The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-01
DECIDED PICKUP IN THE INDUSTRIAL
 SITUATION HERE
Plants at EnsIey and Fair field Approaching Normal. Other Industrial CenterS
 Show Improvement
By R. F. JOHNSTON

industry in the Birmingham district this week will 5e the following: Doubling of production at the new tie plate mill of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company at Fair field.
 Continued speeding up of opera tions at the new pressed steel car works of the Chickasaw shipbuilding and Car company at Fairfield.
 Continued operation of the rail mill of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company in Ensley at nor nal capacity.
 Continued operation of the four blast furnaces of the Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad company on basic iron for the steel mills at Ensley.
 Blowing in of the second stack of the Woodward Iron company at Woodward, a step necessitated on ac- count of the complete denudement of the stock yards. The Woodward company must make more iron if 1t wishes to remain in the iron business.
 The Gulf States Steel company, having made larger bookings of new business in the past 10 days than ir previous several weeks, announces early resumption in its blooming mill department.
 Ingalls, Iron Works will continue at full turn in the manufacture of structural steel, among recent orders being one for steel for the Masonic temple.
 On Saturday the Chickasaw Ship building and Car company will launch the "Knoxville City" the thirteenth of the IA ships which it contracted to make for the Isthmlan Steamship company
 The Memphis City" recently launched at Mobile, will tie up at docks after having her successful trial trip and load with Birmingham steel and iron products for the Pa cific coast Part of her cargo will be steel rails for Alaska. There is no conjecture about any of these operations. They will take place as per schedule, and mark a decided pick up in industrial oper- ations over the recent past. In addition to the items mentioned aboce the Birmingham Steel corpora ton. which has emerged out of the hands of the courts with flying colors. is cleaning up and overhaul l ing preparatory to resumption of it's very successful career as a maker of steel bridges and office and indus trial buildings in the south. Another Freighter Still another feature of the week 1 that enters into the progress of the district is the entrance of the new | freighter Mobile into the Warrior river freight carrying business. This self-propeller will join the "Tusca- loosa" and Birmingham" in the river service, and that will enable a sailing out of New Orleans and Mobile for up-river points every five days with merchandise for Birming- | ham and the cities in the five states within the 20 per cent freight dif- | ferential territory.
 Another item of special interest to 1 tho wholesalers and brokers is the coming up river this week of Is to 25 cars of dried fruits and canned goods from the Pacific coast, which came to Mobile by Page & Jones 1 vessel through the canal.
 As it entered a sister ship left Mobile with cargo of 1,500 tons of Birmingham cast iron pipe for the Pacific coast, thus affecting an inter change of trade between Birming- ham and the western empire. The pipe came from the shops of the Ma 1 tional and American Cast Iron Pipe companies and those of Hammond | Byrd Iron company and Bessemer Soil Pipe company. l Some Birmingham coke has recent ly gone to the Pacific coast. Birming- ham iron market has better feeling on realization of low ebb of stocks on furnace yards, and the known empty bins of melters. Carloads are selling at s20, but quantities of as much as 800 tons have gone at flower price, say about s19
 The Wall Street Journal is among the authorities that sees improve ment in the iron market It says: Most encouraging feature of the pig l iron market s the continued increase in inquiry for material to be deliv- cred over the balance of the year.
 For a long time iron buying has been hand to mouth, and for immedi- ate shipment. The disposition of the melter to look further into the fu- 1 ture IS regarded as DOlH SiSHiiiSdie ! and denoting tendency toward i buoyancy.
 1 Demand for Stores 1 An outstanding indication Of de- mand for store houses in Birming- ham is furnished by the 75 appli- cants for the Fifth avenue stores be- l ing built by the Spurgeon-H Henley Realty company. There are lo ap- I plicants for each of the stores, on which work has barely begun. and there are half dozen applicants for the six stores by responsible parties. who sense their ability to swing the lot and make handsome profit by subleasing over term of 1 years.
 1 Ginger was imparted to the domes- tic coal business during the week by several additional entrants with proffers of coal at low prices through various systems of delivery that eliminated the retail yard costs
 All the crop news from over the state is good to excellent and wire drawing mills sense an improvement l in the agriculture demand for their products.