The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-12-09
SOUTHERN STEEL COMPANY
 MAY BE IN TIE DEAL
onsolldation of Alabama Steel and Underwood Coal Go. Topic of h. terest-Tennessee Co.'S
 Stock Still Rising.
BY SEWELL HAGGARD.

New York. December S.--(Special.)-An- other sensational advance In Tennessee
 Coal, Iron and Railroad stock today strengthened the belief that merger of the southern iron properties is imminent
 The stock gained new high record, reaching 14Ola and closing at 13S. The ac- tivity in Republic Iron and Steel also served to strengthen the merger theory. Republic common reached s5% and re- mained there at the close.
 In some quarters 1t was suggested that
 an attempt to create corner by those
 who already have contracts was respon-
 sible for the boom in T. c. l.. but con
 servative students of the market dis puted this, holding that corners were too disastrous to be attempted at this time. The best informed men asserted that more
 than a squeeze was behind the presen.
 movement in the price of the stock, and
 declared that the figures at which this
 and the other southern iron stocks in-
 cluding Sloss-Sheffield and Republic Steel.
 were now ruling must mean that a merger
 Ks in prospect.
 In respect of capitalization in a merger
 or development purposes it was pointed out that while the Tennessee and Re-
 public Steel companies would need much
 money for development, the Tennessee
 company has about s14,0O00OO bonds all
 ready, and the Republic Steel company about s10,000,000, while the already de-
 veloped Sloss-Sheffield company has only S4000,00O bonds, so that 1t could easily be made to carry a dsproportionate share
 of new capital obligations In new com bination. A further point was made that now that the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company Is able to turn prac- tically all its own iron output into fin- ished product, the Sloss- Sheffield and Ala bama Consolidated, with the new fur naces completed and planned, would be able to furnish some more than s00,0ot tons of pig iron year between them and practically control the southern pig Iron output for the general market.
 It Is said in Wall street that the forma- tion of the southern steel company, with a capital stock of s16.0O000O, forshadows the establishment and development of a new factor in the iron and steel trade of the south.
 Members of the firm of Kean, Vancort-
 landt & Co.,. bankers, have entered the di- rectorate of the new company. R. B. Van cortlandt and Moses Taylor both of
 whom are directors of the Sloss- -Shef-
 field Steel and Iron company, and of the Lackawanna Steel company, are the cap-
 italsts who will supply the money. The capital is divided into s6.0O0.000 pre-
 ferred stock and $l0000,000 common.
 The constituent properties of the new southern steel company are the Alabama
 Steel and Wire company and the Under
 wood Coal company. The former company has been controlled by the Schuler famty. the members of which were factors in the steel and wire trade of the country prior to the formation of tho American Steel and Wire company At the formation of
 that combination. the Schuers sold out
 and again entered the trade in the south. For the last four or five years the con cern has been slowly expanded, acquiring
 ore lands and building blast furnaces. It's capital has been nominal and was con trolled by the Schulers. of whom there are three active workers. The Underwood Coal company controls supplies of ore and coal. peculiar to the Birmingham district