Evening star., 1933-02-11
DROP IN MERCURY
MAY AID COAL SALE
Industry Watches Possible
Effect on Prices as De-
mand Improves.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

NEW YORk, FeDruary 1l.-Wll the
present countrywide cold wave i'm
prove coal prices? The trade today
conceded It would reduce retail In
ventories. The three storm waves this
Winter preceding the present one en-
livened domestic coal demand momen-
tarily. but failed to lift prices-so the
coal trade Is making no predictions.
The general business slump, along
with many advances in power ma
chinery, naturally curtailed coal de-
mand from industries. Doctors here
and elsewhere concede that underheat-
ing of homes this Winter brought about
the epidemic of influenza. Western
farmers find corn cheaper fuel than
coal. Meanwhile the Ottawa trade
pact has virtually shut out American
coal from Canada.
Prices Shading.
Along with the lessened- domestic
and industrial demand there has de-
veloped practice of buying coal solely
on a price basis Shading Of circular
price lists has aggravated this situa-
ton. In the meantime, mine wages IN
many fields are being revised down.
ward. Just now the anthracite wage
arbitrators are trying to formulate
some sort of report on new wage
scale, which probably will become ef-
fective at the start of the new coal
year or April / next.
Generally high temperatures in jan
uary cut domestic anthracite output
1000, 900 tons and bituminous coal pro-
duction 100000 tons. Production has
been steadily declining. Estimated 1882
anthracite output of 100000 tons
contrasts with 100000 in 1881 and
5000 900 in 1880. Soft coal output
last year approximated $50 GOO, 900 tons
against 378,110,000 in 1881 and 467,-
526, ZOO in 1880.
The Ottawa tariff pact had two i'm
portant effects on the world coal trade.
It banned Soviet coal, thereby in
creasing Welsh imports to Canada, and
virtually excluded American coal. In
deed, in the local cargo market it was
said today that ship probably would
not know its way from Hampton Roads
up the coast and down the st. Law
renee River. Last years loadings at
Hampton Roads were estimated at 49,
600 900 tons, against 10000, 900 IN 1881
and 22,000,000 in 1880.
Output Reduced.
Between lessened exports and dimin-
ished domestic demand all mines have
been hard hit. Malcolm Ross, author
of Machine Age in the Hills just
back from months of study IN the Ken
lucky and West Virginia coal fields,
said that more mines are closing IN
West Virginia than a year ago and out
put there is much reduced. Leaders
are receiving 16 to 80 cents ton and
are glad to average q dollar a Day.
All the miners are in debt to the coal
companies for rent and supplies and
many mining companies are in
straitened circumstances. Neither MIN
ers nor mine owners look for
strike in the soft coal fields this next
coal year.
Mr.. Ross, in an effort to help miners
and owners, would adopt the English
practice started in 1920 for five years,
and since renewed, of levying penny
a ton tax on all coal mined. This
would raise SO 900 600 year, he points
out, and might be the beginning of a
movement to rehabilitate surplus
miners and further the research in
coal. Half a penny a ton would go
to the miners and half penny to the
mine owners.
Wasteful mining methods in the
United States due to competition re-
suit IN l5V,UUU,UUU IONS OF miIlaple
bituminous coal being left underground
yearly, or a loss as great as the entire
German postwar bituminous coal pro-
duction. according to report to the
Presidents Research Committee on
Social Trends made public today.
After field examination of hundreds
of mines in all major Eastern districts, %
says the report, engineers of the
United States Coal Commission placed
the average loss in mining bituminous
coal at 35 per cent, of which Is per
cent Is classed as unavoidable and 20
per cent avoidable under present known
practice"
improvement In Demand.
Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit
have increased coal takings in recent
weeks. Demand in Chicago and New
York improved the last several days.
Thus far this year, however, coal
prices continue a downward trend de-
spite the fact that total stocks Janu-
ary /, last were 1874 per cent less
than on January /, 1882.
(Copyright, 1933)