the
London cable message they say that it may be
true il 1t is steel plates that are meant but II II
is steel rails they think THE Pail Mall Gazette
is mistaken in its report.
In many branches Of trade it is customary to
carry a large supply ahead. with view to meet
ing an unforeseen emergency. The manufact-
urers Of cotton at Fall River, for instance carry
q full years supply. Steel men say that it is i'm
possible for them to adopt this plan
A member of the firm Of William H. Wallace
e. Co, steel importers, said:
ION commercial grounds. think the report
concerning the importation Of steel rails from
England absolutely untrue. The price of steel
rails in Great Britain is about as much as it is
IN the United States. The last quotations for
English steel rails are IS 5s TO &c los. ton. free
on board work whereas the same rails can be
had in this country at about $50 ton. 1t is
within the limits of possibility that instead or
rails. steel plates are meant, for steel plates
could be imported here at a less cost than the
ruling prices in America, even plus freight. IN
surance and duty, If they have any to spare. AT
the present time the demand there in proportion
TO the supply is not as great as II Is mere In
America il is in great excess. The report as to
the Cramps is undoubtedly true. Any one might
get caught al the present time.
CANNOT CARRY SUPPLIES AHEAD.
1T is impossible to carry supplies of steel
ahead, as all steel plates are made TO specific
sizes and various lengths. widths and thick
nesses. Steel rails, though, are made In stand
ard sizes, and ii would be possible TO carry re-
serve supplies Of them. except for one CONDITION
the loss Of interest involved would cover the
possible profit. Say steel rails were at $50 ton;
you would then have TO pay per cent, or 81 90
q year. interest Rails are sold on smaller
margin Of profit than other manufactured Steel
and in consequence this would make it impos
sible.
Il think the demand will continue for con-
siderable period At the same time 1t is de-
pendent one thing, and that is an easy money
market and low rate Of interest. This is every
thing to business. l do not mean too low rate
because that would infer a lack Of business
When money accumulates tremendously and
rates fall to 1l2 and per cent year It shows
that the owners are afraid to lend it freely
Money is about the shyest Of all commodities
You give confidence to ii, and il let's itself out
Scare it. and ii shuts itself up tight.
Steel plates are scarcer and in greater demand
than almost any other article Of finished steel
and they have increased in price in greater pro-
lie
output than those Of any other country in the
world and their quality and finish are unsur-
passed. In the last six months have been
going through one Of those periodical conditions
when supply and demand are adapting them
selves TO each other Demand just now is
greater than supply. but In the early future
supply will be equal to If not greater than de-
mand. In this country supply and demand are
the only things that govern prices. That is a
self-evident aphorism that cannot be too strong
ly insisted on as in this country, unlike Eng
land, there is absolutely no speculation In iron
and steel"
PLEASED AT THE OUTLOOK
Charles H. Clun general Eastern agent Of the
Illinois Steel Company. said:
II should very much question the statement
that steel rails had been purchased abroad for
use in this country. We do not carry stock be-
cause Of the loss of interest. Ordinarily we do
not want a surplus supply but wish we had a
hundred thousand tons on hand now. We are
filled up with orders for months ahead, but so is
every one else; it is a general condition. / am
optimistic the outlook. but at the same
time 1t would take a brave man to predict what
six months will bring forth, but there is GER
tainly nothing ahead Of us to-day that foretells
anything except good times"
stephen w. Baldwin, sales agent for the Penn
sylvania Steel Company and the Maryland Steel
Company, spoke as follows on the situation:
I'VE have no definite information as to the
Cramp report but should think It a case Of the
supply being greater than the demand The
Maryland Steel Company builds ships and we
know by experience the trouble there is in get
ting structural steel just now. We cannot carry
stock ahead. because steel is made according 4,
specifications as TO shape Our contract TO,
eighty thousand tons of steel rails with the
Russian Government extends into next year. bu
] do not think II has anything to do with the
present shortage. Demand in steel for genera
purposes continues strong, except in steel rails
I'D fnrt 10 Lot Ton | shnIld h.