The Iron Age 1909-01-21: Vol 83 Iss 3

THE IRON AGE Published every Thursday Morning by David Williams Co. 14-16 Park Place, New York. ol, 83: No. 3. Nw York, Thursday, tea 21, 1909. GROG + ane. retinas Patioge Feading Matter Contents........ page 276 Aiphabetical Index to Advertisers ‘“‘ 194 Classifled List of Advertisers = 184 Advertising and Subscription Rates ‘‘ 283 REED F. BLAIR & CO. PRICK BUILDING, PITTSBURG, PA. STANDARD CONNELSVILLE COKE POUNDRY FURNACE CRUSHED The original and only Genuine ‘‘STILLSON WRENCH "’ > is ms anugifarel by WALWORTH MFG. CO., Boston, U, S. A. And bears their registered, TradeMark Cartridges and Shot Shells There are many reasons why sportsmen prefer U. M. C. Cartridges and Shot Shells. These reasons have been the cause of the U. M. C. factory growing to the largest in the world devoted exclusively to the manufacture of ammunition. The U. M. C. trade mark protects you against dead loss stock and your customers against inferior quality. The Union Metallic Cartridge Company Agency, 313 Broadway, New York WATER TUBE G%e Babcock @ Wilcox Co., ON SPOT CORD 85 Liberty St Se “ o . BOILERS See page 53 New Yors Specified by Architects Everywhere Samson Cordage Works, Boston, Mass. a Protection for ‘‘Capewell’’ Purchasers = fi i Our rigid system of inspection protects every buyer of *‘ Capewell’ si nails from paying for defective nails and pieces of scrap. Cleveland City Forge and Iron Co., Cleveland, 0. The most perfect nails manufactured anywhere in the world are shipped from our factory and are acknowledged by all who use them to be the best driving and holding nails, For All Classes of Work the MADE BY The Capewell Horse Nail Company Hartford, Conn. TURNBUCHKIES error" PO MERRILL BROS. Maspeth, New York, N.Y. N. Y. FOUNDRY IRON Real Estate Trust Bldg., Phila. > & Crane Empire Bldg,, New York Best _ PES |: TOFKIN °~ “tr Jenkins Bros. Valves The high quality possessed by these valves has earned for them a repu | PLADE SE AMERICA and, tation that is world wide. In metal, in design, and in workmanship they THE B ) come up to the requirements of the most exacting service. Accept no THE LUFKIN RULE CO., Saginaw, Mich., U.3.A. valves as Jenkins Bros. unless they bear trade mark as shown in the cut New York London, Eng. Windsor, Can. Write for Catalog JENKINS BROS., New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago THE AMERICAN TUBE & STAMPING COMPANY SEE 2 (Water and Rail Delivery) BRIDGEPORT, CONN page 2 Special "Electrical Sheets Highest electrical efficiency sheets produced anywhere MAGNOLIA ,,*"",. METAL The Standard Babbitt of the World AMERICAN We manufacture SHEET AND TIN PLATE everything in the COMPANY Babbitt Line. Friek Buliding, Pittsburgh, Pe. SE Ss. MAGNOLIA METAL CO. Gee our ad on page New York: 115 Bank St. Chicago: Fisher Building. Montreal: 31 St. Nicholas St. AGE BRASS}"»,. COPPER}. GERMAN (steer SILVER WIRE LOW BRASS, SHEET BRONZE, SEAMLESS BRASS AND COPPER TUBING, BRAZED BRASS AND BRONZE TUBING: : : «: = el Waterbury Brass Co. WATERBURY, CONN. Providence, R. \. THE IRON FOLLANSBEE STEEL SHEETS Made to suitthe individual requirements of every consumer. Auto Steel, Bow Socket, Ferrule and Nickeling Stock. Fine finishes a specialty. FOLLANSBEE BLUE and FOLLANSBEE POLISHED STOVE PIPE. and ELBOWS BRIGHT CHARCOAL TIN PLATE The best the world has ever produced. Our high grades are giving satisfaction to all users. FOLLANSBEE BROTHERS COMPANY PITTSBURGH Bridgeport Deoxidized Bronze & Metal Co. BRIDGEPORT, CONN. Phosphor and Deoxidized Bronze Composition, Yellow Brass and Alumi- num Castings, large and small! Matthiessen & Hegeler Zinc Co. La Salle, Illinois. SMELTERS OF SPELTER AFD MANUFACTURERS SHEET ZINC AND SULPHURIC ACID Special Sizes of Zinc cut to order. Rolled Battery Plates. Selected Plates for Etchers and Lithographers use. Selected Sheets for Paper and Card Makers’ use. Stove and Washboard Blanks. ZINCS FOR LECLANCHE BATTERY. (GERMAN SILVER « *) In Sheet, Wire, Rods, Blanks and Shells | NICKEL ANODES | BRASS, BRONZE, COPPER in all forms _ || \ THE SEYMOUR MFG. CO., Seymour, Conn. f HENDRICKS BROTHERS Manulacturers of Sheet and Bar Copper, Copper Fire Box Plates and Staybolts, Wire and Braziers Rivets Importers and Dealers in Ingot Copper, Block, Tin, Spelter, Lead, Antimony, Bismuth, Nickel, etc. 49 CLIFF ‘STREET . - NEW YORK "” The Plume & Atwood: Mis, 6: Manufacturers of Sheet and Roll Brass, Wire, Rods, German Sliver and Bra: Goods In great variety. Rolling Mill Thomaston, Conn, Factories Waterbury, Cor Branch Offices Chicago St. Louis and San Francis ANTIMONY ‘*‘A. S. P.’* Brand (English Star) C. W. Leavitt @ Co., Agents New York New York SCOVILL MFG. CO. Manufacturers of BRASS, GERMAN SILVER, Sheets, Rolls, Wire, and Rods. Brass Shells, Cups, Hinges, Bottoms, amp Goods. Special Brass Goods to Order. Factories WATERBURY, CONN. Depots: NEW YORK CHICAGO BOSTON HenrySouther Engineering Co. HARTFORD CONN. Consulting Chemists, Metallur- gists and Analysts. Complete Physical Testing Laboratory, Expert Testimony in Court and Patent Cases. Arthur T. Rutter & Co. 256 Broadway, NEW YORK. Small tabing in Brass, Copper, Steel, Aluminum, German Silver, &c. Sheet Brass, Copper and Ger- man Silver. Copper, Brass and German Silver Wire. Brazed and Seamless Brass and Copper Tube. Copper and Brass Rod. |“PHONO-ELECTRIC” WIRE. "IT’S TOUGH.” TROLLEY, (Gee TELEPHONE Hai tite ange and Sey TELEGRAPH LINES. BRIDGEPORT BRASS COMPAN' Postal Telegraph Bldg. Broadway and Murray 8t., New Yorh Mills Bridgeport 3S) PROSPHOR-BRONZE ~ 3. GERMAN SILVER THE RIVERSIDE METAL Co. RIVERSIDE, N. J. THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, January 21, 1909. The Walker Gear Hob Grinder. The cutter grinder illustrations has been brought out by its builder, the Walker Grinder Com- pany, Worcester, Mass., for the primary purpose of meet- ing the new demand resulting from the advent of the gear hobbing machine as an important industrial factor. Gear cutter more difficult to than other formed cutters, but the increased number in use and the continuous duty demanded of them call for better facilities for grinding, and for improved grinding meth- ods that shall include cutters with both straight and spiral grooves. This