The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1901-1903, 1902-03-19
COLONEL MACHEN
GIVES REASONS
TELLS WHY BRUNSWICK WILL
BECOME A GREAT MANUFAC-
TURING CENTER.
AN INTERESTING INTERVIEW
WITH THE POPULAR RAIL.
ROAD BUILDER.

A great deal OF interest as well as
curiosity was excited in Brunswick
by the publication in yesterday morn
ings News of the APPLICATION for char
ter for the Brunswick Steel and Iron
Company.
A great many people were incred-
ulous as to Brunswick being the place
for such an enterprise, because we are
so far from either coal or iron, but a
News reporter called on Colonel e. Q.
Machen, who is one ot the applicants
for the charter. and asked for an OK
preston on the subject.
Il am not astonished" said Colonel
Machen, "at the incredulity you men
tion. hut perhaps it is not known by
all the people of Brunswick that more
than threefourths, If not nine-tenths,
of the ore from which is made the
rails we are laying on the Brunswick
and birmingham railroad passed from
Cibd " 3ictl ON0 Olilt bll llG NSlito-
apealle Bay, and then came back to
us, whereas it would have been cheap
er in the first place to land the ore
here make the rails here and save the
cost of transportation OF the ore be
yond this point and the whole cost of
bringing the rails back
THE Maryland Steel Company was
located on the Patapsco river, near
Baltimore, for the reason that the fine
Cuban and Spanish ores could be
brought proftably to that point on tide
water, and after being manufactured
into rails. could be sold prohtably
either at home or abroad Last year
that mill exported large quantities OF
rails. They are not exporting now, be
cause they cannot meet The home de
mand They are behind in their orders
nearly year. They import the ores
and pay duty yet if the rails are ex-
ported, the import duty on ores comes
back to the mill as drawback from
the government
when hard times come-and they
must, in the nature of things then
the rail mill located on tidc water will
likely De able to find market for it's
product abroad, whereas the interior
mill VIII be at disadvantage in max
ing its tide water delivery
NO other place is more fayorably
situated for making rails on the At
lantic tide water than Brunswick,
when the b. & Breaches the coal fields
so as 10 bring in coke at reasonable
figures. AT present, OF course, it would
be at disadvantage but far-seeing
people realize Brunswict's advantages
and are shaping their affairs to take
advantage of them.
1T is not expected that the stcol
mill will be located and operated by
local capital. Men of national repu
tation in the iron business have sig
nified their willingness. under certain
conditions, to establish rail mill
place furnaces, etc, here, and / be.
feye tnat these conditions can be met
Certainly it was our duty, as wen as
our pleasure, to start by getting
the cnarter they asked and showing
friendly spirit in the matter
Fuel, coke, ores, fluxes and all the
ingredients which enter into the man
ufacture Of steel can be brought to-
getner mere and manufactured advant
ageously. In addition to that, we wdl
have the advantage of freedom from
ice gorges, such as held up in Chesa-
peake Bay for thirty ays the two
schooners now mere unloading steel
rails for the Brunswick and Birming
ham railroad"
Upon. being asked if he was famil-
lar with the iron business. the colonel
said:
"At one time my father was the
owner OF seven iron furnaces and
rolling mill and forge. and as boy
watched them from day to day. but
never became more than a lookcr-on.
However, | have, at various times,
been interested in blast furnaces and
smeters as a shareholder
This is steel age. and uses of it
ara growing in almost every depart