Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-05-02
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PA. STEEL CO. HAS
PROSPEROUS YEAR
Big Profits Instead of Former
Deficit; Huge Sums Spent
III improvements

For the year ended December 81
the Pennsylvania Steel Company
shows surplus after interest and lib
eral provision for depreciation of
property and exhaustion of minerals
of $2,010,956, as against a deficit of
s67S,491 in 1917. Income from
operation after payment of expenses
including expenditures for repairs and
upkeep was S4,616,693, as against
Sl,276,20S, and net income was S3,-
4SO, 46I, as against S223,594. Against
net income there was charged for de-
probation 81, ,419,51O, as against S902.-
OS6 in 1914. The report shows that
Pennsylvania Steel after several years
OF patient struggling and small earn
ings has come back strong. After
allowing for a dividend of seven per
cent. upon the preferred stock the sur
plus for the year would be equivalent
TO nearly 80 per cent. upon the COM
mon.
There was expended on improve
ments and additions to the plants of
the subsidiary companies during 1915
the sum of $1,941.S .S9S, which sum was
charged to capital account. The
bonded Indebtedness of the subsidiary
companies was decreased during the
year by $61S,000. The special i'm
provements recommended in 1913 and
begun in that year were practically
finished with the close of 1915. The
reValuation of properties which was
begun in 1914 was completed as far
as the manufacturing plants were
concerned in 1914, and the revaluation
OF the remaining properties was COM
pleted last year and as a result the
book values of the Penn Mary Coal
Company has been reduced by ST.
.171,S45. 1t was not found necessary
to change the valuations of the Penn
sylvania Steel Companys interests in
the Cornwall ore banks nor the book
value of the Spanish Am erican Iron
Company, representing that company's
ore properties in the Island of Cuba.
President Edgar c. FELTON, reviews
the offer of the Bethlehem Steel Com
panN to purchase the franchises and
assets of the company and says that
if the shareholders ratify the plan at
the special meeting called for May
the directors as liquidating trustees
will proceed accordingly in consum-
mating the sale and liquidating the
company.
The war in Europe created such an
excessive demand for freight vessels,
and advanced ocean freight rates to
such a point during the year as to
make ii uneconomical to increase the
output of ore brought from Cuba.
President FELTON, also said that the
unprecedented demand for ships,
caused by the European war, has con-
tinued, and as a result the shipyard
of the Sparrows Point plant was more
fully occupied during 1915 than ever
before. The outlook for future bust
ness in this important department is
satisfactory.
In addition to the special improve
ment program, several important ex-
tensions and improvements were
authorized during the year. The
principal new authorizations We're
for the construction of a new blast
furnace of the same size as No. 8,
with the necessary gas blowing en-
gines for the same; a 5000 X. w
considerable extension to the ma
chine shop with additional machine
tool equipment work on all of these
had been begun prior to the close of
| the year.