Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-01-03
FOREIGN COAL
DEMAND is HIT
BY BIG SLUMP
Orders for Millions of Tons
Cancelled by Buyers in
Pittsburgh Area.
PRICE BREAKS READY

PITTSBURGH. Jan. 3.-The sudden
collapse of the coal market IN the last
two weeks has resulted in the cancelling
Of contracts for millions Of tons Of soft
coal made by foreign buyers with opera
tors in western Pennsylvania and north
ern West Virginia. 1t is the most dis
astrous slump ever known and the mar
ket Is pretty we'll demorallzed.
The price of export coal has been
broken from the extreme high OF $14 a
ton several weeks ago to around $3.50
IA ton today, and In some instances even
lower than that. Demand Is very light.
Now the producer hunts the buyer. For
merly the buyer went hat in hand hunt
ing producers who could cell him coal
at almost any price they might demand.
Bankers attribute the unsettled inter
national credit situation, improved rail-
road transportation and increased coal
production as responsible for the present
situation.
Operators say the situation cannot
become much worse or there will be
a suspension of production ms they can
not mine coal under So ton.
EXPORT COAL
DRUG ON MARKET.
Pool "a, the grade of coal for which
there has boon an unprecedented demand
by exporters during the last six mouths,
Is now a drug on the market. This coal
Is mined In western Pennsylvania and
West Virginia Inquiries received by
local operators indicate that the export
buyers are devoting their attention al
most exclusively to the Pocahontas wv.
Va grade of fuel known to the trade
as Pool No l and ..
Contracts for about 100000 tons OF
this coal were reported signed IN Pitts
burgh early this week by the French
and Italian governments at price Of
Ss.25 and 1915 a gross ton, udewatcr.
The contracts cover long period as
to delivery.
Orders cancelled for the so-called Pool
"A coal mean a loss Of Sl000J0lO00, &C
cording to the estimate Of one Pitts
burgh operator.
The tremendous break IN the coal mar
ket recalls the boom days in the early
stages Of the World War.
FORTUNES MADE
IN 1915 AND 1917.
Within a radius OF seventy five miles
OF Pittsburgh is the greatest soft coal
producing center in the world. There
are thousands OF mines. big and little.
Along about 1919 and 1917 the demand
was ter times the supply. Men who knew
something about the coal game and some
who didn't made fortunes In those days.
They dug up a horse or two. wagon
and opened up a One-mRn mine along
side OF some hill IL was q common thing
for these oue-nan mine outfits to clean
up 500 TO $3.50 a day. Nobody disturbed
them They were looked upon as play
ing a plker game by the big coal produc-
ing outfits.
Anybody that could produce a pound
OF coal found twenty buyers for every
ton he could produce. The little fellows
rolled In wealth quickly. Some were en-
terprising and soon some Of the one
man mines developed into two and three
and even half dozen men mines and
the profits were enormous. Though they
were greatly handicapped for lack Of
modern labor-sayins devices, the little
fellows made fortunes with their teams
hauling coal to the railroads and load
ing one car at time Through western
Pennsylvania there are hundreds, prob
ably thousands who amassed good
sized fortunes during the boom days
In coal
Then the big operators later shut down
on the little fellows and squeezed them
out. The last straw came when, after
long and bitter fight the Pennsylvania
Public Service Commission ruled that
mines that didn't have tipples Qoading
shutes) couldn't get cars.
But those who saved their money IN
the boom days need not worry for the
rest OF their lives. They will have
enough.
Now It is the turn Of the big pro-
durers to be squeezed ana squeezed hard.
Coal ut $3.50 q ton is virtually back
10 nre- u-nr nrLcnE