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42 THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN.
IMPORTANT CONTRACT RULING
BY ILLINOIS APPELLATE COURT.
The appellate court of the state of Illinois has
handed down an important decision in the case of
the Consolidated Coal Co. of St. Louis, appellants.
vs. Jones & Adams Co., appellee, in which two interesting
points are ruled upon. The suit was
based on a contract made by Jones & Adams to
furnish the Consolidated Coal Co. for a period of
nine months, beginning July 1, 1902, a minimum
of 125 tons of coal a day and a maximum of 200
tons a day, at 95 cents per ton for lump and 85
cents per ton for mine-run, f. o. b. at the mines.
According to the evidence the amount furnished
fell far short of the amount ordered, and coal sold
much higher during the scarcity caused by the
great anthracite strike of 1902. The appellant
offered the contract as evidence and also introduced
evidence to show a breach of contract and
the market prices of coal during the period the
defaults in delivery were alleged to have occurred.
The lower court construed the contract as an
option contract and void as to all in excess of
125 tons. This holding is pronounced an error
by the appellate court. In response to the insistence
by appellee that its failure to deliver the
coal according to contract was due to the lack of
cars and that it was the duty of appellant under
the contract to furnish cars upon which to load the
coal, the appellate court decides that the claim is
not well founded, as evidenced by letters and telegrams
introduced. The contract is silent as to
who is to furnish the cars.
The written opinion goes into all phases of the
matter, discusses the law as construed in former
decisions of the supreme court of Illinois and other
states, and concludes with the statement: "We
are of opinion that the evidence adduced by appellant
establishes a prima facie case and that
the trial court erred in directing a verdict for the
defendant. It follows that the judgment predicated
thereon must be reversed and the cause remanded
for another trial."
RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF THE
CONNELLSVILLE COKE REGION.
The purchase of coal land and the erection of
coking plants in both the upper and lower Connellsville
region at the present time has almost
reached the proportions of the great Klondike
boom five years ago, which marked the development
of the lower Connellsville region. The erection
of 1.000 ovens by the H. C. Frick Coke Co.
in the upper region is the largest operation undertaken
this year, and a number of these ovens have
already been fired, while the remainder will be
placed in operation in a few weeks. The comple­
tion of these ovens makes a total of 30,023 ovens
in the Connellsville region, and before the end of
the year this will be increased by more than 1,000
now under construction and projected.
The Republic Iron & Steel Co. recently awarded
contracts for the erection of 400 ovens in the
lower Connellsville region, while the Taylor Coal
& Coke Co.. of Cleveland, will erect 500, the contract
for 150 having already been let. The Connellsville
Central Coke Co., Pittsburgh, has 50
ovens additional under construction, and contemplates
the erection of 200 more, making a plant
of 400 ovens. Smaller operations include the
erection of 40 ovens by the Century Coke Co. and
80 by the A. L. Keister Coke Co. At the present
time four independent iron and steel concerns,
operating blast furnaces, are seeking coking coal
properties in the Connellsville region, and there
is every indication that prices will soon advance
to $1,500 an acre. The Hibbs property, for which
$1,200 an acre was paid, was purchased 10 years
ago at $75 an acre, and this is a fair example of
the increase in the value of coking coal property
in this region in recent years. The" coal property
recently purchased by the Jones & Laughlin Steel
Co., Pittsburgh, near Brownsville, Pa., and which
is outside of the Connellsville region, averaged
about $330 an acre, for a total of 9,000 acres.
The H. C. Frick Coke Co. is aiming to strengthen
further its holding in the Connellsville region by
acquiring developed properties. The Lackawanna
Steel Co.. Buffalo, is also quietly negotiating for
coal lands in the Connellsville region, as it is now
practically securing all its coke from this district,
being the largest independent consumer of
Connellsville coke in the country. It is altogether
probable that this conipany will acquire coal property
in the lower region, and will coke it at its
own ovens in Buffalo.
The lower Connellsville region, which was practically
unknown five or six years ago, is now producing
over 80,000 tons of coke weekly and has a
total of 6,742 ovens. Almost all of the new developments
among the independent producers is in
this region, and outside of the additions of the
H. C. Frick Coke Co., all of the new operations are
being carried out in this field.
There is always a brisk demand for old coal
mines in England. Some are utilized by shotmakers,
who find them cheaper than towers. Many
of the shallower pits are used for growing rhubard.
mushrooms and similar vegetables.
The production of anthracite during February
was 3,922,601 tons and for the first two months of
this year it was 8,331,179 tons. For the corresponding
periods of 1904 the tonnage was respectively
4,326,269 and 8,460,544.