The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-07-10
GOSSIP OF MERCER
 OF INDEPENDENTS New York Paper Adds to Pro-
 posed List NO LOCAL INFORMATION Comparison Made of the Producing Capacity of Steel Corporation
 and the Companies Pro-
 posed for Merger.
NO LOCAL INFORMATION

Since Mir. Nicholas in his Wall street letter, which appeared in The Age-Her- aid of Sunday, June 20. made the author ized-an exclusive announcement of the project to merge a number of the large independent iron and steel companies. New York papers have been printing interesting gossip about the scheme. The Wall Street Jour nal of Thursday contains an q tended dis- eusslon of the proposed coN 'lidation. That paper is regarded as one ofe most palnstakng in this cvuntry, but in the list of the concerne it publishes are three that MT. Nicholas says will not be in the new consolidation-Jones & Laugh lin. Pennsylvania Steel company and the Cambria Steel company.
 The Wall Street Journal says:
 "In the event of merger of ten of the leading steel companies, including the Bethlehem Steel Corporation. Lackawan- na Steel company. Republic Iron and Steel company, Colorado Fuel and Iron company, Pennsylvania and Maryland Steel companies, Cambria Steel company. Inland Steel company, Sloss-Sheffield company. and Jones & Laughlin company the consolidating company would have a production of about 7050,00O tons of finished and semi-finished steel for sale year. The s-Sheffeld company Is not a producer of steel, but its figures are given for the reason that 1t has been mentioned as a possible subsidiary of the ] combination.
 "These companies, if merged, would not have an output anywhere near that of the United States Steel Corporation. The lat ter, at the present time. has finished and semi-finished steel for sale capacity of 13, ,5O0,000 tons, or about twice the produce ton of the mythical combination. The companies mentioned as possible subsid- iaries of the new consolidation, are spend ing great deal of money for additions, which means a much heavier output with In the next several years. But it must also be taken into consideration that the Steel Corporation, since It's organization, has been spending at the rate of nearly $40 900, 900 year for new construction. In recent years expenditures for this pur- pose have been Nmuch larger.
 ''The Steel corporation. on January l. last had a pig iron capacity of nearly 15,Oo0,O00 tons year. and its steel ingot capacity ran above 17.000,0O0 tons. When the Gary plants are completed the Steel
  out close to 100000 tons of ingots a year, which is considerably more than one-half of the country's entire capacity.
 Tn 1908 the United States Steel corpora tion's proportion of the pig iron business controlled was 43.5 per cent of the coun- try's total. Its ingot production con trolled represented 56.4 per cent of the country's total. but notwithstanding the increases in capacity by the Steel corpor- ation, the subsidiary companies have not in the aggregate retained their relative position in steel. As an example, the Steel corporations proportion of pig iron in 1901 was 4S.2 per cent and it's ngot pro- portion 66.2 per cent. In brief, the Steel corporation has lost ground so far as controlling the country's output of steel and iron is concerned
 ''rhe. following table shows the steel production and bonds and capital stock outstanding of 10 of the leading inde- pendent steel companies:
 Bethlehem Steel corporation, production 7oo0oo tons; bonds. s21 1,5ssOoo; capital stock. $29, 770,0O0.
 I.ackawanna Steel company, production 1,l0o,O00 tons; bonds, $3g 559,o0O capital stock, $34 72S, ,000
 Republic Iron and Steel, production, L. 0ooe0 tons; bonds, $s,275,0oo; capital stock, $47es7,9oo
 Colorado Fuel and Iron. production, CO., GOO tons; bonds, s19, 900; capital stock,
 Pennsylvania and Maryland Steel com panies, production 1,100,000 tons; capital [. stock, $27 220.000
 Cambria Steel company, production, TO- 900 tons; capital stock, $45, ,0OO
 Inland Steel company production, 25o, 900 tons; bonds, S2S9l, coo; capital stock, 6, ,0OO,- 000
 Sloss- Sheffield. production. 800, GOO; bonds. $4,00o,0oO; capital stock. s16,7oOOo0
 Jones Laughln. production, 1100.000 tons: bonds s15,o0o0o0; capital stock, $so,- GOO, GOO.
 The totals are thus: Production, 705O 900 tons; bonds. s111,26i.o0O; capital stock, I $213 261, 400
 United States Steel corporation: Pro- duction, 1s,5oo0oo tons; bonds, s5s3, ,2s1 ,2Oe; capital stock, ss6S,5SS. 600.
 Bonds and stocks of independent com panies, $3S4 526, 400.
 Bonds and stocks of United States Steel corporation, S1, 461 ,S14, ,S09
 Tt will be observed that the par value of the stocks and bonds of the inde- pendent steel companies mentioned aggre- gates 3s4,525.o0o. and to bring about a s150, ,oo0.0o0 merger, such as has been men, toned, other companies besides the above would have to be included unless tho promoters desired to launch a well wa tered corporation.
 ''fhe Steel corporation shows much heavier capitalization per ton of steel pro- duced than the ten independent com panies mentioned. This Is due largely 10 the fact that the corporation Is the pos- sessor of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of property not directly identified with the manufacture of steel; for ex- ample, It's railroad properties. steamship lines, cement works and vast deposits of iron ore. coal, etc.
 President Maben of the Sloss-Sheffield company has no information about tho merger plans, nor have any of the offf- cials of the other companies here received advices on the subject. It Is said in New York that the plans for the merger will not be completed until the coming fall.