grinder, known as the No. 2-K, not only meets this new field of usefulness, but includes im shown in the hobs are no grind =e Fig. 1. g A New Machine for Grinding Spur Gear Cutting portant improvements on machines previously brought out by the company, in that a new positive clutch revers- ing mechanism for the platen has been installed and a power cross feed. The vertically tilting spindle belt drive has been redesigned on account of the greater fre- quency for its use in connection with a new method of sharpening gear cutter hobs, details of which will be given to the public at a later date. A general view of the machine appears in Fig. 1. It will be noticed that shelves and racks for emery wheels and attachments have been added and that the machine comprises the good elements of previous models, includ- ing the arrangement by which the grinding head can be adjusted to any horizontal angle; the vertical adjust- ments, and the feature that in all of its various adjust- ments the driving belt runs with equal tension and tracks naturally upon the pulleys without crowding against the flanges. Hobs, The details of the new belt drive are shown in Figs. 2 to 7, inclusive. Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the spindle, wheel post and housing, with the spindle in nor- mal position. Fig. 3 is similar to the upper portion of Fig. 2. with the spilidle tilted at a vertical angle of 45 degrees, while Fig. 4 is a top view of Fig. 2, with the spindle tilted and showing the alignment of the driving belt on the idler pulleys E and G. Fig. 5 is the same 4s Fig. 3, 90 degrees. with the post and housing swiveled horizontally iand side of Fig 5 and shows the alignment of the belt at one end of the Fig. 6 is a view of the left overhead drum A. Fig. 7 is a diagram giving the posi- tion of the driving belt when the post B with its hous- ing © has been horizontally swiveled 180 degrees from Made by the Walker Grinder Company, Worcester, Mass. the position shown in Fig. 6; it will be seen that the driv- ing belt has traveled to the opposite end of the drum. The main support of the grinding head is the hous- ing C, which has a horizontal swiveling adjustment on the top of the grinding bed, turning on the axis X Y, which practically coincides with the down leading side of the spindle belt, so that when the housing is swiveled as in Fig. 5 the belt will run with a quarter turn. This belt in leading to the spindle pulley D passes first around an idler, E, thence to the spindle and out again around the idler G and down to the lower idler H, whence it returns to the drum. Thus a horizontal loop is formed in the leading side of the belt, which provides for ver- tical adjustment without change in belt tension and also that when the spindle is tilted its axis is between the sides of the loop, so that the belt will run in a twist. The natural course of the belt when the spindle has been tilted in the plan view, Fig. 4, and 5 degrees is shown THE IRON AGE January 21, 1909 us Positions of the Belt and Pulleys with Different Adjustments of the Grinding Wheel Spindle. the elevation, Fig. 5. The former practice with the idler is toward the center of the rim of the spindle pul- Walker grinder was to mount the two flanged idlers E ley D. The action of the belt thus becomes natural; it and G on axes parallel to the horizontal adjustment of does not rub on the flanges. A further improvement is the spindle; it is evident that under such conditions, with that the idlers are each mounted on a hardened steel extreme angular adjustments, the belts must run hard _— spindle with projecting journals which run in boxes hay- on the pulley flanges. In the improved construction the ing hard bronze bushings, which are easily renewed. The idler G is of a width greater than that of the belt, while diameters of the idlers and spindle pulleys have been the upper idler, E, though not increased in width, is increased and the whole grinder head has been made to journaled in a horizontal swiveling bracket, J, which is withstand severer duty. adjusted so that the central plane of the rotation of the The details of the longitudinal and cross feeds are Pp January 21, 1909 shown in Fig. 8. The feed works are all mounted on the carriage, which is of the movable type, having trans- verse movement on V tracks. The platen is operated by means of a pinion on the shaft a, which is provided with starting and stopping clutch as heretofore. The clutch gear b is driven by the compound gear c, one member of which is a worm gear driven by the detachable worm d mounted on the reversing clutch shaft e. The improvement consists of the conventional bevel gear set f, g and h for reversing; the details of the positive clutch mechanism are clearly seen. The outer end of the clutch shaft i has been provided with an outboard beariug, bushed with hard bronze, and a step pulley, 7, mounted on the shaft gives two speeds for the platen. The feed belt for this pulley passes under the end of the carrage to a second pulley mounted on a small jack shaft journaled in a covered hanger attached to the rear of the carriage. The initial feed belt k leads down to this shaft from the overhead works. The cross feed is operated by the crank disk 7 through the medium of the connecting rod m, which oscillates the arm n around the cross feed screw as an axis. As the disk makes about one revolution each time the platen reverses, the rod m is given a forward and backward movement, operating the ratchet pawl] o and giving a feed impulse at each end of the stroke. On the back side of the arm is mounted a second ratchet wheel, with teeth reversed, and a second ratchet pawl, not shown, attached to the same stem as o, is thrown when it is desired to give a feed in the opposite direction. The initial move- ment of the cross feed is obtained from the platen dogs p which move the slide q having a projection r carrying the stud s, which in turn operates the sliding rack t, the compound gear uw and the pinion v on the shaft w, upon which is mounted the cross feed crank disk 7. The con- necting rod m is steel bushed to provide for wear, and the end wear of the longitudinal feed worm is taken care of by the cap nut 2, which longitudinally adjusts the bronze bushing for the end of the worm shaft. The overhead works are of the full multiple speed type, by means of which any desired speed between maxi- mum and minimum can be obtained and in which there are no stepdowns. +e - Why the Railroads Are Waiting. 