The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1901-01-25
TO ASK FOR HELP.
Legislature Will be Asked to Aid the
Iron Industry.

1
| Iron Industry.
| A number of prominent st. Louis
county men are planning new propo-
SltIon for the consideration of the
Minnesota legislature relative to leg
lslatlon calculated TO promote the es-
adjustment of iron and steel indust-
ries in this state on an extensive
scale. 1t is not yet known what form
the proposed legislation will take, but
that is the result which is aimed at,
and it will involve the iron ere i'm the
ground on state lands i'm st. Louis
county. Two years ago legislation
providing for Il bounty on pig iron
was proposed. but the bill failed to
pass. The only encouragement at
present is IL rebate of the royalty on
state ore that is smelted i'm the state.
and this has not been of sufficient i'm
portance to promote the industry.
Canada offers Il bonus of So a ton on
| pig iron and So on steel made i'm that
country. and it is said that IL much
smaller bonus would establish the in
dnstry magnificently in Minnesota If
offered for IL period of reasonable
length. In fact no bonus aside from
simply asking the state to donate Il
certain number Of millions of tons of
ore outright under certain conditions
may be suggested. Said one of the
gentlemen engaged i'm formulating
some plan along this line:
''There is iron ore enough lying idle
in st. Louis county. and belonging to
the state, to induce the establishment
of great iron and steel plants in Min
nesota, which would be or infinitely
more Importance to the state than
the iron ore ever will disposed of in
dribletS on Il basis on % cents a ton
during IL great number of years. We
will all be dead and gone and will
never know that we, as citizens of the
state, have ever been benefited by
the wealth of iron ore under the pres
ent system of disposal. If this ore
could be offered outright, Il certain
quantity Of it. for the establishment
of extensive iron and steel industries,
we would get them into the state. l
fear that all-this ore will go out of
The state to be manufactured unless
something decisive is done. Tile iron
and steel business is so strongly in
trenched at the big centers of manu-
fOcture that it will take something
stronger than mere advantageous
location to build up new centers.
Such inducement us | suggest would
bring in men of experience and capital
probably some of the manufacturers
fcom other places i'm this country. TO
begin with they might find it profit
able to produce pig iron and steel bill
let's. The latter would find Il market
in Europe or the Orient for making
sheet steel, wire, rods. etc. 1t is Il
product as staple as wheat, safer to
carry and easy to borrow money on.
The manufacture of steel billets
would eventually lead to the manufac-
ture of iron and steel here in its vari
Gus forms, Ii the state felt disposed
to, and offered such inducements to
rolling mills and steel plants it would
be an Investment that would yield
millions to the wealth of the state,
make an important increase in the
wages paid and give the state Il pres
tige to which natural conditions ell
title it,.
cit would never do, of course, to
offer the inducements proposed unless
the conditions from Il business stand
point would warrant it. Now, what
are the business conditions? All raw
products that enter into ton of steel
can be laid down here cheaper than
amy city i'm America, if not in The
world 1t is a case of two tons of ore
hauled to Pittsburg against one ton
of coke hauled to Minnesota in return.
We can obtain the limestone as
cheaply as PIttsburg and labor and
Climatic conditions are us favorable.
We have three transcOntinental lines
to the Pacific, and water transporta-
tiOn to the seabOard. We are i'm a
position to consume the lean ores,
which it does not pay to haul to Pitts
burg Only those ores carrying as
much as IS per cent metallic iron are
hauled to the Eastern smelters. 1t
would be very easy for the state TO
offer inducements for tile establish
meut of iron and steel plants within
its borders that could sell billets or
the finished products so far below The
Pittsburg or Chicago concerns as to
more than compensate for the local
markets which they enjoy. Get these
big enterprises once established here
aud Kindred plants will spring up and
the industry will grow indefinitely.
The state is making something by
noardng its ore. but it will make
more and benefit the people now in
the state by making use Of IL generous
part of it TO develop the manufacture
of iron and steel. The state ore is