The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-11-09
RAIL BUYING
 ON IN EARNEST L. & N. Places 50,000 Tons
 With Ensley Mill EXPECT CONTRACTS Burlington Orders Twenty Thousand Tons of Open Health Rails From
 Gary-Georgia Central
 About To Buy
EXPECT CONTRACTS

New York November S.-The Iron Age will say tomorrow:
 Rail buying for 1912 has begun in earnest in the past week and active contracting, is expected to follow. The Louisville and Nashville has placed 5O,0o0 tons with the. Ensley mill and the Burlington has ordered 10000 tons of open hearth rails from Gary. The Norfolk and Western order, amount ing to 25,000 tons. has been distrib,- uted among Pennsylvania and Seaboard mills. It is reported that the Great Northern will buy 10000 tons, and as heretofore the order is expected to go to the Buffalo mill. The Pennsyl- vania is negotiating with the mills for q tonnage in excess of it's contracts for this year. In the south number of roads are about to buy, including the Georgia Central and the San An tonic and Arkansas Pass. The De- tober output of coke and anthracite pig iron was 2.f02.147 tons, or 67,S11 tons day, as compared with 65,903 tons d day in September The increase was thus 1900 tons day, while Sep tember showed $500 tons a day more than August and August 1900 tons d day more than July. Accompanying the continued increase in pig iron pro- duction there has been d reduction in stocks; nevertheless the market for merchant pig iron has been steadily weaker. The central west has been of late the center of disturbance in pig iron prices. Little has been done ill steel making iron and foundry buy ing has been evidently affected by the anticipa tion of lower freight rates on ore, not only from mInes to upper lake docks but from Lake Erie ports to furnaces. In the Cleveland district SIS at furnace for No. foundry iron is reported, while at Chicago as low as $14 for local iron has been done.
 For the New York connecting rail- road bridge the arch and two approach spans have at last been let. They call for 36,000 tons Other approach work will require 54,000 tons. Fabricators find encouragement in a total of 130, 900 to 140,000 tons of steel work pend ing in New York and viciinty.
 Cleveland, November .s.-The Iron Trade Review tomorrow will say:
 Finished material quotations, not ably on steel bars, structural shapes and plates are no longer yielding read fly to the pressure of competition among mills for tonnage. This is one of the most encouraging developments that the manufacturers are at least making a determined stand against lower prices which will force them over the cost line. The declining market, however, has not been with out its compensating features. A tre- mendous tonnage has been entered on mil, books and one large producer re- ports contracts for plates in October in excess; of any month during the last year and half. A further readjust- ment of wire prices has been made and the reductions since June 20 now ag- gresate S5 a ton. Sheets continue to be shaded slightly and the tin plate tonnage Is reasonably light.
 Pig iron production figures for De- tober indicate continued heavy con- sumption, practically in the view of the estimated decline of 20 per cent in stocks in furnace yards since Sep- tember 1.
 The total iron production in Octo- Der aggregates 2.092.o61 tons against 1,973,91S tons in September inclusive of 11S,143 tons. The daily average was 67,486 tons as compared with 65,797 tons the previous month, an increase cline of two in the number of stacks from 216 in September to 214 on Oc- ;ober 31. Pig iron quotations are re- sisting the efforts of consumers to ob tain lower prices although in the Chi cago district a decline of 50 cents a ton has been reported on some grades"