The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-07-05
YEARS PROGRESS IN STEEL AND IRON Number of Establishments De-
 creased in Year CAPITAL ABOUT DOUBLE Alabama Is Third In Production of Pig Iron and Is Second In Increase
 In Manufactured
 Products.

IS of the census bureau presents the sta tistics of the iron and steel industry and of the tin and terne plate industry for the census of manufactures of 1905. Both reports were prepared by Story B. Ladd under the supervision of William M. Steu- art, chief statistieian for manufactures.
 Iron and Steel.
 The iron and steel industry is discussed under the following heads: The industry as a whole; the electrothermic metallurgy or iron and steel; blast furnaces; steel works and rolling mills. and bloomeries.
 Since 1900 the number of establishments has decreased from 669 to 6O6. At the same time capital increased from $5sO, ,59O,- ASA to $94s, ,6S9 64O the average number of wage-earners, from 222 ,607 to PAP, TAO; wages, from 2O,S363 33S to $141 ,439, 9O6; the cost of materials used, from $522, 431, ,7O1 to $e2o,171, ,S81; and the value of products, from $SO4, ,oS4.s1S to sso5, 4,152 The tonnage pro- duced In 1905 was 34S44, ,9SS, ali increase of 1S.1 per cent since 1900.
 Each of the geographic divisions shows a gain, whether measured by investment of capital, by wage-earners employed, or by tonnage or value of products. The New England states reported 2s1,SO9 tons of products and SIS, 965, ,45O value; the mid dle states, 1s,1S9,532 tons of products and s526, ,S557 772 value; the southern states, B. 925,7S4 tons of products and $71, OPS, ,747 value; and the western states, il 1,447,SOS tons of products and S2S9 504,1S3 value. At each census since 1880 the middle states or division has ranked first; the western, second; the southern, third; and the New England, fourth, with respect to products, whether measured by value quantity, in the industry as whole and in each of the branches. In the case of each group of state the rate of increase is greatest in the steel works and rolling mill branch of the industry. Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois, with value of products of $471,22S,- S44, S152S59,124 and 1852 761, respectively, were the leading states in 1905, as well as in 1900 and 1890. These three states com bined had 69.S per cent of the total capital and 7S.5 per cent of the total value of products. In the quantity of classified products also the same states rank high est.
 The electric furnace does not figure in the census of 1905 a producing agent in the iron and steel industry. except in the manufacture of certain of the ferroal- loys-ferrochrome, ferrosilicon, etc.-the statistics of which are consolidated with those of like products of the electric fur mace and included In the report on chem icals. Since the close of the canvass for that census however, there has been con siderable activity in the field of electric smelling, and 1t is likely to become an i'm portant feature of the iron end steel metallurgy of the future.
 Blast Furnaces.
 There were in 1905, 191 blast furnace es- tablishments, 147 per cent less than in 1900 The capital invested was s239 559, 14, an increase of 61.6 per cent Materials cost SITS, ,967, ,449 361 per cent more than in 1900; the tonnage of products was l6,7 62S, ,294, a gain of 15.1 per cent, and the value $231 ,SS9, ,126, gain of 12.1 per cent.
 In the number of wage-earners there was a decline from 3935S to 35,17S, due chiefly to the use of pig iron casting ma chimes In place of sand casting and to Improvements in charging devices and m ore handling machines for stocking and charging The reduction in the labor fac tor through the Improvements in equip ment as might be expected is balanced by a corresponding increase in the capital invested The investment in buildings, machinery tools and implements in 1905 in active establishments averaged $A per ton of pig iron produced, as compared with s54S per ton In 1900, an increase of 50.4 per cent.
 Considerably more pig iron was made with mixed coke and bituminous coal as fuel In 1905 than in 1900 and less with anthracite coal and with mixed anthracite coal and coke. The quantity of charcoal pig iron, although greater than In 1900, was relatively small. Bessemer and low phosphorus, of which there were SS94,oS4 tons and 192 795 tons. respectively. together formed 54.7 per cent of all pig iron pro duced in 1905. Basic pig iron to the amount of 2,553,94O tons, 172.4O per cent more than in 1900, formed 15.4 per cent of the total: and foundry pig, 3,67s,243 tons, formed 221 per cent of the total. None of the remaining grades reported-malle- able, Bessemer, forge, white and mottled' and miscellaneous grades, ferroslllcon, spieleisen ferromanganese and direct castings-formed as much as 4 per cent of the total.
 Iron for steel making-comprising Besse- mer, low-phosphorus, basic, ferrosil1con, spiegeleisen, and ferromahganese-aggre gated 1f,921,5 tons, an increase Of S.4 per cent over the production of like grades in 1900. The major part of the pig iron product-9, 926545 tons, or 5s.7 per cent-was made by establishments control ling steel works and rolling mills for consumntion therein After deducting this and the quantity purchased from independent establishments by steel works ana rolling mills-2264, ,6S3 tons-there re- mains out of the total pig iron production 16, ,62S, ,29i tons-4, ,066 available for foun- dries, other industries, etc.
 With the development of the Bessemer and open-hearth steel processes there has resulted the practice of retaining the blast flu. lace metal in molten condition. Cast ing machines have also been extensive ly introduced and to a small extent the practice of chill casting or casting on an iron floor. Of all pig iron made, 69S3,- 513 tons were sandcast, 5,89S,744 tons were delivered in molten condition to Bessemer converters open-hearth furnaces, etc; 43n7, ,103 tons were machine cast; 329,460 chill east and 9469 were driect castings
 The most important improvement of late years in the blast furnace Industry is the Gayley dry-air blast which, by eliminating the effect of the moisture of the air and it's tendency to consume heat energy, results in the following economies: A reduction of some 20 per cent in fuel consumed per unit of pig iron, ii crease in the capacity of the fur mace. reduction in iron waste (dust), and control over silicon range. There is also, incidentally, a saving in power.
 State Prominent.
 In 1905 thero were active blast furnaces in twerty states. Pennsylvania is still far in advance of the other states as a producer of pig iron. Ohio, Illinois and Alabama follow in the order named All but three of the states which had more than two blast furnace establishments fxA-