The Iron Age 1911-05-11: Vol 87 Iss 19

THE IRON AGE > Established 1855 Published Every Thursday by the DAVID WILLIAMS COMPANY 239 West29th Street, New York Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter Subscription Price, United States and Mexico, $5.00 per Annum; to Canada, $7.50 per Annum ; to Other Foreign Countries, $10.00 per Annum. Single Copies : 20 Cents. CHARLES T. ROOT » ° _ PRESIDENT W. H. TAYLOR TREASURER AND GENERAL MANAGER SECRETARY EDITORS Branch Offices Philadelphia, Real Estate Trust Building Chicago, Fisher Building Pittsburgh, Park Building Cleveland, American Trust Building Boston, Compton Building Cincinnati, 807 Andrews Building J HAROLD S. BUTTENHEIM - ~ - Geo, W. COPE A. |. FINDLEY WwW. W. MACON CONTENTS. eee. SiRi TN a ne na aha ey oe aes a ead ba eee ome ae b 1123 ee apede . CONS ie I og oe wae dbdie peais.t ve -0.8's se o-0dceees 1124 The New Art in Automobile Building..................+..- 1124 Price Concessions on Export Trade...........scseeeeevess 1125 CE caches ps de ids Shad ERae ener ea ss cee enn 1126 The Machinists’ Strike in New York and New Jersey......... 1126 Employers’ Liability in New York State..........s.eeeeeeees 1126 The Blaisdell Machinery Company............-sseeecececees 1126 Lake Iron Ore Shipments in April..............0cceceeeees 1127 The Vulcan Detinning Company’s Year..............0-.0055 1127 The Hess Steel Castings Company...........0eeeeeeeceeees 1127 The Haskell & Barker Steel Car Plant..........c0seeeeeeees 1127 the Tron and Metal Marlets....0.0. 0. cccccsectestesecdes 1128-37 POS «25 Se CEMA SRR oss Co boi eR Ree ees ban 1138 UNE: ou wine mibCTern LOY sa scan aes Sad we Chen xg 1138 age. PO as a ace oh eine, ck Wes Des siden’ «dlaraie 1139 peters for Fouekey Gait: 655 6a. 5 cots Seek do ac ccuedeeaee 1140 The Victor-Balata & Textile Belting Company............... 1142 Carnegie Publications on Steel Mine Timbers.............. 1142 The Steel Corporation Buys the Risdon Works.............. 1142 Extras on Bars and Shapes from Waverly Warehouse........ 1143 The Betterment of Steel Works Labor Conditions.;:.......... 1144 The Philadelphia Foundrymen’s Association. ..,.....-.+.--- 1149 The Pennsylvania Steel Company’s Report... ....2.20°"2.... 1150 Sovetrinnety > PCUCRMRNERL . cr evan ddR cape pes des kobe o% 1150 April Copper Production and Stocks.............eeeeeseeees 1150 German Automobiles—Depreciation and Repair Cost........-. 1151 The Porceliron: Stove COMBBAVs 666s iccsscccccccitestcaccte 1151 B Railroad Shingsks::Sarehees «ooo bs 5 WR cds sca oaw nn ows 1151 Milling Cutters and Their Efficiency.............e0eeeese: . 1152 Railroad Rauinete = Se wie tock ox 0% 03 Sdn) oc Pie bs Caen 1156 The Determination of Manganese in the Presence of Chromium 1156 Dry \ir Blast at a British Furnace Plant................. 1157 he American Institute of Mining Engineers............-.+: 1157 The Newark Foundrymen’s Association.............-.+-++- 1157 Molding a Cone Pulley on an International Turn-Over Machine 1158 a Henry & Wright Radial Drilling Machine............ 1159 € lite Star Individual-Continuous Oiling System....... . 1160 Aut matic Electrig Freight: Frets. < spc csehe wes os cdees ctnees 1161 The Precision Simmance-Abady COs Recorder.............. 1162 - Positive Improved Transmission Appliances.............- 1163 a t Large: Baw'- Triste Paes: sso eve crn's bebe eceneages 1164 mstoms “EWGROM ES inks wor dicns 4's b Selb'c bap Vig bi wok Sew OOD 1164 da ' = able Conveyor for Handling Kegs..........0-.000005 1165 B. ua in Baldwin Locomotive Works................. 1165 “a se Records at Ensley Furnaces...............000005 1165 : MRAP Blower Applied to Vacuum Cleaning............ 1166 = ige Cast TOO OI ss iki. 53.5 shad Ria b sen hie on oe ale and 00 63 Die 1166 os General Eisele Seba oo soa au dak civlbw el ages beeaes 4 1166 ubeys with Cork Set tn Baebes S0.iii tits sive ves deetenetace dae 1167 Ruet-Proof, Sti: PMAGHis «bic 4i Sikahb. esdsedn deanckees 1167 The Ma linet PRR iii: as cod ewe nos can shale waa 1168 New York, May 11, 1911 VOL. 87: No. 19 Further Rail Buying A 40,000-Ton Order from the St. Paul Low Prices on Bar Iron—Large Sales of Southern Iron—The Steel Corporation’s Orders The meetings of the steel manufacturers in New York in the past week have thrown little light on the situation. What was most marked was the resignation of the leaders of the industry to a condition of inac- tivity that has few parallels. That the question of prices was not the live issue it has been at other meet- ings shows that buyers are too indifferent even to make a serious effort to depress the market. While the manufacturers agree that sales cannot under such conditions, some take a more serious view than of the immediate future. These see in legislative developments the possibility of changes in standards which may have a far-reaching effect upon values, and this explains to their minds the paralysis which has overtaken demand. be forced others Actual developments in the market have been meagre, but are rather unfavorable than otherwise. A disturbing factor in the Lake ore trade has been the sales of scattering lots of non-Bessemer ores at cut prices. It is pointed out that the ores in question are at a disadvantage as to ease of furnace working, but the fact that they have sold below the parity deter- mined by their analysis has been given significance. Sales of Southern iron for quick shipment have been made at $10.75 and in some cases at $10.50 for No. 2 at Birmingham, and this weakness has developed in a very listless market. For delivery through the year $11 is generally maintained and the low priced sales were made to realize on unwieldy stocks. Sales of Southern iron, chiefly to pipe wompanies, have amounted to,more than 50,000 tons, therbulk of it being sold by the larger producers. ‘he At Buffalo a better demand for foundty iron has appeared in the past few days, but in general North- ern buyers of foundry irons are holding aloof. A sale of 5000 tons of basic iron has been made in eastern Pennsylvania and negotiations are pending for a round lot for another steel company. Other business has been offered at a price below $15, deliv- ered, which furnaces refuse to consider. Low prices were