Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-08-27
COAL DEALERS NOT
IN ANY COMBINE
Rumors Following Bids to School
Board Answered by
Bidders.
SAY MARGIN is VERY CLOSE
Prediction Made That Next Set of Bids
VIII he M Higher Prices Than
Those Turned Down

Extended inquiry among the local
coal trade In the matter Of the action
OF the board Of education in throwing
QUE the coal bida. develops a rather un-
| certain condition Of affairs. The fact
that the bids submitted were all the
| same, excepting two iuconsequential
| ones, gave rise 10 the belief that there
| is coal combine or trust I'm this city
| that Is trying TO hold the board up
| for unconsCionable prices. This the
dealers deny. hut II Is admitted that
| there was an informal understanding
among the trade that the figures quot
! ed I'm the bids should be the ones Of
| fered All the local dealers bid except
| the NJ. & NJ. and kommerer Coal COM
| pany. the two inconsequential BIDS re-
ferrcd 20 being smaller dealers In the
southern part OF the city. who desired
to furnish coal for schoolhouses in their
vicinity. and not to the schoolhouscs at
large. The prices quoted were $3.50 for
slack, 81 IS FOR pea. S5.25 for mine run,
1915 for lump. There was one bid
ranging lower, from II. +. Morris. VIZ,
So 30 for slack. s. for mine run, $3.50 for
lump The trade however. claims that
the producers had refused to endorse
Mr. Morris. and would not furnish him
coal. so that he could sell at the figures
named Opinions and remarks by va
IiOuS coal companies are as lpHuNSs
Martin Coal company.-It costs
$3.50 10 lay slack coal down In Salt
Lake To this must be added 10 cents
for unloading with 35 cents to the
transfers for delivering This makes
S335 actual cost for handling the
coal alone. Then there Is 20 be con-
sidered expenses attached to yard
operations office maintenance. clerk
hire, stationery, shrinkage I'm coal, and
OIL axn iuHf1antnl doing
business. Now. is Is cents a ton too
great profit for n dealer to realize?
The fact Is. more reasonable charge
would have been 1915. instead OF
$3.50. There was cut of 10 cents
made last year by Mr.. Morris, but
expectations I'm this case were not
realized. and II may be doubted II
any such attempt viii be made agatl.
The chances are now that IN board
will find itself up against II. with the
bids offered next time higher than
they we're this last time. We think the
board made n mistake In rejecting
the bids
Western Fuel Company-The prcrs
quoted 10 the board offered very close
margin for the dealers. In fact they
were taking big chances at that with
expenses OF doing business what they
are. The chances are that when the
board opens the next lot OF bids II Will
ma the HZuFtN NlEIl-l imam INV lttNN
lot were. There are evidences NJ
coming strike among the miners In
WYOMING This will cut on the sup
ply from this direction. forcing salt
lake to rely entirely on Utah Goals. The
consequent sea rcity viii certainly not
tend to lower prices any.
Citizens Coal Company-The prices
named I'm the bids we're reasonable
enough The price OF slack named.
$3.50 Is offered at nearly cost We
could not afford 10 furnish coal at any
less figures. and the board OF educa.
ton makes a mistake In turning down
these bids,
Federal coal Comparative furnish
coal from both Wyoming and Utah. The
prices quoted by US, we consider just,
and are the least We can afford 10 sell
IL for Further than that, we have
nothing to say.
Hamburger Coal Company-The board
OF education has always been fairly
treated here. It costs something b.
handle coal and do business. The truth
Is SO 80 only just about covers expenses.
In view OF the impending troubles at
Rock Springs. the action OF the school
board in turning down these bids APP
pears just a trihe rash
Central Coal Il Coke Company-The
chances are that when the board opens
the next bunch OF bids. they will find
the quotations materially higher than
I'm the bids they lately turned down on
the first Of the month the two years
contract with our Wyoming miners is
concluded, and while they have not a.
yet said anything to US. II Is in the
air. that higher prices viii be asked
for Tho mines In Oklahoma, Kansas
and Missouri have been shut down for
months. and the consequent shortness
of supply makes the Wyoming miners
more Independent ana confident. So ~
their demands. whatever they may be.
are not acCedod 10. the chances are that
there will be something doing II
would have been better for the board
had they accepted the figures offered.
II the Rio Grande or the Union Pacific
double tracked between salt Lake and
tho mines there would be no trouble
whatever In supplying Salt Lake with
all the coal IL might ever demand. But
there is "a shortage Of rolling stock on
the Rio Grando, which with the single
track makes 70 impossible to ship
enough coal from the south, and the
single track and heavy general trafilc
ON the Union Pacific makes II equally
impossible TO respond 90 the demands
from that source. So until this obsta-
Gle fs removed. what might otherwise
be comparatively trivial obstacles 90
the coal traffic viii continue 20 operate
as obstacles more or less formida bic.
Kemmcrer Coal Company-No, we Of
fcred no bids and do not intend to. We
have noticed In the past that Bamhor-
ger and the Martin Coal company seem
10 have the inside track: SO much so
that there is not much incentive 10 try
To furnish coal 20 the board. Under
existing conditions there is not much
incentive 20 compete for school board
bushes.