The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-06-21
Said That Ttnnessst- Republic Has Lowered Price to Fight
 the S|oss- Sheffield
WANT SLOSS COMPANY
 ID ENTER BIG COMBINE
Claimed That Gates and Party Re- gently Bought Big Blocks of Sloss-SheffieId Co.'S
 Stock.

New York. June @.-tSpecial. )--Aecord ing to d story generally credited in Wall street, the dissolution of the Southern Furnace association and the lowering of the price of iron is an open declarat ton of war between the Republic Iron and Steel company and the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company on one side. and the Sloss- Sheffield Steel and Iron company on the other.
 The story Is to the effect that the John w. Gates interest in the Republic and Tennessee companies have found 1t im- possible to persuade the stockholders con- trolling a majority of the common stock in the Sloss-Sheffield company to agree to their plan for merging that company in the mammoth consolidation of south ern Iron. steel, ore and coke producing concerns. which they have under con- sideration, and in order to coerce the opposition element in the Sloss-Sheffeld they have authorized cut of S a ton in the Republic and Tennessee companies prices on foundry iron. This cut reduces the price of No. foundry iron at the AADdlild luTndtcS ol tHcSc CVinptiita from s14 to sl3 a ton.
 May Have to Sell.
 The opposition stockholders in the Sloss- Sheffield company are said to be visable method of meeting this attempted coercion, and 1t is predicted In many qaur- ters that this move on the part of the Gates element will compel them to sell out.
 The Gates interests, 1t will be remember ed, recently purchased a large amount of the Sloss-Sheffield common stock, which had been thrown on the market by the Maben- -Bryan-Goadby management and it was then reported and not denied that they had also secured control of the s7,500000 of preferred stock. but have been putting stone wall In their eff forts to obtain a controlling interest in the $1O 100000 of common stock. With the Sloss-S Sheffield company's properties add ed to those of the Tennessee and Repub- lie companies, the Gates contingent be- lieves that it would organize the basis of a formidable competitor to the United States Steel corporation. and the fact that the opposition of the Sloss-Sheffield stock holders is so determined is believed to have compelled the Gates crowd to resort to drastic measures to drive the Sloss- Sheffield company into the proposed con- bine
 Will Not Talk.
 John w. Gates and his associates re- fused to confirm or deny the report that they were resorting to big cut in the price of Alabama foundry iron for the purpose of compelling the Sloss-Sheffield interests to join in the new merger. but 1t has been known for sometime in f- nancial circles that they were not pleased when the Sloss-Sheffield stockholders re- elected their former directors at their annual meeting in Jersey City on March 14, and have lost no opportunity since then to obtain control of that corpora ton for the purpose of including it in their proposed merger of the southern iron and steel companies.
 As result of reduction in their prices of foundry pig iron. the Republic Iron and Steel company and the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company, have together almost monopolized the business in Alabama, iron during the last month selling within the last week to various foundry users more than 10000 tons of which 5000 tons went to the Interna- tional Harvester company alone.