brought out by an Ohio inquiry for 3000 tons of basic iron, but the business has not been closed. A steel foundry interest is inquiring for 5000 tons of basic for its Alliance, Ohio, and St. Louis district plants. The operations of a number of rolling mills have fallen below 50 per cent. and steel companies are ad- justing their pig iron output to the new situation as rapidly as possible, One steel company is blowing out two Shenango Valley furnaces this week. The Steel Corporation has 62 per cent. of its blast furnace capac- ity going. naan Meme " 7 $ Hy i { 4 a ie tale eel ian eis 1124 There has been a further decline in bar iron in both Eastern and Western markets, and while the buy- ing has not been large it has raised a question as to the maintenance of steel bar prices. Implement buy- ers are influenced by pending legislation affecting farm- ing interests and there is continued uncertainty as to bar contracts usually placed before June. The steel for the Woolworth Building, New York, 22,000 tons, has been placed with the American Bridge Company. In the West structural buying has been generally light. For the battleship New York the contract for plates, 6500 tons, has been given to Worth Brothers. About 3100 tons of shapes are yet to be awarded. Los Angeles is planning to build an aqueduct which will take 4500 tons of plates. The Louisville & Nashville has bought 15,000 tons of rails from the Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad Company, and the St. Paul has closed for 40,000 tons with the Illinois Steel Company, half of it for prompt shipment. The Kansas City Southern is in the market for 14,000 tons. The Monon has bought 4,000 tons. Of the Seaboard Air Line order 3700 tons went to Spar- row’s Point, 4000 tons to Ensley. sethlehem and 7500 tons to Among wrought pipe sales are reported 2000 tons of 6-in. pipe for a Wyoming line and 8000 tons of 8-in. pipe for the Mexican Petroleum Company. The United States Steel Corporation’s unfilled or- ders April 30 were 3,218,704 tons, against 3,447,301 tons reported for March 3:, a falling off of 229,000 tons. sinnnnieniinilahlinesilaieetc Pig Iron Costs in Alabama The cost of making pig iron in the Birmingham, Ala., district has come up again in connection with the discussion, started at Washington, of the ability of that district to stand the addition of certain steel products to the free list. Again it has turned out that boastful statements of low cost of production made in the inter- est of a particular district or producing company have returned to plague the authors. necessary to say over and over that costs reached in a time of the direst industrial distress the country has seen are no proof of ability to give an adequate return Yet it would seem un- to capital and maintain any such wage rates as to- Ccay’s on the same market price. Vice-President J. W. McQueen, of the Sloss-Shef- field Coal & Iron Company, writing in the Birmingham Age-Herald of the claims made as to the low cost of pig iron production at Birmingham, based on the ex- ports of pig iron from that district to Europe in 1896 and 1897, tells what is well known in the iron trade of the basis on which such exports were made: It was so exported without a dollar of profit to keep plants going and men employed to avoid a disruption of organizations at a time when Southern furnace companies were so poor that they could not have closed down and met their obligations. In counting the cost of such iron no allowance was made for the minerals taken out of the ground or the cost of replacing the land so exhausted; it was a matter of temporary expediency which if persisted in would have ruined the district exporting its valuable minerals for other people to work them up with cheap labor and return the finished products to our country. In those days the cost of living was 60 per cent of what it is to-day, and wages were correspondingly low. If it becomes neces- sary again to produce pig iron at Mr. Underwood's figure—$7.50 per ton—it will become necessary to accompany it by a 40 per cent reduction in all labor costs. At that time also the outcrop ores of Red Mountain, averaging 50 per cent in richness, were being mined by hand power, and loaded at trifling cost, in some cases not exceeding 50 cents per ton. It is now necessary to have expensive power plants, the soft ores having been exhausted, to follow the 32 to 38 per cent ores, in some cases even below the sea THE IRON AGE level, with expensive drilling, hoisting, ventilating and »,; Similar increases have followed in many cases the operatio: mines, where the more accessible outcrops have long sirce attacked, and operations are now pursued following the operat : of deep shafts and slopes with expensive systems of underground hosiage: -* * * When iron was made cheaper in this district, day getting from 85c to $1 a day; the miner for cutting coal, 6c per ton, and some mines lower than this; while now day labor is getting from $1.25 to $1.75, and the miner for cutting coal, some mines more than this. ‘abor was ¢ tC and The tenacity with which some minds grip the idea that cost is a fixed quantity is only equaled by their persistence in thinking that a selling price fixed by the urgent necessities of a time of depression should be repeated indefinitely in prosperous times. It is evident that the claim of a $7.50 pig iron cost in the Birming- ham district has been about as useful to the industry there as the widely quoted remark of a Northern steel manufacturer concerning a $12 rail cost has been to the steel rail producers of the country. The New Art in Automobile Building Shoddy-built automobiles soon begin to look shabby. 