The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-03-08
Much of Present Expansion Not Due to War Orders
 On the Books
COMPETITION TO BE
 KEENER THAN EVER
United States Steel, Bethlehem and Midvale Are All Planning Some Enormous Expansions Dur
 ing the Year
By HOLLAND

l New York, March 7.--(Special )-In the early days before the Lake Superior, and, and, later, the copper properties of the Rocky mountain states were exploited, it was the custom of the manufacturers of brass and of other commodities of which copper was the principal compo- nent to go three or four times a year to Baltimore for the purpose of buying smelted copper. There the only smelter of that kind which had been up to that time established in the United States was in operation. With the advent of copper mining in the far west and the establishment by the miners of smelting plants near the mines whereby they be- came both miners and manufacturers of copper, the Baltimore industry lapsed. Much of the copper refined in the Balti- more plant was from imported copper ores. But this industry near Baltimore has been surpassed by another which is speedily to become one of the largest in dustries of the kind in the United States. The purposes of the steel company which is identified by Charles M. Schwab's name which have in view great expansion of the plant of the American Steel company at Sparrow's Point, near Baltimore, well illustrate the tendency of American cap- tal now to make very large investment in domestic undertakings. year ago the predicstion that available or liquid capital ir the United States would be for the most part utilized, until after the European war; in financing the needs other nations and in lending to other na-
 
 sble for them to pay for their pur- chases of American commodities.
 In two or three of the addresses of Frank A. Vanderlip, and occasionally in the publications of the bank of which he is president, intimatons were made that not until the European war is ended lis it likely that there will be large in vestment of American capital in domes- tic enterprises James J. Hill seems to have been of that view, since he was a few days ago quoted as having said that after the war there will be necessity for the investment of capital in exploitation of natural resources and the expansion of industries. Investment of this kind is the best as it is the final test of pros- perity.
 AT LEAST TWENTY MILLIONS
 The steel manufacturing plant at Spar rows Point, which gives upon deep water, may be improved and enlarged by the investment of as much as s2e,000 coo. Another steel manufacturing organizato seems already to have put an end to some of the reports that were in circula- tion at the time of its organization. This is the Midvale company. When, in the late summer of last year. announcement was made of the Midvale combination and it's capitalization, some who were of good authority wondered whether this combination were not capitalizing it's war order business. Now it is evident that the war orders, large as they may be, are after all but small factor in the plans of this organization.
 Then, too, the United States Steel cor poration, which is now experiencing one of the most remarkable of the many strange phenomena occasioned by the war in Europe, and the sudden recovery of business prosperity in the United States, will in all probability invest this year as much as 50,000000 in improve ments expansion and new construction. A HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS Therefore, three of the great steel manufacturing corporations of the United States are preparing to invest new cap