7 In a letter written at St. Paul, January 7, to the Board of Trade of Hoboken, N. J., James J. Hill dis- cusses the conditions confronting the railroads. Some of his statements are familiar, but in the latter portion of the letter he points out that there are still some points on which more certainty is wanted before railroad ex- penditures will represent ‘a real return of prosperity ”: The railroad system of the country has been built up by individual energy working with capital that was in- vested because it expected a profit in the enterprise. Capital has ceased to be generally available for this work at a time when its co-operation is greatly needed. The return of prosperity to the transportation business and to all other business, since the connection between them is direct and intimate, is conditioned upon such a restoration of confidence as will again permit and pro- mote liberal investments. And that will happen only when the public is convinced that capita] put into rail- road securities will have the same protection against unjust or unfair attack, the same right to earn a proper return, as capital invested in other occupations enjoys. The country, in fact, is waiting to see what is to be the attitude of public authorities, legislatures, commis- sions and courts toward the railroad interest. It needs and asks no favors; it is entitled to fair play, and the capital employed in it to a reasonable profit. When this appears certain, and public policies are framed accord- ingly, not only transportation, but all other industry, will experience a real return of prosperity. The material wel- fare of the nation will be promoted by every expression of determination on the part of individuals and associa- tions representing great interests to secure that just treatment and that security without which capital with- draws itself, every form of industry declines, and all the people suffer loss. THE IRON AGE 215 A Large Reynolds Power Screw Driver. Although embodying the same mechanical principles that characterize the line of power, automatic screw- drivers made by the Reynolds Machine Company, Rock Island, Ill.—one of which was described in The Iron Age, July 9, 1908—the tool here shown represents the latest and largest size made by the company. This machine in- cludes modifications designed to fit it for handling very large work, having a reach sufficient to set screws to the center of a 48-in. circle, and the table a range of vertical adjustment that will accommodate work 380 in. high. As the screw is started the table is automatically raised by means of a cam, C, operated by a lever, L, ex- tending through the column and connected to the vertical rod, which connects the foot treadle and spindle oper- ating lever at the top of the machine. It will be noticed The Latest and Largest Power Automatic Screw Driving Ma- chine Built by the Reynolds Machine Company, Rock Island, Ill that the treadle by which the machine is operated has a wide spread, so that the operator may stand in front or at the side of the table, as is most convenient. In addition to the usual features of the magazine feed, adjustable friction drive to the spindle, &¢., com- mon to the smaller sizes of this line, the machine has a positive stop for the spindle by which screws may be merely started or set to a certain depth with heads pro- jecting to a uniform hight as desired. This is accom- plished by extending outwardly the driven friction flange so as to extend over the driving flange, thus forming a male cone clutch surface on its periphery. A ring, R, concentric with the spindle and having a corresponding female surface, is arranged to slide vertically on the rod T, being carried upward by the arm, which operates the escapement cams, and follows the arm downward until arrested by a collar, which is adjustable on the rod. As the spindle continues downward the clutch surfaces en- gage, arresting the rotary motion of the bit; the friction flanges which drive the bit, being at the same time slightly separate, prevent undue wear. The first machine of this size was built for the United States Arsenal at Rock Island. o | fl THE IRON 1908 IN TH THE YEAR BY I. The American copper trade during the past 12 months has, in common with other industries, been undergoing ¢ The year followed one of the most remarkable periods of rise and depression ever known in the history of the red metal. At the beginning of 1907 Lake Superior copper was commercially worth 24 to 24% cents per pound, but in the convulsion of the latter part of the year—a convul- sion which had in the month of October—the price receded below 14 cents, after having touched as 6 cents. It was but natural that such ex- treme fiuctuations should have thrown the industry into a state of chaos, and the holders of copper in a state of panic. The Market for the Metal. period of convalescence. its crisis high as 26! shares The excessively high price of 2615 cents, which was reached in 1907, was the result of competitive buying on the part of stampeded consumers, who, having taken orders months ahead for finished material, were thrown in a state of frenzy, fearing a famine in copper and their inability to cover such contracts with the necessary raw material. It can be said without fear of contradiction that the extraordinary high prices for copper were not the result of any effort on the part of producing interests to extort the last fraction of a cent from the consumers, but were, aS above stated, simply the result of reckless pur- chases on the part of the consumers themselves. When the panic broke, however, manufacturers re- ceived numerous cancellations, and they were suddenly cenfronted with large stocks of unconsumed copper, with a steadily receding market, both in price and volume, for their manufactured goods. Many manufacturers were obliged in the early months of 1908 to sell, at very low prices, manufactured articles made from 25-cent copper. With the of their 1907 excesses clearly