3ut some automobiles of high price share this short- coming. To remain presentable they require more than elaborate caretaking. Repairs relating mainly to their appearance take them out of commission with a frequency not paralleled in ordinary carriages. The bills, too, are annoying, partly because the auditing of them is irksome. And owners of automobiles, who have been more lenient in the past with the appear- ance of their automobiles than with that of their car- riages, their persons or their houses, are now very generally reaching the point of demanding full service in style as well as in mechanical reliability. They de- mand that it shall be possible to keep the automobile very neat and trim long after its body shape may have become outfashioned, and that the price and trouble in doing so shall, of course, be at a minimum. Certain fenders are easily crumpled or twisted. Certain motor hoods are liable to become scratched and dented, because they are in the way when the motor is looked after and the workman leans on them and puts tools on them, or they are too thin or shaped so as to lack strength and springiness; the enamel cracks off of them. Certain springs get rusty because the paint does not stick to them; others creak in the joints for lack of bushings in eyes and shackles and for lack of oil cups. Certain tire shoes ravel, and certain armor bands gather dirt at the sides, while others really make the whole wheel appear more busi- nesslike and fit. Certain drip pans, besides adding to the fire risk in garages, are permanently dirty or permanently rusty, because their construction, involv- ing large makes a convenient cleaning process, with a hose, inadvisable. Certain upholster- ings are anything but weatherproof and soon look cracked, grimy and faded. Certain rear wheels in con- junction with the brake-drum attachments lose their varnish and paint quickly, because mud has to be scraped and wiped off. It is possible to go through the whole list of parts and accessories of an up-to-date automobile and pick distinct preferences in design, types and arrangements wholly according to the greater or lesser amount of work, trouble and cost involved in keeping the vehicle looking trim and neat for a series of years. And all these minute consider- ations are, of course, to be reconciled with the opera tive requirements which have almost monopolized at- apertures, May II, 1911 THE IRON AGE 1125 tent n in the past years, but which for lack of ex- -e experience in determining the conditions for a <ybstantial durability have been viewed in many in- es without systematic regard for the data of up- ep cost and depreciation. he new art in automobile building seems to be »« more nor less than a sharp accentuation of all factors, often apparently minute, which bear the maintenance of a maximum value for the mobile in the second, third, fourth, fifth, perhaps the tenth year of its usefulness. All first-class man- cturers have, of course, always recognized the ms of this art. Their recognition of it was largely vhat gave them class over and above their competi- But it is only lately that a sufficient volume of on upkeep cost and depreciation has become avail- permit a systematic cultivation of the art. In ense it is new. It rests on the keeping of records actuarian accuracy, the records telling just how nd when, in the life of an automobile, its normal use s up to the necessity for new expense. Some of records are in the possession of manufacturers keep them secret for their own guidance. They not accurate nor exhaustive; they apply somewhat iscriminately to automobiles of slightly varying de- sign and materials; but, such as they are, they tell 1 story which leads to improvements which reduce the nnual depreciation. Better records, more unbiased id more essential, in applying to many different types automobiles with sharp distinction as to whether the data apply to one type or another, are in the hands ‘i the automobile insurance companies and are guarded W ith jealous care, as their proper interpretation spells rates for premiums and for the yearly reduction of the insurance principal, The taxicab companies have ccumulated data of high value in this branch of the istry, and the express companies and other large isers of motor trucks and delivery wagons, who keep n account for each vehicle in their service, should able to give most valuable pointers to the manu- turers whose products they employ, and have, in given many such in the past. In these data neralities count for nothing, specific facts for rything. It is in truth the function and value of e specific facts that they round off and supplement ¢ more generalized knowledge of constructiori science vhich the designing engineer was guided in the place. ‘he purchaser of automobiles is naturally inter- ested in having the automobile industry in its en- tirety ex become deeply impressed with the necessity for udying the ways and means for increasing durability ll details and thereby reducing depreciation. A ser union of mecharfics, art and general industrial perience than has heretofore been the rule is to this nd desirable, but the first requisite of all is that both manufacturers and purchasers—the latter mainly for sake of control and to spur on real efforts—become uainted with the data of depreciation, which are ) the data of maintenance cost seen in its relation specific construction and materials. Publicity for (data already gathered would constitute the most ‘ective means, but is opposed by private interests. 1 cre remains a public discussion of details to which may contribute from their individual experience ' which by degrees will be rounded off into a re- ctable aggregation of facts. The subject has been ached in Germany, and there is presented elsewhere in this issue an extract from one of the articles ap- pearing there. It will give an idea of what is ex- pected of a pleasure automobile in Germany, by the in- surance companies, and the schedule of repair “ex- pectations” which it offers may be compared by the owner of American automobiles with the facts of his own experience, arranged in similar schedule form. The result could not help being of interest. A num- ber of such schedules, although the specific construc- tion may remain unrevealed in each instance, would at least disclose how much longer corresponding parts remain in good condition in one case than in another, and this knowledge gained by the owner would not be slow in reaching the maker who still lags behind and fails to provide his product with a “good consti- tution.” Price Concessions on Export Trade Whereas the sale of manufactured products in the foreign trade at prices below those prevailing at home is generally charged upon protection countries like Germany and the United States, as growing out of their