The age-herald., 1900-03-15

tarrv and ammoniacal contents for further treatment at the by-product works, IS then carried in pipes to eur steel works and used with entire success in our relocating TUT naces at the mill.
 "There is no other location in the world \ where coal coke, limestone, iron ore, pig | iron, steel ingots, billets, wire nails anu 1 bricks and cement for building purposes
 are produced within circle of SIX mics | fin diameter; and this condition Of things | has already attracted such great attention to Ensley that negotiations are now pehu- ing with various parties desirous or enter ing there upon the manufacture or orloses, tin plate. bolts and nuts, steel tupes anu hoops and cotton ties. In addition to thls,
 our own directors have authorized the en- trance upon the production of steel cast | ings by our company, there being no pant of this description located in the southern sta tes today, and the demand is extremeiy large. This foundry will be ready for work
 inside of three months, and will be another | item of economy, as it will run entirely | upon the crop ends or cuttings from the companys blooming mill.
 The Export Trade
 'Tae export trade has been in abeyance | during the year, we have been shipping
 heavily in the execution of contracts pre- 1 viously taken and on our books. There l has been continuous stream of inquiries
 
 1 been more pressure at any time than there l is to-day. Requests for quotations come l tby every mail for coal, coke, basic, forge
 and foundry irons, and for steel. The do-
 meshc demand has been so urgent that It | faS been more profitable during the year 1 to cater to it, but efforts have been made 1 to keep in touch with our foreign cus- | tCmers, and within the past week an inn l portant sale has been made for delivery
 the latter part of this year of basic iron | (Nar~ ,a-aa ffakf.a nnt1r | pending for the supply of coal to Italy and Spain. The existence of this demand Is in | itself a material guarantee against any
 early decline from the present level of prices.
 "The importance of this demand and the 1 importance of the facilities which exist in l Birmingham district for supplying it have l attracted the favorable consideration of l the United States government a4.rough | that depar tment charged with the duty of l recommending improvements fn the water l ways of the country. The government en- l gineers nave surveyed the projected slack | water navigation of tine Warrior river up l to Birmingham, passing though this ccm- | pany's property at Bessemer and Ensley, l and iahe project has been feasible and re- 1 commended to congress by the secretary of l war. The completion of this project would | be Of snc3lculable value, giving direct l barge transportation to ocean steamers at | Mobile at low rates for heavy products in | So oulh ul us not LOO muGn 10 say that l With the completion of this project, not | withstanding the distance of 26S miles by l rail and 360 miles by water of the Birm- 1 ipgham district from Mobile, our steam l coal could successfully compete botrl in I quality and price with the steam coals of the north of England, which have a land | carriage of but 10 to 20 miles to the port | or shipment It is haih to estimate the | extent of the market which would thus
 De opened for our competitions but we 1 would have fair chance in the coaling l demand for Spain and Italy, Gibraltar.
 Malta and Port Said, and an equal chance
 Tor Spain and India, and a decided advan- | tage in the West Indies, Central and South
 America, and should the opening of this hV1aterway be concurrent with the construc- tion or lile lS'thmian canal to the Pacific, 1 the coal fields of Alabama operating along l the shortest line of water carriage should
 control all the trade of the Pacific coast.
 at least south of San Francisco.
 l Railroad Properties
 | For many years this company has owned certain railroad mileage and rolling stock | Which theoretically should have been of considerable value. The railroads running
 through Birmingham declined, however to I pTorate with us or to exchange fra flo ex
 cept at our terminal so that the owner i snip Of our railroad cost us several
 thousand dollars per month for operating expenses In bringing our coal trains to Bir- | "AASic they were taken by the
 connecting roads In my last report brief ! mention was made of a sale which had 1 peeh erected. This sale was a transfer of
 our railroad mileage and rolling stock to ] the Birmingham Southern railway and the 1 intention was to develop the same to | po.nt where 1t might as a common carrier l demand and receive fits proper proportion
 of all the through rates.
 ! During the spring as the result of pro-
 tracted negotiations on this subject, we | finally sold all our interest in the Birming-
 ham Southern Railway for consideration which included $1 100000 in cash, reduc- tlon Tor long term of years in the rates l charged on ma terials brought to our blast | furnaces, an agreement to take our coal coke, iron and steel at the point of produc- | tfon for shipment to various marke.s at | Birmingham rates, and a favorable and | satisfactory contract for a term of years
 for the hndling of switching and local busi- ness between the different works belong | ing to ourselves and located on those | tracks The company is thus relieved from | the previous expense, cash out of pocket l paid for operati ting the roads, obtains the l same rate of freight from :(he collieries di- | rect on outbound coal as it previously ob- i taned from Birmingham, has it's local l business transacted on satisfactory terms has the benefit of permanent reduction in | the cost of materials coming ito the fur | naces, and a large sum of ready money placed at its disposal, which enabled other operations reIerreO to ln tnS report to be | conducted with financial ease and smooth | ness.
 Amongst those I might refer to the pur- chase of the Sheffield furnaces, colieries l coke ovens and land, the bonds of the | Lady Ensley Coal Iron and Railway com l pany, the Bessemer rolling mill, and the l construction of additional coke ovens col | leries and ore mines, and general renova- | tion and reconstruction of blast furnaces l dealt with under their proper captions 1 Whilst these matters could have been | financed otherwise yet the possession of | the funds arising from the sale of the rail- | road has enabled us to carry these matters, | not only without seeking accommodation, but during the year the treasurer has been enabled to pay off every single obligation for borrowed money, and as shown by his report there is only one obligation. being portion of the Sheffield purchase money,