in mind, the large consumers have followed a cautious buy- ing policy during the past 12 months. They have with rare exceptions purchased nothing beyond their 60-day requirements. Knowing that the output of copper was very large and that after some of the larger interests had abandoned the effort to restrict output, the con- sumption was light, wire makers, rolling mills and found- ers were content to buy only from hand to mouth. In the early months of the past year, when copper was selling between 12 and 13 cents, there was started an extraordinary outward flow of the metal to Europe. The foreign byers, who for months had withheld their pur- chases when copper was selling at above 20 cents, came into the market with a rush and absorbed thousands of tons at around 13 cents—not that they wanted the copper for immediate consumption, but they wanted it because it was cheap! They were willing to take a chance which their American competitors were loath to accept. The European manufacturer is traditionally a better buyer of copper than is the American manufacturer. The latter is prone to make his heaviest purchases on a rising mar- ket; the foreign buyer balks at high prices and waits. lesson The American Consumption, During the latter part of 1907 the consumption of copper in this country had fallen to below 15,000,000 Ib. per month, which compares with 60,000,000 Ib. per month during the preceding 12 months. There since a recovery, so that it is generally figured that the con- sumption of copper in this country at the present time is about 30,000,000 Ib. per month. The largest consumers of copper General Electric, Westinghouse and are at present employing not per cent of the capacity of their plants. This underconsump- tion in the face of an output of copper which is the largest this country has ever seen naturally operates against an has been the American Brass, Western Electric companies over 65 aggressive buying movement, but it is the general opinion among those who speak authoritatively that we are * Of the B on News Bureau, M January 21, 1909 AGE E COPPER TRADE. COLE, the and that while perhaps the recovery from the low point of last year has not been as rapid as was to be expected, the process of improvement now going on, although slow, is neverthe- less, a steady and persistent one. Just prior to and immediately following the Presi- dential election the American manufacturers re-entered the market in more vigorous style than they had done for the whole year, and in November purchases for home consumption totaled at least 100,000,000 lb. and the price advanced to 15 cents, although at the latter figure a very small was contracted for. The overwhelming Republican victory, however, did much to improve senti- ment—and sentiment is a factor never to be disregarded but it cannot be denied that there has been a shade of disappointment at the slowness with which the individual consumer has recovered from the shock of 1907. At this writing there is a natural quietude in the market incident to the period of the year. steadily expanding in consumption, tonnage in any analysis of business The Export Movement, During the past 12 months the foreign visible supply of copper—the amount registered in public warehouses in Great Britain and France— showed such an increase as to alarm quite seriously the holders of copper shares. On December 15 this visible supply stood at 53,634 tons, or an amount exceeding 110,000,000 Ib. This supply, greater than for many years, was taken to indicate that the American excess of production over American de- mands had been shipped abroad and seriously menaced the price of the metal. This foreign visible supply does not include the stocks in the hands of manufacturers, and is but an illustration of the extraordinary buying on the part of the European merchants and dealers when they were convinced that, measured by the cost of production, the metal was intrinsically cheap at between 12 and 13 cents per pound. Had it not been for the extraordinary exports it is difficult to measure the results on the price of copper of our heavy overproduction. In the last 14 weeks of 1907 over 200,000,000 lb. of copper were shipped to Europe and the Far East, and up to March 14 last the enormous total of 355,000,000 Ib. had left the port of New York alone for Europe and Asia since the first day of the year—breaking all previous records. A good sized export movement continued throughout the latter half of 1908, the 11 months for which state- ments have been published showing that over 271,000 gross tons had in that period left this country, which exceeds by 24,000 tons the largest preceding calendar year—1904—and compares with 228,185 tons exported in the entire 12 months of 1907. Appended hereto are figures showing in detail the ex- ports of copper from this country in the past 12 months, the figures of December being estimated: Eaporta of Copper by Months 1908. 1907. Pounds. Pounds. 68,462,560 38,178,560 55,193,600 20,549,760 48,912,800 24,587,680 81,392,640 38,893,120 50.713,600 20,240,640 67,197,760 36,892,800 39,961,600 31,443,760 58,029,440 30,145,920 $3,518,720 38,431,680 49,194,880 35,320,640 15,439,665 76,354,880 10,000,000* 82,956,160 1906. Pounds. 34,287.680 35,394,240 86,809,920 36,579.200 43,142,400 41,740,160 41,023,160 45.769,920 31,626,560 39,262.720 41,330,240 82,155.200 January February March August September October November December 648,017,265 511,134,440 460,230,400 * Estimated. The Import Movement, Imports of copper have been somewhat below those of the two previous years. but were considerably heavier the last quarter of the year than in any previous quarter, showing a marked tendency by other countries In January 21, 1909 THE IRON AGE 217 to ship to the United States. Following is a table show- ing the imports for the past three years: Imports of Copper by Months. 1908. 1907. 1906. Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. GRRURET 56 icicswas .»+ 16,352,000 23,968,000 16,912,000 DUNN boca saans 19,264,000 21,952,000 18,435,200 BON iw ca ak Kaa 14,336,000 28,448,000 22,310,400 WNOEER Sidre 5:c-0 kee eae 16,352,000 25,177,600 17,203,200 NNN a deri eo av .-. 7,892,000 26,454,400 19,678,400 MINES 6 bi ete a ... 