fiscal system, we note that one of our London exchanges finds fault with the same practice in Great Britain. The Jronmonger says that the Association of Bar Iron Manufacturers in Lancashire charges the home consumer £6 15s. per ton for crown bar iron, while “it is necessary, in order to get rid of the surplus, to sell large quantities for export at from 7s. 6d. to ros. a ton below the association’s price to home buyers.” Then we are told that “the British home trade pays for the reduced rates for export,” just as “the Amer- ican consumer pays for the cheap semifinished steel which the Americans dump here.” The question is so old that we refer to the Lancashire bar iron case not so much to comment upon it as to show that the issue is bound to come up wherever there is an inner and an outer trade. For a manufacturer to sell all his product at the price made by the sharpest competition he meets anywhere in the worll’s mar- kets would seriously curtail his profits. It is one way of putting it to say that his home customers who pay his usual price pay for the concession he makes on distant business. They pay for it in the same way, let us say, in which they pay for the product he sells to concerns from which he is unable to collect anything— the way, in fact, in which they pay for every other expense of his business. There is a question of ex- pediency in all these concessions to secure distant for- eign trade. If the industrial countries of the world were able to parcel out the business so that the pro- ducing country nearest a given market would supply that market the whole matter would be simplified Some such arrangement is aimed at now and then, but it is exceptional. The web of the world’s trade is so tangled, and political and national lines so connect widely separated countries, that economic considera- tions are often a small factor in determining the placing of an order. It is common to condemn the sales various steel- making countries make to countries having no steel in- dustry, and to inveigh against a condition under which countries that do not make steel pay the lowest price for it. Yet perhaps there is less to condemn in low prices on neutral ground, where several producing companies compete sharply for an order, than in the practice, once much more common than it is to-day so far as the steel trade is concerned, of dumping product é& 7 ‘ * % 3 . AE Rabie? eee oc aa Ew ' ag he a Alay * ‘ae? ert . bia %, 7 + ee. 4 © t p % 1126 THE IRON AGE on a foreign producer's territory for the sake of mak- ing a hot pace for him at home. It is forgotten in some of the criticisms of lower prices to the buyer in a non-producing country that the price such a country pays may yet be higher, gauged by ability to pay, than that prevailing in the country of production. In other words, the basis of price which increases the use of steel in one country must necessarily be lower than that which will make a large demand for it in the country of production. Divesting the question of all political and_ tariff phases, it comes down to a matter of national standards of value and of living. The buyer of material which enters into manufacture considers that he is handi- capped in world markets if he must meet there a product into which similar material entered, which his foreign competitor bought at a concession from the same home producer. Yet, with all the unpopularity of the differential to a foreign buyer, it is quite certain that the alternative of such a general lowering of home standards as would permit the home manufacturer to sell all his product on the same low basis would be far more unpopular. It is an economic question, involving adjustments of far-reaching influence, and the problem will exist whatever may be the scale of duties on im- ports. In the effort to solve it, there must be weighed against individual inequalities or hardships the value of an export outlet for home products—one that can be counted upon, whatever the conditions at home. A price must be paid for it; of that there should be no doubt. It should not be difficult to decide, moreover, that a greater price would be involved in going with- out it. Correspondence Electric Steel Production at Dommeldingen To the Editor: Referring to your issue of May 4, in the article entitled “Electric Steel Production at a German Works,” a slight error was made in the second paragraph, in which it says that a 1% ton furnace takes direct cur- rent. This should be 3-phase, alternating current of 50 cycles. It might also be of interest to your readers to know that all of the steel produced at the works of Le Gallais, Metz & Co., at Dommeldingen, is electric steel made in in the Roechling-Rodenhauser furnace. AMERICAN ELectric FURNACE COMPANY. te The Machinists’ Strike in New York and New Jersey In Greater New York and Hudson County, N. J., 92 firms which have refused to grant the demand of the In- ternational Association of Machinists of the 15th District for an eight-hour day, have joined interests in fighting the strike which went into effect May 1. The committee of ten, consisting of five representatives of firms in the National Metal Trades Association and five representatives of firms not affiliated, has been appointed to handle the situa- tion during the strike. The committee consists of H. N. Covell, Lidgerwood Mfg. Company; Stevenson Taylor, Quintard Iron Works; Andrew Fletcher, W. & A. Fletcher Company; George E. Franquist, Simplex Auto Company, and William J. Davidson, Staten Island Ship- building Company, representing the National Metal Trades Association, and the following representatives of the independent firms: Walter S. Smith, E. W. Bliss & Co.; William J. Blair, Blair Tool & Machine Works: Ed- win E. Sherman, James Sherman & Sons; Walter H. Gill, P. H, Gill & Son; Conrad Hubert, American Ever Ready Company. Commissioner Robert Wuest of the National Metal Trades Association, who is filling the places of the strik- May II, IQIy ers, has issued a statement that only 1268 machinis: left their employment in shops owned by member: Metal Trades Association. The strike was dec! only five shops operated by the association, and {fr two of these shops all of the machinists went 0; Mr. Wuest’s report includes ‘the statement that et couraging feature of the situation is the fact that th, iets bers do not require all the machinists brought to Ne, York to take the places vacated by the strikers. Th, ion leaders declare that over 16,000 machinists are oy strike, but the employers’ committee places the number 3; gooo, R. Hoe & Co., manufacturers of printing presses. n a circular letter to their customers, explain their position regarding the strike as follows: It is a serious matter to us, and to the publishers and printers as well, because the hours of work were not long ago reduced un- fron ten to nine, and, in addition, wages have. been steadily ady iVance:r and the cost of materials has greatly increased. We have reduc the prices of our presses by taking advantage of every improve method and appliance in manufacturing, until the lowest possib| point has been reached, and any further shortening of the working day would necessitate a corresponding increase in the selling price of presses. To run the shop but eight hours daily and continue ti present output would necessitate increasing our plant by one-nint! a proposition so serious that it cannot be considered for a moment in the present condition of the printing press business. Employers’ Liability in New York State in view of the New York Court of Appeals decision declaring unconstitutional the compulsory compensation law placed on the statute books as a result of the work of the Wainwright employers’ liability commission, the com- mission submitted another report to the Legislature at Albany last week discussing the methods by which what was desired to be accomplished in that law can be secured for the workmen of the State. The best plan, the report says, is to amend the constitution, authorizing the Legis- lature to provide for the payment of compensation, with or without the right of trial by jury and with or without regard to fault, to employees injured by accidents of em- ployment or to persons dependent upon them. Of the objection that such an amendment would leave unaffected the “due process” clause of the Federal Constitution the report says that from a careful study of United States Supreme Court decisions, there is good ground for expect- ing that in interpreting the “due process” clause the court will hold that reasonable legislation for the establishment of a compulsory compensation or insurance plan may be sustained as a legitimate exercise of the police power, particularly where there is a provision in the Constitution of the State enacting such legislation which expressly authorizes this method of dealing with industrial accidents ee The Blaisdell Machinery Company The Blaisdell Machinery Company, Bradford, Pa., has opened a Pittsburgh office at 907 People’s National Bank Building, in charge of J. M. Read. The business in the Pittsburgh district was formerly handled from the main office in Bradford. The company is manufacturing a very high grade of entirely inclosed self-oiling compressors and a line of vacuum cleaning machinery which embodies some of the latest and most advanced ideas in this work. Another product of the company is the Blaisdell auto matic sewage ejector, used for ®raising sewage or other waste from below the same level. It is being used to a large extent in office buildings and for municipal plants where sewage by gravity is not possible. The company 's installing a large municipal plant in Plainfield, MJ. which is designed to care for over 400 gal. of sewage per min. and is operated by electrically driven air compressors equipped with automatic controls. As the business of the company is steadily increasing, the opening of other offices within the next few months is contemplated. —-<-- The Ohio Society of Mechanical, Electrical and Steam Engineers will hold its twenty-third meeting May 18 and 19, in the Elks Club Auditorium, Youngstown, Ohio. A® interesting programme has been issued, which gives the titles. of quite a number of engineering papers to be read, together with details of excursions to be made to industries in the locality. May 11, 1911 Lake Iron Ore Shipments in April e April.shipments of Lake Superior iron ore from lake docks were but little more than one-fifth of in April, 1910—331,645 gross tons against 1,520,305 The record for the various ports is as follows, comparison with 1910: -——Gross Tons.——, April, April, 1911. 1910. MPT Te Cs ee ee eye 93,532 223,025 the |. << ce sienna ee 14,838 135,559 1. c0ewdalels si etatne ead Walla pao nee 41,337 218,703 rrr er eT eee 76,739 355,307 oe wi 630 Up aeons eReie eek 51,042 309,427 woken dé aEL Qeetee toate 54,157 278,284 331,645 1,520,305 fhe Franklin Machinery Company, Franklin, Pa., ilder of high grade horizontal and universal boring, rilling and milling machines and power milling machines, s appointed Manning, Maxwell & Moore its sales repre- tatives for the greater portion of the United States ind also to handle its sales in Japan and China. The mpany has excellent connections with foundry and other itside machine interests which enables it to contract for lite a number of its machine tools at one time for in- stallation at a later date. The company also endeavors | times to have a certain number of machines going ugh the process of construction so that its stock of hines for immediate shipment permits of selection and k replacement. It is about to install another gas ngine and is considering both an individual engine and direct-connected engine and generator for power and ehting. Its plant is built on the unit plan, and can be ided to in a comparatively short time when desirable. Oe The Vulcan Detinning Company’s Year lhe Vulcan Detinning Company reports its net profits tor the year ended March 31, 1911, after an allowance tor depreciation, at $110,056. The payment of preferred ividends, amounting to $82,500, left $27,556 to be added surplus. President Eugene E. Spiegelberg says: “The slack condition of trade which has prevailed in most lines | business during the year, and the resulting unfavorable position of the steel market for the larger part of the eriod had a depressing influence upon the sale of our steel scrap product and upon the prices obtained for it. On e other hand, the price of pig tin, which likewise