Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-05-26
Industry on Right Side.

In the industrial world virtually
every element is upon the right side
Labor difficulties-never as bad as have
been proclaimed-have now almost
reached conclusion. They who were
sure that we were likely to have
In various departments and in many
localities reproduction Of the state OF
tnlnss recorded at Lawrence at the
start of the year have so changed
their view that they in large majority
are now predicting conciliatory, even
agreeable, relations between EMPLOYER
ana employe. Take, for example, what
is registered in the business of manufac-
turing equipment for the railroads.
Wnere orders have been hard to OBJ
tain for two and three years mast
there recently has come into the situa-
tlon the lnspiriting change of vast
being willing even to pay substantial
commissions for assurance of early
supply; This is SO far different from
what has long been the quoted rule
anai IL seems entitled to be regarded
as indicating what is almost reyolu-
uonary. 1t IS the Wall street view
ana sane view-that the iron and steel
trade can be regarded as criterion OF pen-
erai business conditions. This dates back
at least as far as Jay Gould who pava
to Wall street the saying. that "as
IRON goes, SO everything is bound to
90 rms notion gives interest if not
value, to the reports which are mi
iormly coming from virtually every
creased volume Of business shouing
tendency toward better prices show
ing net profit returns beyond anv for
a long time recorded
put curing recent months iron and steel
statlsucs nave been SO distressful that a.
VIII require very material improvement
from every angle to warrant sllhsta ntiaI
announcement The United States Steel
CORPORATION Is the standard industrial in
sttution of the United States-its acti,5ty
is so stupendous and the oualifications ~
It's business are so intrinsic. that II 40
olmcuit to rely upon its statistics for
compromising guidance 1t is unfor-
s s 100, that the steel corporations
fortunes are just now politically inter
twined. Yet, it is true, undoubtedly. that
IN volume OF business and in exent Of
pront the steel trust begins now to re-
approach former maximums
BUSINESS is much better than 1t was at
New Year-order output larger profits
expanded: but the encouraging element in
this is more or less depressed disguised
even denied, for the reason that IL In NOT
TOT the moment regarded as seasonalble
to make cheerful announcements When
November comes, unless the very hiRhest
authoritative opinion is worthless we will
find the steel trust showing profits (a
better phrase than making profts) that
will make stockholders enthusias site This
summer would seem to offer exceptional
opportunity for getting bargains when
official indicators are all depressed It
may not be an opinion polite. but l be-
lieye it to be statement we'll within
bounds that the United States Steel Cor
poration is earning for it's common stock
holders closer to 10 per cent than the far
smaller rates 1t is paying and questioning.
Developments in Copper.
In the copper situation there are new
developments-all encouraging. Production
is not keeping pace with consumption.
This is basic. This long continued would
of course be ample warrant for the in
creas ed price which day by day we see
registered for copper material-these bet
ter metal prices being attended. not I'M
naturally. by advance in copper stocks
upon the stock exchange and upon the
curb. But there is in the copper situation
the ever forceful element of millionaire
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES of them engaging in
metal manipulation, some of them trying
to put up copper corporation stocks.
In both cases the capitalists are over
loaded. Here and at Paris particularly
great volumes of copper metal are in the
hands of spectators. who heavily over
loaded themselves last year, and here
and in London is a red letter list of spec
ulators who last year overloaded them
selves with copper company shares. Some
milionaires are in both groupS-but for
the most part they are traders indie
pendent of one another. Meantime the
price of copper has been jumped up above
is cents a pound-and this means that
there is profit upon the production Of all
the standard companies.
1t can be relied upon, moreover, that
there has been arranged-and 10 likely
soon to be effected-a gerat corporation
merger through which more than . scoreI
Of American copper producing companies