13,664,000 20,496,000 19,936,000 PONT ick cA wea dsuae « SBGR 000 30,464,000 19,084,800 MOE ints ds ses cae ee 2I,080, 000 21,504,000 18,681,600 September ......... . 17,920,000 18,144,000 18,222,400 SPOCGNED ok 6 a'ae acini 28,448,000 21,280,000 23,856,000 November .. ; ..-- 20,200,000 18,592,000 21,392,000 December ........... 20,000,000* 14,560,000 18,704,000 OMe hk Had wwe 206,856,000 271,040,000 234,416,000 * Estimated. The Production of Copper in North America, It is now apparent that the copper output of the North American Continent in the year 1908 amounted to fully 1,100,000,000 lb.; these figures include Mexico and Canada. At the present time the production is on a scale greater than has ever been reached before in the annals of the copper industry, and it requires no great prophet to predict that unless there is a great expansion very soon in the consumption or a restriction in the output, the price cannot advance unless artificially stimulated. In attempting to state the production of copper it is pos- sible only to deal in estimates, but those of the Boston News Bureau—which carefully compiles statistics of this nature—are reproduced herewith for the past three years: Production of Copper in North America. 1908. 1907. 1906. Pounds. Pounds. Pounds. WORGOET ccc eadn incense 65,900,000 84,935,143 97,296,400 BORRERES ova See's ce 65,026,750 85,278,160 89,205,800 BEING cola GSR bees 79,105,704 102,495,230 96,480,081 MEE kaa BOSS s OO 87,582,805 96,567,700 98,044,800 ee 90,880,300 98,500,000 103,800,000 WO iis a cits cane 05 Kies 79,431,725 96,123,030 101,666,900 GUN? a0 KER ESOS 92,109,000 98,623,870 99,270,970 MORES 6 iv és hbs ew aks 99,048,700 93,298,107 102,593,034 eee 102,509,125 68,388,800 97,962,000 RR aires cs bs ers ead 106,614,000 67,739,200 98,775,240 ROUND? oi s% a 0% Kets 104,700,575 62,109,575 97,007,500 Sh 107,081,316* 61,131,760 90,147,370 Twelve months. .1,080,000,000* 1,015,000,000 1,172,256,695 * Approximately. These figures, which embrace the principal producers of the United States, Canada and Mexico, are particular- ly valuable because they emphasize the fact that during the second half of 1908 the output has been at a rate never exceeded, in the face of a consumption below the normal on both sides of the Atlantic and in the face of the fact that in Europe consumers have ample supplies and a good deal of copper is being carried speculatively. The only redeeming features are that our home con- sumers are admittedly bare of stocks and that the supply of old copper throughout the world was _ thoroughly cleaned up during the high prices of 1907. So far as the production of copper in the United States proper during 1908 is concerned, the best estimate available is that of L. C. Graton of the United States Geological Survey, whose statistics bear evidence of close knowledge and great care. He places the produc- tion of blister and lake copper in 1908 from ores mined in the United States as greater by about 50,000,000 Ib. than that of 1907, when it was 868,996,491 lb. This would make it 919,000,000 Ib. The New Copper Camps, Unusual interest has been centered in the ability of the new copper camps to make good. An avalanche of new supplies had been forecasted by the prophets of dis- aster, which they said would surely pour on the market as soon as the Utah Copper Company and the producers of Ely, Nev., began to ship their product to the Eastern refineries. The Utah Copper Company, in Bingham, Utah, has made good, and it is to-day making a produc- tion of about 4,000,000 Ib. of copper per month, at a cost of between 8 and 9 cents per pound. It has been the largest individual factor in the new copper production of the past year, but there has been no avalanche. The mines of Ely—the Nevada Consolidated and the Cumberland-Ely—have but begun to ship ores to the big new Steptoe plant, but during 1909 it is not unrea sonable to expect that Ely will turn out between 75,- 000,000 and 100,000,000 Ib. of new copper. Here again the cost, as estimated by those influential in the man agement, is not expected to exceed 9 cents per pound, and may be considerably less than this figure. The ability of the new Bingham mines and those of Ely to make good the claims of those who are predicting an ultimate 8-cent cost for these properties is watched with the utmost in terest. Some investors are disposed to turn from the high cost mines to the shares of those properties which have demonstrated their ability to live and pay dividends on 12-cent copper. The Cost of Production, The cost of making copper during the past 12 months has been materially less than in the year 1907, when it was but natural that extravagant and wasteful methods should accompany the extraordinarily high price for the metal itself. There was great difficulty in 1907 in secur- ing efficient miners—they were autocratic, and in many cases returned but 5 hours’ work for 8 or 9 hours’ pay, and even this work was feeble and of the poorest quality. Since the panic, however, there has been a gradual weed ing out of the drones, and it has been possible, by reason of a larger supply of labor, to make a selection of the best men and to keep those who were employed under the constant fear that unless their work was up to standard their heads would come off. These factors, combined with a curtailment in construction expenditures and a slightly lower cost of materials and supplies, have resulted in reducing the cost of output in this country at least 1 cent per pound. The Butte mines of the Amalgamated Company are to-day making their copper for an average of 10 cents per pound. The Lake Superior mines are doing much better than heretofore as to costs, and the same may be said of the big Arizona producers. Never before in the history of the industry has there been such a careful scrutiny of the operating account. It is true in all of the great copper camps in this country that with depth there has been a lower copper content in a given tonnage of ore. The mines of Butte and those of Lake Superior are reaching great depths, and only by the introduction of the latest machinery aud the treatment of the largest possible tonnage is it pos- sible to produce such operating economies as will offset the