forms art of our output, experienced a considerable advance, eginning in July, 1910, and thereby offset to some degree recession in steel scrap. In our proceedings against \merican Can Company for an accounting of profits ide by it in detinning by our process, the taking of testi- ny before the special master, William J. Magie, is com- pleted, the arguments by opposing counsel have -been made, ind briefs are now being submitted. The finding of the special master should be handed to the court of chancery etore very long, from which finding there may be an appeal.” —_—————_.»26-———— "he United Engineering & Foundry Company, Pitts- urgh, has received a contract from Dilworth, Porter & Ltd., of that city, for the building of a new 18-in. mill for rolling tie plates. The mill will consist of 2 stands ' 18-in, 3-high rolls with pinions, tilting tables, transefers runouts, ete. The mill will be motor driven, with rope ifive The National Tube Company, Pittsburgh, has received order for 40 miles of 6-in. steel pipe for shipment to ming. ‘he Wheeling Mold & Foundry Company, Wheeling, \a., has received an order from the Portsmouth Steel pany, Portsmouth, O., for the building of four hot ct mills and other equipment. \ course in mining engineering is to be established in cy College, the mechanical engineering school of ‘nell University. To supplement the theoretical work ‘ining and metallurgy it is planned to provide summer in mining districts. THE IRON 1127 AGE The Hess Steel Castings Company The new foundry of the Hess Steel Castings Company, Bridgeton, N. J., is now completed and castings are being poured. The process is a new one, originating with the Flexilis Werke, of Germany, and it opens new possibili- ties in the economical production of automobile and engine parts, high-pressure piping, and other difficult shapes where the quantity or form does not justify the use of dies. Castings made of this process can be poured in intri- cate shapes quite unknown in the steel founder's art as hitherto practiced. For example, thin ribs can be set on thick sections with small fillets and with no sponginess of texture where the light and heavy sections join. The allowance required for finishing is also very small, partly because the shrinkage is uniform, but chiefly because the metal is sound from the surface down, rendering it un- necessary to machine off from one-fourth to one-half inch in order to reach good metal. Another advantage of the process is the small time necessary for annealing, only a few hours being usually required. ————__—_.9---——————— The Associated Foundry Foremen of Philadelphia and Vicinity held their regular monthly meeting at the Manu- facturers’ Club, Philadelphia, Pa., on the evening of May 9 with Vice-president James Whitehead in the chair. R. T. Thum, representing the Girard Iron Works, Philadel- phia, was elected a delegate to attend the convention of the Associated Foundry Foremen, at the Pitts- burgh convention May 23 to 27. Action on the revi- sion of the by-laws of the association was deferred until the June meeting. The paper for the evening’s discus- sion was on “Methods of Coke Manufacture” by C. M. Schwerin, manager Vinton Colliery Company, New York. He described in detail the formation and adaptability of various coals for coking purposes, the various ovens, from the old beehive to the modern by-product types, and the adaptability of various classes of coke for foundry and general metallurgical practice. In the discussion which followed the reading of the paper, the question of melting ratio, the methods of charging cupolas and other points of interest in connection with foundry practice were brought out. A vote of thanks was extended Mr. Schwerin for his interesting paper, after which the meet- ing adjourned. The Haskell & Barker Steel Car Plant.—The Has- kell & Barker Car Company, Michigan City, Ingl., states that its recent purchase of land will be used for the pur- pose of erecting new shops, the board of trustees having voted to expend $1,250,000 in enlarging and improving the plant. The present facilities of the company are limited to steel underframe cars, but with the contemplated im- provements it will build all steel cars. Later the company also expects to take up the manufacture of front end steel cars for passenger trains. It further contemplates the installation of a steel foundry for the manufacture of cast-steel!/ttiick frames, cast-steel couplers, étc., its present foundries being devoted to malleable, gray iron, wheel and brass work. The Interstate Steel & Supply Company, 5102 Jenkins Arcade Building, Pittsburgh, of which C. T. Herron is president and treasurer, deals in iron, steel, coal, coke, sheets, and mine, mill and foundry supplies, and makes a specialty of Conneaut shovels and spades, made by the Conneaut Shovel Company, Conneaut, Ohio, and hickory handles for axes, hammers, sledges, etc, made by the Seamer Handle Company, Manor, Pa. The proposed investigation of the United States Steel Corporation by Congress, it is believed, will force the government to make public the result of the thorough inquiry into its affairs by the Department of Commerce and Labor. It is known privately that this investigation has resulted in complete vindication of the corporation, both as a legal and manufacturing organization. The Keystone Bronze Company, Pittsburgh, Pa. is installing some new machinery at its Brighton Works, New Brighton, Pa., and also at its Pittsburgh Works at Thirty-ninth street in that city. No additions are being made to buildings, and no material extensions are con- templated at present. — 1128 THE IRON AGE May II, 191 The Iron and Metal Markets A Comparison of Prices Advances Over the Previous Week in Heavy Type, Declines in Italics. At date, ore week, one month and one year previous, May 10, May 3, Apr.12, May 11, PIG IRON,Per Gross Ton: 1911. 1911. 1911. 1910. Foundry No. 2, standard, Phila- EE: Cavs eee kee setae ean won ee $15.50 $15.50 $15.50 $17.00 Foundry No. 2, Valley furnace.... 13.75 13.75 13.75 15.50 Foundry No. 2, Southern, Cincin- iki aca ea hae s bees 3s 14.25 14.25 14.25 5.25 Foundry No. 2, Birmingham, Ala.. 11.00 11.00 11.00 12.00 Foundry No, 2, local, at furnace, ccccveaurs cn eenéy ees 15.00 15.00 15.50 17.00 Basic, delivered, eastern Pa........ 15.00 15.00 15.25 17.00 Basic, Valley furnace ............ 