The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-10-15

making no note of the disposition of the
Stag. This is So carloads of twenty tons
each. The mining of the ore requires the
labor of $50 to 300 men, according to loca-
ton; the coal mining, coke making, quar-
rying of limestone, and transportation at
least 300 more. The furnace itself EMPLOYS
about $50 or more hands 1t will be seen,
therefore, that starting a furnace of ordi-
nary capacity calls Immediately for the la
Dor, from first to last, of nearly a thousand
men; for the use of at least a thousand
railway cars and many locomotives: for
perhaps several steamers and vessels on the
lakes: for capital, from the mines to the
pig iron, of one to two millions of dollars,
and last, but not least, for high order of
managing ability, the scarcest of all scarce
commodities, in times like these.
To use concrete illustration, the Tona-
wanda Iron and Steel company, located
near Buffalo, operating two furnaces only,
must unload at its docks one good sized
ship load of ore every day during the entire
season of lake navigation, or fail to get
down its needed supply. Another striking
evidence of what 1t means to bring down
ore for the furnaces now running which de-
pend on Lake Superior mines may be wit
messed any day on Detroit river, where the
loaded steamers and sailing vessels down,
and the light craft up, crowd so close upon
each other as almost to touch. Still an
other illustration, at hand as write, is that
of small charcoal furnace the lower
lakes, needing about so tons a day, but I'M
able to start because transportation could
not be had for 1t. To add 1000, 900 tons, or
say 10 per cent to production, means the or
ganizing, equipping, and starting of twenty
such operations as described in the preced-
ing paragraph.
The easy theory, therefore, that produce
ton can be turned on, as from a faucet,
when profits are high does not fit the facts.
rs needless
be strained to get into operation at the ear
Hest moment the few existing idle plants,
but those who base their calculations on
an increase of not over II to Is per cent
per annum in the next two or three years
will not go far astray
1T has not escaped notice that in all the
present excitement, little is heard Of organ
izing companies to build new plants. Each
of the great consultations Is planning adj
ditions to capacity, but there are few
schemes to develop idle property, as was
the case about 1890. There are reasons for
this. The building of furnaces to sell town
lots was generally disastrous. The impress
sion is still abroad that there is a large re-
serve idle capacity. But the main factor
in restraint is that, under present condi-
tons, 1t would require at least a year and
a. half to build a good modern plant: the
cost would be 30 per cent greater than a
year ago-and who knows what iron would
be when the furnace was ready to start?
The wisdom of the policy of building and
charging In the bad times, followed for
many years by Krupp and Carnegie, Is de-
in period like this.
What of the export trade? 1t is gen. !,
orally believed that this new factor is the |
all important one in sustaining American |
markets. Taking the iron and steel manu- |
facture as whole, believe this to be true. |
But SO far as ores, believe this to be true, !
billets are concerned, the movements has