declining copper values in the ore treated. The Copper Producers’ Association, As this review is written, it develops that steps have been taken by the largest producing interests in this country to rehabilitate the old Copper Producers’ Asso- ciation which formerly had its headquarters in the Office of the late John Stanton. At a recent meeting in the of- fice of Phelps, Dodge & Co,, New York, there were present representatives of interests producing at least 90 per cent. of the copper products of this country. A commit- tee of three was appointed to select a statistician to col- lect data once a month on output, &e., and to collect in- formation of general interest to the industry. The con viction is that trustworthy statistics, freely published, would do much to prevent wild fluctuations, such as those of the past two years which have done so much to unsettle the consuming trade. It can be said in the most emphatic terms that the suggested organization has no thought of attempting to control by a gentlemen’s agreement or otherwise the out- put of the metal or to force any agreement as to the maintenance of prices. It is to be hoped that in the evo- lution of this progressive and far-sighted policy of pub- licity it will be possible to secure the co-operation of the large consuming interests who will, in return for the in- formation they receive from the producers, make known at the same time conditions in the manufacturing trade, stocks on hand and the extent to which new orders are coming forward. ‘| H i { i i} i { | 218 The Distribution of Copper Shares, Never before has there been such a wide distribution of shares in copper mining companies as followed the panic of 1907 and the early part of 1908. Those who had money took advantage of the necessities of those who were compelled to liquidate and bought copper shares in big lots and in small lots, paid for them and stowed them away in their safe deposit vaults. It was only this ex- traordinary distribution of copper shares in the hands of the public that made possible the astounding recovery made in copper share quotations during the past year from the low level of the preceding 12 months. The Boston News Bureau, in one of its many compi- lations of a similar character, showed in July that the prices of 19 prominent copper stocks had appreciated all the way from 25 to 201 per cent. from the preceding low In November there was a veritable copper share ad- level. boom on the Boston Stock Exchange, following an vance in the metal. It is but natural to expect that there should have been a heavy shrinkage in the amount of dividends paid on 14 cents copper as compared with the extraordinary prof- its on a 25 cent market. In July last, 20 copper stocks were disbursing dividends at the rate of $14,510,000 per annum, against $43,706,966 prevailing at the correspond- ing time a year before. It is quite probable that the average cost of producing copper in this country to-day is somewhere between 1) and 11 cents per pound; it exceeded 12 cents per pound in the year 1907. Conclusion, The next 10 years will be years of extraordinary ac- tivity in all that pertains to copper. The casual observer, if he keeps abreast of the times, has only to look about him to witness the tremendous strides which are being made in the use of electricity as a motive power. The great water powers of the country are being harnessed, and our great railroad systems must sooner or later face the necessity, irrespective of the question of operating economy, of substituting the electric locomotive for the steam engine. This is the electrical age and electricity means cop- per. Copper mines are not made in a day. The success- ful ones represent the expenditure of many millions in underground development and surface equipment before they approach the stage of giving back to the original investor a fraction of the sum which he has planted therein. There are few, if any, industrial propositions which hold out the same degree of promise which is vouchsafed by the conservatively managed copper mines. While for the moment the output is running ahead of the consump- tive demand, this condition is purely transitory, and a recurrence of the heavy buying of two years ago is en- tirely possible when once again the great electrical and manufacturing interests operate their plants to full ca- pacity. Great as have been the achievements of copper in the past, a still greater future awaits us. ei Mica The report that the Canada Iron Corporation, Ltd., Montreal, Canada, has purchased the car wheel works of the Thatcher Car Wheel Company, at Albany, N. Y., is erroneous. J. A. Kilpatrick, manager of the corporation, has leased part of the Thatcher property, and is organiz- ing a new company which will be known as the Albany Car Wheel Company to operate the plant. Within the next three or four months, or as soon as the plant can be over- hauled and put in shape, it is expected that the new com- pany will begin operations. The Albany plant will have no connection whatever with the Canadian interests of the corporation above named. The Kro-van Steel Company, Pittsburgh, has been organized and an application made for a Pennsylvania charter, with a nominal capital. The incorporators are Michael B. Kelly, James P. Kelly and Emanuel Kauf- man. steel, The new company proposes to manufacture iron, copper, aluminum, chromium, vanadium and their THE IRON January 21, 1909 AGE alloys, to manufacture sheets, bars, forgings, plates, cast- ings and shapes made of these metals and their alloys, known as the Kro-van steel products. — > eo A Pels Structural Shape Shear. and to be The practice of shearing bar stock, flats, angles, tees, &¢c., on the ordinary type of throat shears, where a spe- cial set of knives is required for each section is open to objection in that considerable time is lost in changing and setting knives. With aggravating frequence it is found that when there is an angle or flat to be sheared the knives for rounds are in the machine, or vice-versa. Henry Pels & Co., 90 West street, New York City, are now placing a shear on the market which does not have this disadvantage. The illustration shows their type R. E. F. F. shear, designed to shear