The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1914-05-08
Commentaries Eriaence


The Gennellsyile, Pa, Courier has
by this time, no doubt, husheiI up
the Democratic contemporaries OF
its section that have. been trying to
show It that prosperity albounds in
the country and that.it has been ca
1amity bowling for political effect.
The Courier. was nagged into a de-
Tense OF its position by its neighbor.
the Connellsville News, which stated
that the United states Steel Corpora
tons small plant at Greenville, Mer-
Ger county, Pa, which had been rum
ming to about three-fourths of its
capacity, has been put on FULL time.
Noting that the plants annual ca
pacity of only $4,000 tons will not
make or unmake a nations welfare,
the Courier says there was little
consolation in the fact that
the United States Steel Corporation
paid its last dividend out of its ac-
cumlated surplus, not having
earned enough in its business; or
that other large steel companies, mo-
tally the Pennsylvania Steel Com
pany, have been unable to pay any
dividends to stockholders; or tina.
the pig iron manufacturers complain
that they are losing money on every
ton they produce north of the Ohio
river and that in forty years they
have never witnessed such stag
nation OF the market. These things.
however. have not impelled the
Courier to its conclusion that pros
perity has gone by thes board under
m n Old nj 90 4 tnT
nearly so much as conditions right
in the Connellsville region.
The Courier disclaims the impu-
tation that it has been eXaggerating
industrial depression for political ef-
feet, saying that in Its code pros
perity comes before politics and that
news items OF Industrial depression
or revival have been published by
It as q matter OF public information,
The news of industries closing or re-
Stunning in other parts of the country
are of only relative interest to the
people OF Fayette coanty, Pa, ac~
'cording 10 the Courier. They are
directly and Immediately Interested
in the mills ana mines OF the Con-
nellsville region. They have OBJ
served that the mills of the United
States Steel Corporation there have
been closed down and that many OF
the company's coke ovens have been
put out OF blast. Then the Courier
gives these cold, matter of fact fig
ures, which show that, SO far as the
Connellsville region is concerned at
least, Democratic promises have been
far from being kept
The Connellsville coke business
is current exponent of the iron and
steel trade and of industrial condi-
lions generally. The output Of the
region during 1918 averaged from
$50, 900 to 100000 tons weekly untEl
November, when 1t dropped down to
$4,000 tons and in January TO
100000 TONS. The Democratic tariR
law went into effect in the fall Of
1913, yet the Democratic organs
would have US believe that this
slump in the coke trade was purely
incidental.
1T will be recalled. however, that
President Wilson about this time
made his famous promise OF indus
trial peace He indicated that
business would no longer be lis
turbed by disquieting legislation:
that the patient might now get down
from the dentists chair and have an
opportunity to recover from. the
shock. In accordance with this
gratifying Intelligence, the steel ana
iron trade grappled hopefully with
the tariff conditions and prepared
to make the most of them. A spirit
of optimism was developed. Presl-
dent Farrell, Of the steel corpora
ton, expressed the opinion that this
would be one of the biggest years in