13.50 13.60 13.75 15.25 Bessemer, Pittsburgh ............. 15.90 15.90 15.90 17.90 Bray forge, Pittsburgh............ 14.40 14.40 14.40 15.90 Lake Superior charcoal, Chicago... 17.50 17.50 17.50 18.50 COKE, CONNELLSVILLE, Per Net Ton, at oven: Furnace coke, prompt shipment...., 1.55 1.55 1.60 1.65 Furnace coke, future delivery..... 1.75 1.75 1.75 1.80 Foundry coke, prompt shipment.... 1.85 1.99 2.00 2.15 Foundry coke, future delivery..... 2.10 2:45 2.25 2.35 BILLETS, &c., Per Gross Ton: Bessemer billets, Pittsburgh....... 23.00 23.00 23.00 26.50 Forging billets, Pittsburgh........ 28.00 28.00 28.00 32.00 Open hearth billets, Philadelphia... 25.40 25.40 25.40 29.00 Wire rods, Pittsburgh............ 29.00 29.00 29.00 32.00 OLD MATERIAL, Per Gross Tun: SPGG) “PU, PRMD so icc se ccecsae 14.00 14.25 14.50 17.50 Iron rails, Philadelphia............ 16.75 16.75 17.50 20.00 ee ee 12.75 13.25 13.25 16.00 Car wheeis, Philadelpbia.......... 13.00 13.00 13.25 15.00 Heavy steel scrap, Pittsburgh..... 12.50 12.50 13.25 15.50 Heavy steel scrap, Chicago........ 10.25 11.50 11.50 13.50 Heavy steel scrap, Philadelphia.... 13.00 13.00 13.50 15.00 FINISHED IRON AND STEEL, Per Pound: Cents. Cents. Cents. Cents Bessemer steel rails, heavy, at mill. 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.25 Refined iron bars, Philadelphia.... 1.32% 1.32% 1.37% 1.50 Common iron bars, Chicago....... 1.22% 1.25 1.25 1.50 Common iron bars, Pittsburgh.... 1.30 1.32% 1.35 1.55 Steel bars, tidewater, New York.. 1.56 1.56 1.56 1.61 Steel bars, Pittsburgh............. 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.45 Tank plates, tidewater, New York.. 1.56 1.56 1.56 1.66 Tank plates, Pittsburgh........... 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.50 Beams, tidewater, New York...... 156 1.56 1.56 1.66 SOONER, TW RRUPE ic ccs cccvccsave 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.50 Angles, tidewater, New York...... 1.56 1.56 1.56 1.66 PE,” OUI Sos akin s cine ssecs 1.40 1.40 1.40 1.50 Skelp, grooved steel, Pittsburgh.... 130 LM. U1 OI Skelp, sheared steel, Pittsburgh.... as «62.35: BSS SHEETS, NAILS AND WIRE, Per Pound: Cents. Cents. Cents. Cents. Sheets, black, No, 28, Pittsburgh.. 2.20 2.20 2.20 2.40 Wire nails, Pittsburgh7........... 180 1.80 1.80 1.85 eee 1.60 1.60 1.70 1.85 2.10 2.10 2.10 2.15 3arb wire, galvanized, Pittsburgh. _ *The average switching charge for delivery to foundries in the Chicago district is 50c. per ton. 7These prices are for largest lots to jobbers. Prices of Finished Iron and Steel f.o.b. Pittsburgh Freight rates from Pittsburgh in carloads, per 100 lb.: New York, 16c.; Philadelphia, 15c.; Boston, 18c.; Buffalo, r1c.; Cleveland, 1oc.; Cincinnati, 15c.; Indian- apolis, 17c.; Chicago, 18c.; St. Paul, 32c.; St. Louis, 22%4c.; New Orleans, goc.; Birmingham, Ala., 45c., Rates to the Pacific Coast are 8oc. on plates, structural shapes and sheets, No. 11 and heavier; 85c. on sheets, Nos. 12 to 16; 95c¢. on sheets, No. 16 and lighter; 65¢c. on wrought boiler tubes. Structural Material—I-beams and channels, 3 to 15 in., inclusive, 1.40c. to 1.45¢.,net; I-beams over I5 in., 1.50c. to 1.55c., net; H-beams over 8-in., I.55c. to 1.60c.; an- gles, 3 to 6 in., inclusive, 4 in. and up, 1.40c. to 1.45¢., net; angles over 6 in., 1.50c. to 1.55c., net; angles, 3 in., on one or both legs, less than % in. thick, 1.45c., plus full extras as per steel bar card effective September | 1909; tees, 3 in. and up, 1.45c., net; zees, 3 in. and up, 1.40c. to 1.45c., net; angles, channels and tees, under 2 in., 1.45¢., base, plus full extras as per steel bar card of September 1, 1909; deck beams and bulb angles, 1.70¢ . cL. to 1.75c., net; hand rail tees, 2.50c.; checkered and cor- rugated plates, 2.50c., net. Rectangular plates, tank steel or conforming to manufacturers’ standard specifications for structural steel dated February 6, | equivalent, 54-in. thick and over on thinnest edge, 100 in. wide under, down to but not including 6 in. wide, are base. Plates up to 72 in. wide, inclusive, ordered 10.2 Ib. per square foot are considered %-in, plates. Plates over 72 in. wide must }y ordered %-in. thick on edge, or not less than 11 Ib. per square foot. to take base price. Plates over 72 in. wide ordered less than 11 Jb. per square foot down to the weight of 3-16-in. take the price of 3-16-in. Allowable overweight, whether plates are ordered to gauge weight, to be governed by the standard specifications of the Ass . ¥ . ciation of American Steel Manufacturers. Gauges under %-in, to and including 3-16-in. on CRORE. SAAR. v6 0 s/s ca neU Wak edda hada vase». $0.10 Gauges under 3-16-in. to and including No, 8....... 15 Gauges under No. 8 to and including No. 9.......... 2 Gauges under No. 9 to and including No. 10...... ae. Gauges under No. 10 to and including No. 12........ Sketches (including all straight taper plates) 3 ft. OS ee ee Pe ee eer eee eee 4 Complete circles, 3 ft. in diameter and over.......... .20 eetes Wl Ree Ws «6 da boc 0 thee cab wen sy ccucce. .10 “A. B. M. A.” and ordinary firebox steel............. .20 Bir ON A ik sb ean be ho bap as See eae bacevess 30 SR NR ais Bk naa dn wwe Eee w OREM CANES 6.0 bie seas 40 L SOamEITS TOGO GROEN «6. o05e 40.0:6-6 0 din vi Sanne vnccccses 50 Widths over 100 in. up to 110 in., inclusive.......... 05 Widths over 110 in. up to 115 in., inclusive......... 10 Widths over 115 in. up to 120 in., inclusive.......... 15 Widths over 120 in, up to 125 in., inclusive.......... ‘ Widths over 125 in. up to 130 in., inclusive.......... 50 Widthe wer 130: tics < css ccd 540 00h4. 650 DOA es os ee ses 1.00 Cutting to lengths or diameters under 3 ft. to 2 ft., dsuclushwe. oi. cccsabad 6b 4bb-bbn ase bie be 0 es CEs as 2 Cutting to lengths or diameters under 2 ft, to 1 ft., in- CIUBVE 2 50002 capas chose vans ee as oe geen MANE wea a e2 a Cutting to lengths or diameters under 1 ft............- 1,55 No charge for cutting rectangular plates to lengths 3 ft. and over. TermMs—Net cash 30 days. Sheets.