The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-12-09
Removal of Coal Restric- tions Will Affect Bunker Coal Bonus of $l.35
 Per Ton
BLAST FURNACES
 HAVE BIG ORDERS
Three Weeks of Transition From War to Peace Ac- tiyities Shows Gradual
 Return to Normal
By w. J. ROLES

Three weeks of transition from war to peace time activities finds the United States, according to reports from all quarters, gradually settling down to, normal conditions with but little if any dislocatfon of business and industrial affairs. The Birming ham district is peculiarly fortunate at the end of the war in that none of its principal industries had to undergo material changes in equipment or re- adjustment in methods to fit them for the peace time trade.
 The foundries and machine shops, the furnaces and the steel mills, the factor les and plants of all kinds that engaged in war work did so only, in an incl dental way, using the equipment and ma chinery already installed, so that they were ready. with few slight changes, to resume where they left off year or so ago when the government demanded that all Andustries of tine country be put on a war basis.
 The coal industry, in the opinion of local operators, will not feel the change from war to peace unless it be in greater demand for this product. With the adoption of the zoning system last winter, when the shortage. throughout the country became acute, the territory heretofore supplied from the Birming- ham district was considerably curtafled given the cutoff part, which embraces portions of Mississippi and Tennessee and the Tennessee valley in north Ala bama.
 REMOVE ALL RESTRICTIONS
 It was announced from Washington a week or 10 days ago that the fuel admin istration was considering the advisability. of discontinuing this feature of its regu7 lations and throwing open the markets to all districts as in the days before the war Concurrent with the action, the administration, 1t is reported, will remove all other restrictions imposed as war measures, Including control>of prices and distribution. except in so far as domestic or hard coal is concerned. Control over this may be retained during the winter in order to prevent abnormal or 'exhor- bitant prices to consumers.
 Representatives of the fuel adminiStra- tion and operators agree that the produc- tion of bituminous or steam coal in thes Birmingham district Is sufficient at the present time to meet all demands upon it and that there is no present prospect of any shortage in this grade of fuel dur ing the present winter. Such is not the case with hard coal, of which there is serious shortage in the Birmingham district From different parts of Ala bama, from Georgia and from Missis- sippi come requests to the fuel admins tration for more coal than they are now getting. Coal operators say they are un- I able with their present labor and mining facilities to increase the output and, therefore, the insstent pleadings of do- mestic consumers and dealers in the states named are likely to continue for several months
 LOSS IN BUNKER COAL
 Possibly the greatest loss the coal oper- ators of the Birmingham district will sustain as a result of the cessation of war will be in bunker coal. When the United States entered the war and the demand for bunker coal increased to proportions, with demands coming in from other countyies allied with the United States, the fuel administration granted a bonus of $1. .35 ton on all bunk CT coal mined in this district Thou I sands of tons have been mined and shipped to Atlantic and gulf ports during the past year and the bonus has gone far towards making the business profit able to the OpeFAlOTS 1Hc pOHuS dtVuc, it is stated, has made big prifits for some of the companies
 With the ending of the war this bonus will be withdra%n and Alabama bunker e6al~will have to meet that from other countries op an equal basis. The Ala bama product, however. can be laid down at the southern ports at a lower price than that from any other district in the United States, or from any other country, and therefore. it is not antici- pated that the looping off of the bonus will have any serious effect on opera tions hese, merely lessen the profits to the operators.
 With the removal of the zoning system Alabama is expected to regain the terrf- tory taken from her by the fuel admin istration during the war. West Tennes- see, Mississippi and Georgia are nearer the Alabama coal fields than any others and the cost of mining and transporta- tion is no greater.
 In this connection it is stated that just l prior to the signing of the armistice and while production of hard coal in this | district was at its lowest in several Kentucky coal operators asked |