The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-01-10

suggestions of other people to the create
desirahility of our acquiring the DeBar-
deleben Coal and Iron company, and
thus in sense largely stlffening the
market by our control of the production
of pig iron, and they took tnat step IN.
stead of taking any steps at that time
TO so into the manufacture Of steel.
Il wrote to the committee a letter IL
lie week almost Immediately precedine
Christmas. 1897. stating that If we were
to remain in the head Of the procession
instead of becoming the tail Of it, We
must go into the manufa eture of stee
as 1t was impossible FOR is 10 market
our growing production of pig iron, -
the uses of pig iron We're Deing steadily
eurtailed by the introduction of steel
and that If our directors, WIN We're sucl
busy men, with many cares and respon-
sbilities upon them. could not undertai'
% raise the necessary capital FOR MS tt
build a steel works. and would turr
their officers loose, we would build tn,
works and find the money ourselves viii
which 10 build them.
They wrote me a letter stating that
much interest and that they were per-
feetly willing to turn The Officers
loose. and would welcome very hos
pitably any plan which we might sub
nit to them, bearing in mind that the
company had no money available foi
such ? purpose.
Q. What did YOU do then? A. In a
conference between my colleagues
President BAXTER Vice President Shook
IA nd AIaT oil a
myself We agreed first of all to take
the matter up with the Louisville and
Nashville railroad and accordingly had
a conference with Mr.. Smith.
After seven months diligent and ar
duous work we raised sl.1O0.0Oo, be-
coming effective in the summer OF
1898
@. And to what new construction did
You apply that money? \. To the con
structiUn of the first steel works that
We're built at Ensley.
Recent Receiverships
Mr. Bowron told about the receiver
ship Of the Southern Steel and the
Standard Steel and its ultimate reor-
in both cases. lie went on
and told about the recent organization
of the Gulf States Steel and his app
poinment in official capacities with the
three companies.
Mr.. Iced guided the witness into
telling of the blast furnaces owned by
his company and the ore properties
a abandoned and those now controlled
lie also related the fact that his COM
pany operates a steel plant at Gads-
den, giving to the counsel details as
TO tonnages and productions of that
plant. He said in gross capacity Oh
his plant on double turn was 100000
turns per annum He said the bar mil
had an annual capacity of 10000 tons
lie said the share capital is $500 600
Of which $4,000. 600 in preferred and
100, ,000 Is common
He said his company was only OBJ
lisated to pay the assumed bonds OF
the Self-Fluxing ore company, which
was recently purchased That amouni
is S2S9.000. He said in reference to
the ore purchase that his company Sc
cured 564 acres in one tract and 40 in
another tract adjoining He said this
was done in August of last year He
said The men from whom the land
was bought had secured it for the eX-
press purpose of speculative resale.
Describes Ore Lands
Mr.. Bowron gave a technical descrip-
ton Of the ore land bought, telling of
the drills, the tests and all other meas
ures to find out how good the supply
was. He said his calculations were that
the ore would last his company about
800 years. He said the iron contents
were better than the ore being mined
elsewhere at the outcrop. Mr.. Bowron
by the questions of Mr. Reed told or
several tracts being offered. 1t was
evident that counsel for the Steel cor
desired to show that only re-
Gently ore properties were available
and that was established beyond rea-
sonable doubt by Mr.. Bowron. lie
named half dozen tracts that his
company could have secured.
As to the possibilities of another con-
Germ getting plenty of ore here Mr..
Bowron was asked the following ques-
tion and gave the reply:
q. From your general knowledge then
Mr. Bowron, would you say that it was
or was not possible for new company
" hich desired to enter the steel business
in Birmingham to obtain by purchase IN
adequate supply of good ore in this dis
trict?
A. From the information which have
gathered from the United States govern
ment publications. such as Bulletin No
400 my conversation with its employe
Mr.. Burchard of the Geological Survey,
who has discussed the matter with me as
to the ore reserves here, and from the
records of drill holes that have been ex-
hibited to me, and from the offers of ore
land that have been made to me within
the past II months. and from my own rea-
soma BILE knowledge as a mining engineer
as to the direction and pitch of the ore
and from my knowledge of it's thickening
proves in quality, and from such knowl-
edge as | nave as to the distance to which
holdings have been acquired by the oper-
ating companies. and from my interest IN
personally being a stoclkholder in another
company owning hundreds of acres OF
such ore which has not been taken up,
do believe that, with adequate money, an
other steel company might be started in
this district and acquire adequate sup
plies of ore upon which to base its oper-
ations.
Did Not Acquire Monopoly
As to whether the United States Stee
corporation acquired monopoly of ores
when 1t acquired the holdings of the Ten
nessee Coal Iron and Railroad com
pany, Mr.. Bowron answered in the mega
tive, as follows:
The developments which have subse-
quently ensued, l think have conelusively
demonstrated as matter of fact, that il
did not; for if 1t had done so could not
have bought what | have bought"
Mr. Bowron told about the territory tc
which his company sold products anC
denied absolutely that his company had
ever entered into any combinatio to fix
prices.
lie said he had never known of the Ten.
nessee Coal Iron and Railroad company
or the American Steel and Wire company
being a party to any such combination
and that they were always fair in com
petitive matters.
He said that he had regarded the Stee
at times as standing in it;
own light by refraining from sending III