—Makers’ prices for mill shipments on sheets in carload and larger lots, on which jobbers charge the usual discounts for small lots from store, as are fol- lows: Blue annealed sheets, Nos. 3 to 8, U. S. standard gauge, 1.55c.; Nos. 9 and 10, 1.65c.; Nos. 11 and 12, 1.70c.; Nos. 13 and 14, 1.75¢.; Nos, 15 and 16, 1.85c. One pass, cold rolled, box annealed sheets, Nos. 10 to 12, 1.85c.; Nos. 13 and 14, 1.90c.; Nos. 15 and 16, 1.95¢.; Nos. 17 to 21, 2c.; Nos. 22, 23 and 24, 2.05c.; Nos. 25 and _ 26, 2.10c.; No. 27, 2.15¢c.; No. 28, 2.20c.; No. 29, 2.25c.; No. 30, 2.35¢. Three pass, cold rolled sheets, box annealed, are as follows: Nos. 15 and 16, 2.05¢.; Nos. 17 to 21, 2.10c.; Nos. 22 to 24, 2.15¢.; Nos. 25 and 26, 2.20¢.; No. 27, 2.25c.; No. 28, 2.30c.; No. 29, 2.35c.; No. 30, 2.45¢. Galvanized sheets, Nos. 10 and 11, black sheet gauge, 2.20c.; Nos. 12, 13 and 14, 2.30c.; Nos. 15, 16 and 17, 2.45¢.; Nos. 18 to 22, 2.60c.; Nos. 23 and 24, 2.70c.; Nos. 25 and 26, 2.90c.; No. 27, 3.05c.; No. 28, 3.20¢.; No. 29, 3.30c.; No. 30, 3.50c. Painted roofing sheets, No. 28, $1.55 per square. Galvanized sheets, No. 28, $2.75 per square for 2%-in. corrugations. All above prices are f.o.b. Pittsburgh, terms 30 days net, or 2 per cent. cash discount 10 days from date of invoice. Wrought Pipe.—The following are the jobbers’ car- load discounts on the Pittsburgh basing card on wrought pipe, in effect from October I: Butt Weld. r-—Steel—, -——Iron.— Black. Galv. Black. Galv. t ge BSG Hehe cnc chee bee ha he von ee cee eee 49 43 i BR wk ceca ews pepnanes ae ead 75 63 71 59 He 00 VG Ihe one ccdpeccceessséne 79 69 75 63 DB Uso cncc sce eemewss stenees 80 70 76 66 2 to Pb os kis 045s hems ca vee 7 62 266 ch 4 itis s sv senkhayednhamnee 78 68 74 64 BUG 20 GBs 0 os i vic sine de ce wueees 77 67 73 63 7 tie AE Dy es vant ahd nsig eR eNA ROR 75 59 71 55 1S 80 19 4G. ca vc iisbayscgnes 10.30% 51% Be ++ . Sutt Weld, extra strong, plain ends, card weight. i Ms She Dh Mes sche asvennamiened 69 59 55 OPPS Perera ey REPT ET Pea 74 68 70 04 BS Go 196) fess ass eda awie trode ed 78 72 74 68 2 thy Bhs cass 6s Oenea er eeakeees 79 73 75 6? Lap Weld, extra strong, plain ends, card — 65 2 Mi cc creocvoessecdvrssesevisbecesed 4 26, 20 BOR. 62 cc cece cceetieanens 77 71 73 6/ 446 00-6 30. 2.05 vecnyesteeeeanen 76 70 72 oe sk Ss ae 69 59 65 = 9 0.22 Mss scssesnceversitacans “eo 60 50 Butt Weld, double extra strong, pista ends, card weight , $4 PRs is 6s acess Ries Reena ie te. B00 Ohi cs oc cuvacaaueneel 67 61 637 2 00 FIM... 6... csccvnccessecnes o 63 Ss 3% Lap Weld, double extra strong, give cade, card. weight. D GRGs dewhdcvees's eee sabee eee 2? ee ee ren ae 67 61 63 4 4¥Z to 6 iM... cece eeeceeceescens 66 60 62 45 Ft - B Bhs odes cbs n stat evewieses 59 49 55 4 May 11, 1911 THE IRON AGE ‘1129 THE IRON AND METAL MARKETS 4 Plugged and Reamed. some fair-sized orders for steel cars having been placed ee ee ee iin heen tek in the past week, while there are some ‘very good in- er price) than merchant or quiries in the market for rails. The Carnegie Steel ‘i Len Weld (in Weld cs epecinen or Company reports considerable activity in steel rail- uae discounts are for “card weight,” subject to the usual road ties and splice. bars, and has entered some good » of 5 per cent. Prices for less than carloads are three (3) Orders. A material improvement in the volume of new wer basing (higher price) than the above discounts. business is looked for in the latter part of this month Boiler Tubes.—Discounts on lap welded steel boiler © Very early in June, and it is confidently believed to jobbers in carloads are now as follows: that the last six months of the year will show a ma- Sese! terial gain in business over the first half. There is a to 256 fcnidep aces hte 5 eee —_— little more new inquiry for pig iron and some small i. «+0045 Tape eae ahh Raa ue eee ae T EG 67% lots have been closed but basic iron is weak and has 10 314 iMeesceesveveeessscseseeueeevenssensens 70 sold below $13.50 at Valley furnace. The steel market YD 6 le. 1c cM oE blloaeeasts care ae ane is quiet, specifications showing a large falling off in 13 ithe ono. 3hs Beene sheds kn hee oe Se 62% billets and sheet bars, while considerable cutting 1s s than carloads to destinations east of the Mississippi River going on in prices of open hearth steel. Coke and sold at delivered discounts for carloads lowered by two points, scrap are neglected engths 22 feet, and under; longer lengths, f.o.b, Pittsburgh. ’ P g , extras to jobbers and boiler manufacturers, Ferromanganese.—A sale of 100 tons for May and Plates.—Tank plates, %4 in. thick, 61%4 in. up to 100 June delivery is reported on the basis of $36.50, Balti- vide, 1.40c, to 1.45¢., base. Following are stipula- ™ore. We quote 8o per cent. foreign ferro at $36.50 prescribed by manufacturers, with extras to be © $36.75, Baltimore, the freight rate for delivery in to base price (per pound) of plates: the Pittsburgh district being $1.95 a ton. Wire Rods and Wire.—Bessemer, open hearth and Ferrosilicon—There is some new inquiry in me n rods, $29. Fence wire, Nos. 0 to 9, per 100 Ib., market and we note sales of 150 to 175 tons ~ t ire ; 60 days, or 2 per cent. discount in 10 days, car- Warter delivery at about $52.50, Pittsburgh, or | lots, to jobbers, annealed $1.60, galvanized $1.90; PET cent. We quote 50 per cent. at $52.50 to $53, id lots, to retailers, annealed $1.65, galvanized Pittsburgh, for delivery through the third quarter; . . : . » > —~ ac area salae 29° Galvanized barb wire, to jobbers, $2.10; painted, a = wees Senay eee = wa a ae — so. Wire nails, to jobbers, $1.80. $24, and 12 per cent., $25, f.o.b. cars, Ashland and Jisc [he following table gives the prices to retail mer- *U™MACES. . : ts on wire in less than carloads, including the ex- Muck Bar.—There is no new inquiry and we do* n Nos. 10 to 16, which are added to the base price: n0t hear of any sales. We quote best grades made : ‘ ay an, Pitts Fence Wife, Per 100 Lb. from all pig iron at nominally $ 9, Pittsburgh. asses Otc9 10 1112412%13 14 15 #16 Skelp.—The market is dull, owing to the quiet con- led: «5 saat $1.75 1.80 1.85 1.90 2.00 2.10 2.20 2.30 ditions ruling in the pipe trade. A sale of tooo tons zed... 2,05 2.10 2.15 2.20 2.30 2.40 2.80 2.90 of wide sheared iron plates is reported on the basis t and Stone Wire in Bundles, Discount from Standard List. ; i