Arizona republican., 1900-10-16
LINES WE LEAD IN
iron, Steel, Coal, Copper,
 Cotton and BreddStuffS
A Treasury Monograph Reviewing at Length the Iron and Steel Trade Shows Pleasing State of Affairs.

Washington. Oct. 15.-CSpeciaD.-The treasury bureau of statistics las ju-t issued a commercial monograph on the iron and steel trade of the United States, treating of the resources of this industry, it's development. nd its relations tO the domestic and foreign markets. In this document the pro- gresS of the iron and steel trade is il- frustrated by maps and diagrams show ing the distribution of iron ores !u Europe and North America, the con'- parative development in the production of pig iron hy countries since 1873, the growth of the steel output nf the sev- eral leading nations, the change m the relatio of iron and steel exports and imports. and the course of pric' for pig iron and steel rails in the United States.
 The United States is now the worlds greatest producer of iron and steel and coal. as well as of copper. cotton. breadstuffs. provisions and many other articles entering into the daily require ments of man.
 In a comparative survey 0f the worlds iron ore situation. the remark able fact is brought out that the United States in 1899 produced 30 p,r rcnt of the worlds ore, or 5000. 900 tons out of a total of S5, 1000, ,OOO tons. in round nun bers. This quantity is somewhat less than the combined ore output of both Great Britain and Germany. including LuXemburg. which produced reSpec- lively 11 per cent and 21 per cent Of the worlds ore supply. This alone gives the United States the leadership among the worlds great ore producers; but this fact must be taken in connection with coal production. on which tho iron industry depends. and of which this country produces 32 per cent of the worlds output, while Great Bri ain produces 90 per CerIt and Germany 19 per cent. With primacy in coal and iron ore the position of the United States is one of undisputed and permanent asceniancy in ner control of the raw materials of iron and steel production. This primacv in raw ma terials gives the United States g self sutficing position, as compared with that of her foremost rivals-(iermauy and Gr at Britain. While the Dot mund, Germany. furnaces have to go to northern Sweden for iron ores. and the furnaces of Cleveland. England. have to get their ores from northern and southern Spain, the United States is far freer to locate her iron and steel industries with direct regard ut1 the conditions of maximum economy in tne accumulation of raw materials and the distribution of the finished products. Therefore, as coke has displaced coal tha tendency the world over k for the furnace t2 leave the coliery and move toward the ore mines. Hence th.. iron and steel industries of this country are gradually being drawn around tha southern shores of lake Erie within easy access of the vast ore deposits uS the lake Superior mines. Tine prepou- derancG of this single source of ore pro production is apparent from the fact that the lake Superior region furnished I3 per cent of tho 25.OOO. 900 tens Of ora consumed by OUT furnaces in 1899. while the southern states furnished 1g per cent and the eastern staias but X pc" cent. One of the most wonderful developments in modern trade is fha+ of the ore handling facilities from the lake Superior mines to the furnaces of Ohio and Pennsylvania.
 Among the worlds great pig irn,? producers the United States first at tained the leadership in 1S9J: but in lS94 lost it to Great Britain again only, however. for the time being Ir 1S9j the United States finally outrankad tl,c United Kingdom. Tn 1899 the hy9 great DIE iron producers stood in the follow ing order of impurtance:,