THE COLLIERY GUARDIAN _______________________________________________________________________________ 764 April 20, 1916. THE IRISH COAL TRADE. Wednesday, April 19. __________________________________ ___________________ Dublin. There is no change in prices of any of the qualities, and the outstanding difficulty with regard to the carrying out of the coal trade is still the shortage of supplies. The demand for house coal has been well maintained up to the present owing to the continuance of cold weather, prices standing as follow:—Best Orrell, 38s. per ton; Hulton Arley, 37s. ; best Wigan, 36s.; best Whitehaven, 36s.; best kitchen, 34s.; Orrell slack, 30s. ; all less Is. per ton discount; coke, 38s. per ton delivered. Irish coal (Wolfhill) : Best large, 30s. per ton; best household, 28s. 4d. at the pit mouth, f.o.’r. Athy, the nearest railway connection with the mines, 5s. per ton extra. Arigna coal (Leitrim), 33s. per ton delivered in Dublin, less Is. per ton discount. The coal vessels arriving during the past week amounted to 55, as compared with 52 the week previously, chiefly from Ayr, Ga.rston, Cardiff, Whitehaven, Neath Abbey, Newport, Preston, Swansea, Liverpool, Maryport, Ardrossan and Partington. The total quantity of coal discharged upon the quays was 28,500 tons, as against 21,000 tons the previous week. At a lecture delivered last week at the Royal College of Science, on the opportunity for development of Irish minerals, etc., reference was made to the coal fields at Coalisland (County Tyrone), Slieve Ardagh (Tipperary), and Slieve-an-Ierin, east of Lough Allen. The Department of Agriculture have issued special circulars to county com- mittees all over Ireland impressing upon members the vital importance of securing an increased output of turf in the agricultural districts, and pointing out that the present high price of coal was not likely to be reduced until some decisive alteration occurs. Belfast. Rates.for household coal remain firm and unchanged, but prices of Scotch steam qualities are stated to be now almost prohibitive. Supplies of all descriptions are becoming daily more difficult to obtain, and stacks in the port are extremely low. Por any manufacturing coal that can be obtained very high prices are ruling. Current quotations for household coals are :—Best Arley, 38s. 6d. per ton; best Wigan, 37s. 6d.; Scotch household, 34s. 6d.; Orrell nuts, 37s. 6d. ; Orrell slack, 34s. 6d. Coal laden vessels arriving during the week were from Garston, Troon, Swansea, Ardrossan, Silloth, Llandules, Ayr, Glasgow, Partington, Whitehaven, Irvine and Ellesmere Port. _______________________ THE BY-PRODUCTS TRADE. Tar Products.—There is a distinctly holiday tone about the market, and prices are steady and unchanged, benzols still being nominally easier. Nearest values are :— Rise ( + ) ro fall (-) on the week. Benzols, 90s ,, 90’s North 1/0J ... /W-/111 ... ,, 50’s North 1/3—1/4 ... — Toluol 2/3 — Carbolic acid, crude (60 per cent.)... 3/4 ... — ,, crystals (40 per cent.) Solvent naphtha, south (90% at 190 degs.), as in quality and package... Solvent naphtha, north (90% at 190 degs.), as in quality and package... Crude naphtha, north (in bulk) 1/4 ... — 2/3—2/4 ... — 2/1—2/2 ... /6J-/7 ... — Creosote (for ordinary qualities) /2i—/2f ... — Pitch (f.o.b. east coast) 15/—16/ ... — ,, (f.a.s. west coast) Tar (per ton ex works) 14/—15/ ... — 16/— 20/ ... — [Benzols, toluol, creosote, solvent naphtha, carbolic acids, usually casks included unless otherwise stated, free on rails at maker's works or usual United Kingdom ports, net. Pitch f.o.b. net.] Sulphate of Ammonia.—The stormy and unsettled season is causing purchasers to take full advantage of the holiday interval for delaying orders, which are already considerably belated. Closing prompt prices for home consumption are : London (ordinary makes).... Beckton (25 per cent.) ...... Liverpool .................. Hull ______....................... Middlesbrough ............ .................... Scotch ports .............. Rise ( + ) o fall (-) on the week. T16/15 £16 ■ - r2/6 ... — £16/15 — £16/12/6 — £16/17/6 — £16/15 — £16/15 — 17/74 ... — Wales Nitrate of soda (ord.) per cwt. [Sulphate of ammonia, f.o.b. in bags, less 2J per cent, discount; 24 per cent, ammonia, good grey quality; allowance for refraction, nothing for excess.] __________________________ THE TIM-PLATE TRADE. Liverpool. The home trade is rather quiet, but there is a fair demand for export. It is, however, very difficult indeed to do busi- ness at all nowadays. Makers prefer to hold off all they can in anticipation of further reductions in supplies of materials and labour, and transactions are largely confined to merchants who *have parcels coming forward for disposal. 33s. has been paid for I C 14 x 20 cokes. Current quota- tions may be called :■—Coke tins.—I C 14 x 20 (112 sh. 1081b.), 33s. 3d. to 34s. per box; I C 28 x 20 (112 sh. 216 1b.) 66s. 6d. to 67s.; I C 28 x 20 (56 sh. 1081b.), 34s. to 34s.