rounds, squares, flats, angles and tees without change of knives, and a separate head is furnished for shearing I-beams and channels. Referring to the engraving it will be seen that the machine has openings to accommodate work of various sections. Above and below these openings are tool steel - § ‘ S c q X w Ss S \ Shear for Cutting Bar Stock and Structural Shapes, Built by Henry Pels & Co., New York. knives from 34 to 2 in. thickyand from 10 to 24 in. square, varying with the capacity. As allowance is made to ad- just for wear, the life of the knives is very greatly ex- tended. The female knife is firmly fixed in the frame of the machine, and the pressure is applied to the male knife, which moves in a long adjustable guide, actuated through an eccentric by a plunger. With this construc- tion the frame plates have only the tensile strain to with- stand. The frame of this shear, as in all other machines built by this company, is of steel plates, and is guaranteed to be unbreakable. As all working parts are forgings and gearing of semisteel, the shear appears to be as near in- destructible as it is possible to make it. Another point is the saving in floor space, this shear requiring 50 per cent. less, it is claimed, than any shear of the same ¢Ca- pacity with a cast iron frame and the weight is also pro- portionately less. Of this particular machine the special advantage is the ability to shear any section at any time. January 21, 1909 A Carlin Skull Breaker Equipment. For breaking steel furnace bottoms, salamanders and large castings, the Carlin Machinery & Supply Com- pany, North Side, Pittsburgh, Pa., furnishes equipments of which the illustrations, Figs. 1 and 2, are typical, these representing installations made for the Crescent Blasting Company. Fig. 1, the line drawing, shows in outline a contractor's type of boom derrick and a tripod or three-legged drop derrick handling a 1500-lb. ball or drop. In the plan view the tripod derrick shown is located 36 ft. from its center to the center of the boom derrick. The latter is used to serve the drop and for certain classes of work where the metal is too thick to break with the drop. The derrick in such cases unloads the material from cars or from the storage pile, and after it has been drilled, deposits it within the cribbing, where it is broken by the use of high explosives. The cribbing, covered by an old blast furnace bell, serves to prevent the material when broken into fine pieces from being scattered. With this combination a special compound geared single friction drum Lambert hoisting engine operates the drop alone. This engine on its intermediate shaft has a spool or cat head, which can be used for moving cars, dragging material, &c., and a regular contractor’s type of double friction drum engine operates the boom tt i) © \ 18’ a “*, ‘3 \ o : — £ y” ‘ fh 94 / ' | \ STANDARD GAUGE TRACK Fig. 1.—Elevation and Plan of a Carlin Casting Breaking Equipment Using Two Derricks. derrick, one drum for raising the load, the other for raising the boom, thus changing the swing or reach of the derrick. In the more modern plants furnished this company the boom derrick is done away with, the tripod derrick performing all the work of breaking and loading the material by means of a special Lambert hoisting engine. This engine is of the double cylinder type, of 40 hp., triple geared, and has two friction drums, one for raising the drop and the other for loading the broken material. The main or hoisting drum is capable of lifting 18,000 Ib. on a single 114-in. wire rope. A standard gauge rail- road track passes under one of the legs of the tripod. THE IRON AGE 219 A car running on this track brings the unbroken chunks within the reach of the derrick, where they are unloaded piece by piece by the rope used for the drop, and if neces- sary the second drum has its line fast so that the mate- rial cannot swing and put undue strains on the derrick. After the car is removed the piece is broken and the small parts are loaded into a steel scale or box, hoisted by the drop line and pulled sidewise by the swing line over the car on the track, in which it is then removed. A cat head or spool on the engine can be used for mov ing the car. It is claimed that this method of breaking is very much faster than any other in use at the present time, Fig. 2.—A Carlin Single-Derrick Equipment at the Crescent Blasting Company, Monongahela, Pa. and that the first cost of the plant is less than where a derrick or crane is used to serve the breakers. The in- stallation referred to is the third one which has been made in the last year and a half. The second or swinging drum of the engine has a capacity of about 12,000 lb. The engine has 8% x 12 in. cylinders and is geared about 25 to 1. The main drum is 32 in. in diameter and the swinging drum is 30 in., with frictions and brakes of such proportions that they are capable of lifting and sustaining the load under the full control of the operator. The Crescent Blasting Company operates plants of this character in various parts of the country, and it is reported that the outfits they are using have given excellent satisfaction. Fig. 2 is from a photograph of one of the derricks taken at the Crescent Blasting Company, near Monon- gahela, Pa., which simply shows a single derrick, one of boom type, as used to serve a blasting pit. The pit for blasting is shown at the right in the engraving. There is also shown a Dallett portable drill, rope driven, which is used for drilling steel and iron when blasting is to be done. ———_o-+oe—- -— A new expanding mandrel will shortly be placed on the market by the McCrosky Reamer Company, Mead- ville, Pa., which, it is claimed, represents the most ad- vanced development in a tool accessory of its character. sen eee te Russian Iron Trade Conditions. The Proposed Pool of the South Russian Iron Works. BY A RUSSIAN CONTRIBUTOR. In view of the fact that this pool is still “in the air,” owing to the almost insurmountable difficulties which the promoters are encountering, it might of interest to those connected with the American industry to know the whole history of the affair. be Works Dependent Upon Government Orders, In the days prior to the attempt on the part of cer- tain