Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-11-02
DEMAND FOR
STEEL AND Iron
very HEAVY
So Great is Revival in Trade That
Virtually Every Furnace in
Country is Working.
ARE BUSY DAY AND NIGHT
Price Of Pig Iron, Regarded As Bus
mess Barometer, Goes Up
Thirty-fve Per Cent.

Thirty-tive Per Cent.
New York, Oct. $3.50 great has
been the general revival in the iron
and steel trade Of the United States
/ 1t was said by authorities yesterday
n that with virtually ever blast fur
mace and steel mill in the country
working night and day to capacity,
the demand for iron, steel and steel
Il products cannot be satisfied and it is
today almost impossible to buy, for
immediate delivery, pig iron, scrap
q or ingots in sizeable quantities at
any industrial plant in the country.
A. The revival began about the first
lof last. July. has been coming on
~ rapidly with delivery Of orders
since the middle OF August, and may
not yet have reached its high mark.
= Within these three months, the
5price Of pig iron, long regarded us
the barometer Of trade, has increas-
! ed approximately IS per cent and
that of steel and steel products, ex-
bcept rails, has gone up about Is per
cent.
At the present time the demand
for pig iron and for the various lines
1 of steel is in excess of the producing
capacity of the furnaces and mills Of
I the United States, according to q
statement issued yesterday by Judge
7 Gilbert H. Gary, chairman Of the
United States Steel corporation.
l ''The manufacturers are unable to
4 make deliveries entirely satisfactory
/ to the purchasers with respect to q
large majority Of the different kinds
! of finished STEEL" the statement
says.
There is nothing to indicate thai
there will be decrease In the de-
fmand for any Of these products for
some time. While prices received
are still low, they have been and are
increasing and apparently will 60
higher SO that fair and reasonable
profits may be expected.
"Of course, these very satisfactory |
conditions are more or less affected
by the war business, so-called, yet It
is undoubtedly true that there il a
better feeling throughout the gener-
al iron and steel trade than has been
Experienced for some years past"
4 Experts who have followed the
Using fortunes Of iron and steel
within the past twelve months as
fserted yesterday the volume OF BUSH
ness, both domestic and foreign. at
present is more than double what ID
$was year ago and that there are
today $4,000 men employed at iron4
and steel plants throughout theE
United States. who were not on the
payrolls q year. ago. This ID about Z
$50 per cent increase. ll!vxE
y The fires have been lighted in vir-
tually every blast furnace In the ,
.
steel corporation the last remaipiagI;
4ile furnace. at Columbus. O., is,noY t,
hing put into operation. To find a
"A rallsl for the greater activity In
Ehe iron and steel trade. it was said
Today, it was necessary to 60 back
blight years to the middle Of ,1907.rojg
Steel and steel products are roll |,
hing out Of the mills today at the ratsIs
|5f 100000 tons day. It Is COM
|servatively estimated. and iron Is be-
ling manufactured at the rate Of 40.-E
100000 tons. al rs.
Prices have increased somewhat
slowly, 1t is said, but there seems to
be every indication that. further
rises are on the way. At present, It
Il estimated there are employed ! In
the producing end Of the, industry
approximately $4,000 men. .rostitAll
Philadelphia. Pa. Oct ss.-or-
|ders for $4,000 tons .of, steel rails q
were placed BY the, PennyIyanis Ia
Railroad company yesterday. i Those /
rails cover the 1915 EsqYlremsnts 81 Z
the road. In addition, A order was It
placed with the BALDWIN Locomotive j
Works for the construction, 9f seven t
ty-nve heavy freight focoinot iyes rtorlv
immaculate oelveIybsrutsso ssw BIZ S
Liquor Fraud Charged.
\ New York, Octp asssSThfss 7o6iceTs =
And eight salesaatnh nj sw0I Naiiskyi-
concerns were indaetetE hirsc yeass- II:
day on a chargebsf ppsaIpnE thaiI paal nails Ia
$1,000 About H6An 0On Ia aafd A