i STEAM COAL - Clpdigital.org

Among the holiday news in the daily press frequent
mention was made of dividends and presents
to workmen employed under profit-sharing and
co-operative systems. Such news comes as a welcome
change from the all too frequent reports of
differences between employers and employes.
Unions and even strikes sometimes help workmen
to improve their condition, but nothing can give
the peace, security from injustice and general
satisfaction to either capital or labor that the
"community of interest" idea is gradually but
surely extending.
— o —
The socialist element which created a stir at the
Federation of Labor convention at San Francisco
by attacking Samuel Gompers and John Mitchell,
is now loudly asserting that it will cause the
downfall of both a year hence. Small wonder
that the impression is gaining ground that the
miners' organization and other big elements of the
federation, as well as that body itself, are in a
fatal decline.
— o —
The British admiralty has "discovered" that coal
submerged in salt water generates steam more
quickly and maintains a higher pressure. The discovery
is about a half century old on this side of
the Atlantic and the figures and details which the
advices say the admiralty is keeping back for the
present can be obtained from American engineers
wherever they are within touch with American
salt water.
— o —
The conflict at Ziegler, 111., seems to have been
an exact parallel of the first month or so of the
Spanish-American war operations in Cuba, if tlie
casualty lists may be taken as a basis for deductions.
With all the tremendous expenditure of
ammunition and military energy, the total of the
slain in each case was one mule.
— o —
Mr. Carnegie's advice to corporations to steer
clear of replacing striking workmen with new men
is worthy of profound consideration. His experience
with the subject is far beyond that of any
other living man.
Colonial's Capital Decreased.
At a meeting of the stockholders of the Colonial
Coal & Coke Co. in Pittsburgh, on December 20.
at which 82 per cent, of the stockholders were
present, it was decided to reduce the capital from
$2,000,000 to $1,250,000. This action was taken
on the ground that as the main projects of the
THE COAL TRADE BULLETIN. 39
company had been attended to, so high a capitalization
was not necessary. The company controls
the Glen Easton Coal Co. and the Moundsville
plants, also large holdings of coke and coal properties
in the Ligonier valley. At the latter place
50 coke ovens are in course of construction.
NEW YORK COAL MERCHANTS MEETING.
The annual meeting of the New York Coal Mer­
chants' Association for the purpose of receiving
the report of the executive committee and that of
the commissioner, which was made a part of it,
proved to be of unusual interest as showing the
results accomplished by the association the past
year. The report of Commissioner J. Samuel
Smoot shows that one of the greatest accomplishments
during the year was the concession from the
New York Fire Insurance Exchange of a reduction
in fire insurance rates of about one-half the cost
which formerly obtained.
The amount of data compiled in connection with
this work necessary to satisfy the insurance companies
developed many facts and figures of great
interest to the trade. There are in Manhattan
and the Bronx, including also the Jersey City dealers
delivering in New York City, 165 dealers, of
which 125 are members of the association, and
only six of the remaining ones can be considered
as factors in the competition for trade, the others
doing merely a peddling business. The stocks
of coal in dealers' yards, including anthracite and
bituminous on November 15, this year, when the
figures were completed, showed a total tonnage of
421,937 tons, of which 40S.156 tons was anthracite
and 13,781 tons soft coal. This includes
Astoria. L. I., and the Jersey City yards, delivering
to New York, the latter carrying only 38,930
tons. Manhattan and the Bronx had in stock
195,266 tons of anthracite and 6,718 tons of bituminous;
Brooklyn had 181,023 tons, of which 5,843
were soft coal. The average, therefore, of bituminous
to anthracite in the entire metropolitan
district is only 3.38 per cent.
The report also states that the shipping capacity
of New York harbor, from the Amboys to Weehawken
and Edgewater is 75,000 tons daily. The
consumption of coal for domestic purposes is estimated
at 3,000,000 tons of domestic and 5,000,000
tons of the anthracite small sizes, and bituminous
coal for steam purposes, while the consumption of
the other boroughs, including Jersey City, brings
it up to about 14,000,000 tons. One of the strong
features of the association is its collection department,
which has made an excellent record during
the year, rather indicating that credits are improving
in this city.