- 6d. ; I C 14 x W 124 sh. 1101b.), 33s. 6d. to 34s. ; I C 20 x 10 (225 sh. 156 lb.), 48s. to 49s. ; I C squares and odd sizes, 33s. 6d. to 34s. 6d. basis. Ternes are nominally 60s. a box for I C 28 x 20. Charcoals are firm at 36s. basis and upwards, according to finish. Coke wasters are in good demand, and are quoted :—C W 14 x 20, Bls. per box and up; C W 28 x 20, 63s. ; C W 14 x 18f, 30s. 9d. ; C w 20 x 10, 45s.; all f.o.b. Wales, less 4 per cent. THE GERMAN AND AUSTRIAN COAL AND IRON TRADES. We give below further extracts from German periodicals that have reached us, showing the course of the coal and iron trades in Germany :— Goal Market in South Germany. Groat care is still necessary in allocating the available supply of coal so as to furnish consumers with the neces- sary quantities of fuel. There has been no opportunity of accumulating stocks, nor- is there any prospect of being able to do so yet. Consumers’ applications have to be very carefully investigated, and considered with the needs of others. Attempts made to induce sellers to increase supplies, by offering higher prices, have failed, so far as the organised dealers are concerned. Owing to the good organisation, it has not been found necessary to place the coal trade under official super- vision; and while certain dealers outside the large organisations have not scrupled to take advantage of the situation, the quantities concerned are small in com- parison with the total. Industrial demand for all grades of coal is very brisk, especially as regards washed nuts, the supply of which is, however, limited. There is no prospect of any improvement in this latter respect, and, in fact, the increased demand of the military for the production of coke will still further restrict the available quantity of this class of coal, so that con- sumers will have, to a greater extent, to be content to-put up with other kinds, and more particularly with coke. Through and through coal and screened slack are diffi- cult to get, as are also briquettes, the makers being short of labour. The State departments and railways have been notified that they must use more coke in place of coal, and the electrical power stations have been requested to resort more fully to coke and brown coal briquettes. The house coal trade is more active than usual at this season, partly on account of the cold weather, but chiefly owing to the desire to provide in time for future requirements, in view of a possible scarcity in the autumn. Large bituminous nuts and broken coke are in short supply; and the demand for German anthracite nuts and smithy nuts is improving, ovoid briquettes also being in more request. The com- petition of brown coal briquettes and coke from local gas works has lessened the demand for commercial gas coke, but the improved opportunities for export have kept down stocks. In brown, coal briquettes, the price of industrial grades has been advanced by 70 to 90 pf. per ton, and that of industrial briquettes by 1-50 mk. ex Rheinau. Coal and Iron Market in Upper Silesia. The conditions influencing the distribution of coal in March were calculated not only to maintain the activity of business, but also to increase it. On the other hand, so far from the output of the pits being increased, a diminution has to be recorded, owing to the calling up of so many miners, and the lack of skill on the part of the men taken on in their place. Nevertheless, and in spite of having to supply a much wider area than for- merly, there does not appear to have been any scarcity; and, indeed, it has been found possible to meet the urgent needs of many new consumers—as regards gas coal, in particular. Owing to temporary scarcity of railway wagons, stocks have slightly increased. The coke market is also in a satisfactory condition, and apart from a slight check due to the shortage of rolling stock, the whole output has been cleared out almost as fast as made. The insufficient supplies of coking coals have given the cokeries some trouble, but, so far, there has been no serious shortage. Coke prices have gone up, in sympathy with the advances in material and cost of production; and by-products have been selling to good advantage. The pig iron output has been maintained, though not improved, and has been absorbed at once, the demand for some kinds being so active that prompt satisfaction could not be given. In the new contracts, prices have been raised to an extent nearly equal to the added cost of production. Ruhr Coal Market. Deliveries during March were very considerable, though railway wagons were occasionally short, and such collieries as have their own wharves were constrained to make more extensive use of these latter. Eor April the conditions will probably be less favourable, owing to the holidays reducing the output. Moreover, the neces- sity for meeting the Government demands for an increased coke output is lessening the amount of coal available for other purposes. On the other hand, there is a scarcity of coke