Evening star., 1926-11-23
INCREASE |NPA|NT
PRICES IS UNLIKELY
Some Factors Point to Lower
Fertilizer CostS-FIaxseed
Crop Smaller.
BY j. G.. ROYLE.

Special Dispa.c IN to The Star.
NEW YORK, November %
Neither pouitlces nor paint are going
TO suffer from a 5hortaG> of fiaXseed
this year despite the shortage crop
in Canada and United States. Nor
is the price of paint expected to rise
TO any extraordinary degree, accord
ing to the larger manufacturers The
American fiaXseed crop. which gov
erns the production of linseed oil, is
now estimated at S,779,0 900 bushels or
about $3.50, 900 bushels smaller than
the 1925 crop.
In the more important producing
States, unfaNupable conditions through
out the season resulted in q lowering
of the number of bushels grown per
acre, while early frosts damaged the
quality, which Is the poorest in years.
The Canadian crop is half a million
bushels lower than in 1925. Despite
these facts tear of a shortage of lin
seed Oil was secuted by manufactur-
erS.
Cneasiness Unwarranted.
The Sherwln- Williams Co., and the
Glfdden Co., among the leading paint
and varnish makers, said there should
be no uneasines sabout linseed oil.
Adrian Joyce, president of the Glidden
Co, attributed the anxiety over the
linSeed oil situation to the British
coal strike. so much coal was being
shipped abroad" he said, that the
movement or tiaxseed from the Argen-
tine was delayed and this probably
gave rise to the report the crop was
short. AS Il matter of fact the world
crop and that of Argentina are good"
MIR. Joyce added that the use of
cellulose lacquers under various trade
names is shortening consumption OF
1inSeed oil and that as result the
price of this commodity had been
dropping for two months. 1t is now
at the low point for two years.
Turpentine Price Lower.
Turpentine prices have been drop
ping steadily in recent months. This
also is attributed to the coal strike
since England takes about so per cent
of the production of the South. Pro-
ducers, however, have made money
this year, SO much, in fact, that they
are being tempted to slip in one OF
two extra crops. A crop is repreSen-
ted by the flow into 10000 cups or
boxes no matter whether one or more
are put on each tree.
Since there are about 1900 outfits
operating in the South this extra pro
duction would amount to some 42.00U
rels of resin. The trade does not any
longer carry large stocks on hand and
when such stocks pile up a swift drop
in prices usually follows
Lead and zinc prices have been
dragging bottom and while some i'm
provement is anticipated in these com
modities which go into paint, produc-
ton now is such that the paint COM
panies probably will not be seriously
affected.
Other Chemicals Irregular.
Other chemical prices are displaying
some irregularity although industrial
alcohol is advancing along with black
strap molasses from which it is made
The outlook for the fertilizer COM
panieS and producers of materials
which go into fertilizers has been com
plfcated by the cotton situation in the
South but curtailment of acreage
probably will not have q drastic effect
pn 1927 fertilizer sales. which are eX
pected to be stimulated by lower
prices.
In a Letter to Herbert Hoover. pro.
testing vigorously against attacks on
Howe. president Of the Potash I'M
porting Corporation of America, today
pointed out that the German syndicate
has no monopoly on potash and that
current prices are as low as in 1914
although shipping rates have risen at
least so per cent Ocean freights are
expected to come down with the end
Of the British strike.