firms to bring about the amalgamation of all the South Russian concerns, the majority of the firms were almost entirely dependent upon the Russian Government for their very existence. As factors in the world’s manu- factured iron trade, their influence was almost nil; not that they made no effort to enter the foreign markets, but because they always met with all kinds of obstacles, the chief of which was the fact of so much of the Rus- Sian ore being exported abroad instead of being manufac- tured at home. For instance, in 1906 the quantity of iron ore produced in the districts of Ekaterinoslav, Upper Dnieper, Kherson and Alexandrisk was 3,454,911 tons, of which 482,239 tons were exported to the United States, Great Britain and the Continent. With regard to man- ganese ore, according to a report of the Mining and Metallurgical Union of the south of Russia, the total world’s production of a quality such as is obtainable in the Caucasus during the last three years averaged 870,- 969 tons per annum, while in the year 1903 about 435.- 484 tons were exported abroad from the Caucasus alone, or exactly half the quantity required by the steel indus- tries of all countries excepting Russia. This was, and is, a serious matter for the South Rus- sian iron works, so much so that the Donetz-Juriev and the Russo-Belgian companies approached the Ministry of Trade and Industry and urged a duty on Russian ore exported of 10 copecks per pood. The imposition of such a duty would, it was stated, considerably diminish the export and afford greater facilities to the native works of increasing their production of ferromanganese for shipment to foreign markets, on which far better prices could be obtained than on the raw material. The price of manganese ore at Poti in 1906 varied from 21 to 22 copecks per pood, or about $10 a ton, whereas ferroman- ganese brought as much as $50 per ton on exportation. Secret Agreement to Divide Government Orders. As there are about 50 blast furnaces in the South Rus- sion region, and the Government was unable, owing to in- ternal troubles, to place big orders, the manufacturers were in a pretty bad way. Therefore, the first step in the matter of forming a combine was made between the various firms when they came to agreement in respect to the execution of Government contracts. It was agreed secretly that each such contract should be split up so that all the concerns participating in the agreement should be kept continually at work. That such an agreement was unavoidable cannot be gainsaid, for no single firm could depend upon receiving one Government contract after another. The results of this agreement, however, it would seem, were not satis- factory, for the Government, being obliged to retrench in all directions, the share received by individual con- cerns was not large enough to make the execution there- of a profitable undertaking. Then came a rupture. The larger firms, feeling that they could always obtain the Government contracts, wanted to withdraw from the agreement, but the smaller firms, who had probably saved themselves from bankruptcy by entering into this secret combine, were naturally not in favor of dissolu- tion. Reaching Out for Foreign Markets, Matters, so to say, muddled along until 1905-6, when the troubles in the Caucasus broke out, which made the business of effecting shipments from Poti very difficult, a circumstance that was favorable to the south Russian THE IRON AGE January 21, 1909 ore producing districts. Matters were further improved by the springing into existence of a foreign demand for ores. Good prices were obtained for ferromanganese, and the south Russian firms entered the markets, with the result that some 20,000 tons were exported. Of this quantity, 12,157 tons were shipped through Mariupol to the United States, the Continent and Great Britain. Of the remainder, about 6000 tons were shipped through Odessa during the winter months. The balance went to Germany and Austro-Hungary by rail. These works also shipped 7865 tons of steel rails to Haifa, and large contracts were concluded for completion in the following vear. Rails aggregating about 14,000 tons were sent to the Roumanian railroads, while the Nicolaieff Shipbuild- ing Works and the South Russian Dnieper Metallurgical Company received orders for about 15,000 tons of steel rails, at the rate of 165 francs per ton, for the Italian State railroads. Further quantities of rails went to Argentina, while girders, merchant iron and iron and steel plates were shipped to Egypt. Syria and the Balkan States. Unfortunately, however, the boom in the iron and steel trades observable in other countries had little effect upon the Russian industry, and many works were forced to seek new markets. With this end in view endeavors were made to create an export trade, and several works in the Donetz Basin obtained some good contracts. It is true that the prices obtained left little margin for profit, but the increased business saved administrative expenses for the manufacturers and so permitted them to keep down the cost of production for the home market. Favors Desired by the South Russian Works. This stepping out into the world’s markets taught the Russian concerns a lesson, and the idea in favor of the pool became stronger than ever. They learned that under existing conditions they could not possibly compete in the markets. They must demand and obtain: A Government bounty on all stock exported. (b) A reduction in the railroad rates and port dues. (c) A reduction in the cost of handling the goods at the ports, which, through the shallowness of the harbors preventing the loading of large ships except by means of lighters, is enormous. (d) A limit being placed upon the exportation of Caucasian ores by means of the imposition of an export duty, as referred to above. (e) An advantage of the Ural mining and smelting districts. To obtain such concessions it was necessary to be pow- erful, and the only way to be powerful was to combine. The movement was therefore made, and the Government was approached. Obstacles to These Demands. Should the above demands (and others) be granted the South Russian pool would be in an unassailable po- sition. ‘There are, however, many argum