The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-10-10
COAL OFFICIALS Explain.
Foreign Shipments of Anthracite
Due 10 Low Freight Rates.

PHILADELPHIA. Oct. l0.-According
% prominent official Of the Phuadel-
phia and Reading Coal and Iron C0mpa-
ny too much Importance has been att
tached In some quarters 20 the shipments
abroad Of anthracite coal that are now
being made The important fact connect
ed with the transactions he says. is not
the expectation Of hard coal 20 foreign
ports. for that has been done many years
back, bat the prevailing low freight rates
for outgoing carg0ss on ocean vessels.
Just at present SO few goods are being
sent out OF American ports TO foreign
countries that the vessels arriving here
with cargCcs are willing to accept almost
any rate on goods to take back with
them, rather than 90 return empty. IL is
this extraordinary condition that Is re-
sponsihle for the expectation OF anthra-
cite coal AS soon as it no longer exists
the Reading Company expects the ship
ping Of hard coal 20 foreign ports 90 cease
That it is no new thing for The Reading
20 send anthracite abroad was shown yes
terday by Mr. Richards. the company
coal agent. who stated that as far back
as 1873 the company carried out expert
mCnts on a grand scale in shipping its
product 20 ports all over the world. with
the expectation Of increasing its business.
SO as TO work the mines year in and year
out Cargoes were sent 10 Shanghai,
Honskong, Naples, India, Africa, South
and Central America. principally Peru
and Chile. and TO many European ports.
Statesmen were stationed at nearly all
these places One stove dealer in Phila-
delphia. in the hope that the use abroad
OF Pennsylvania anthracite would increase
the sale Of his goods. offered one OF his
stoves free 20 every foreign purchaser Of
a ton Of the coal
These experiments. however. did not re-
suit TO the satisfaction Of the company.
and since then very little has been done
to encourage foreign consumption of
Pennsylvania anthracite. AT the same
time. no satisfactory orders from abroad
have been refused. and occasionally every
few years small shipments have been
made.
On Tuesday the Ormesby left this port
with about 800 tens and the Penn Manor
with about 200 tons OF anthracite. bound
for Rotterdam. These shipments are to
be followed next week by two others Of
about 90 tons each. via the Brauer
Line. 10 Hamburg and Rotterdam Al
together these shipments reach about 500
tons Of the free burning. white ash an
thraClte- They are consigned to James
Stevenson, Of the Anthracite Coal and
Berlin The purchases were made by
George Stevenson. son Of the owner OF
the works, who has been here several
weeks investigating the general conditions
the business The Reading Com
pany placed its facilities q { his command,
and had him visit its cOIlieries. as well as
its shipping facilities at Port Richmond
Mr. Stevenson was very much impressed
with the way In which the business is con-
Quoted.
Under the conditions forcing vessels TO
accept low freight charges. these ship
meuts have been made at a rate OF SZ.62
2 ton. which enables the coal 10 be landed
at Berlin at a cost Of $50 a ton. The
freight rates are about One-haf the GUS
tOmary charges. This permits the Penn
sylyania anthracite TO DE sold at a price
less than what the Welsh product com
mands. The export price here is $fZ5 a
ton T. o. b.. the same as the domestic.