wagons, so that the surplus coke will be difficult to clear away. To meet the demand for coke for boiler fuel and blast furnaces, it will be neces- sary for the railways and military authorities to provide more wagons, as stocks have been growing for some time, and may be expected to increase still further. In spite of the warmer weather, the demand for broken coke continues difficult to satisfy, and dealers’ stocks are practically exhausted. The coke breakers at the collieries are working full time, in order to meet the demand of the railways for broken, unscreened coke. With regard to the renewal of the syndicated coal deal- ing companies, this is expected to be settled in a satisfactory manner as soon as the State collieries agree to join, the idea being to control the entire trade in Ruhr coals, and do away with exceptions and special agreements. The obstruction in the Rhine, at Bingerloch, has been removed, and shipping conditions have been favourable, especially in the upper reaches of the river, so that craft were able to reach Karlsruhe and Lauterberg without lightening cargo, and even, of late, to get as far as Strassburg fully laden. To facilitate discharging, cargoes have been distributed as uniformly as possible among the up-river ports. The coal tips in the Ruhr harbours have been working with- out interruption, except for delays in the supply by rail. Pits with Rhine wharves have been able to increase their turnover. The total shipments westward on the Rhine- Herne canal in March amounted to 260,879 tons, as compared with 191,504 tons in February, in addition to which 43,915 tons were conveyed eastward. Shipments to Holland and Belgium were on about the usual level for the time of year. German Pig Iron Output in February. The total pig iron output in February amounted to 1,033,683 tons (803,623 tons in 1915), of which 150,533 tons were foundry pig, 12,207 tons acid Bessemer, 666,417 tons basic Bessemer, 184,603 tons steel-iron and spiegeleisen, and 19,923 tons puddling pig. Rhenish Westphalia produced 455,708 tons (353,281 tons in 1915), Siegerland, Wetzlar, and Hesse-Nassau 67,104 tons (57,616 tons), Silesia 65,180 tons (59,677 tons), Mid Germany 30,420 tons - (26,287 tons), North Germany 19,519 tons (16,315 tons), South Germany and Thuringia 20,717 tons (17,665 tons), Saar district- 65,740 tons (55,676 tons), Lothringen 154,902 tons (116,694 tons), and Luxemburg 154,393 tons (100,412 tons). ______________________________ TRADE AND THE WAR. In the Prize Court last week, Sir Samuel Evans reserved judgment in the cast of the Dutch steamship “ Alwina,” con- demnation of which was asked for, the Crown alleging that at the time of her seizure she was on her return passage from taking a direct part in hostilities, and supplying or attempt- ing to supply Welsh coal to warships or the naval forces of the enemy. The coal was1 shipped at Newport (Mon.), and was disposed of at Teneriffe immediately after the battle of the Falkland Islands. It is reported that the Danish schooner “ Elisabeth ” was captured, together with the Swedish barque “ Alma,” by the Germans, and taken to Swinemunde. Both vessels carried pit props, and were bound for England. The German steamer “ Hispania,” on her way to Stockholm, carrying coal, was blown up by colliding with a mine off Alma Grunden. She was a vessel of 4,000 tons. The business of the Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nurnberg, A.G., Caxton House, Tothill-street, London, manufacturers of gas engines, etc., is being wound up under the Trading with the Enemy Amendment Act. Trading with Fonseca and Company, coal merchants, Para, Brazil, is prohibited by an Order in Council. The Coal Exports Committee of the War Department has reverted to the shorter term for coal export licences. The circular letter of the Committee contains the following :— In view of the urgent demands for coal arising out of the rapidly developing munition activity throughout the country and the frequent changes in the local demand and supply, it has been found necessary to reduce the period of the validity of specific licences for the export of coal. Specific licences bearing date on and after Tuesday, April 25, will, therefore (except where otherwise stated on the licence), be valid for shipment within six weeks from the date of the licence in the case of the Continent of America, and four weeks from the date of the licence in every other case. It will be noticed that the period will no longer run from the date of shipment named in the licence. Requests for extension of the period will, as heretofore, be considered if addressed to the Secretary (Coal Division), War Trade Dep art men t.- The Russian Government prohibits, except under special permission, the entry -into Archangel or White Sea ports of all cargoes not destined for purposes of national defence. Applications for permits, in envelopes marked Archangel, should be addressed to the Secretary of Commission, Internationale de Ravitaillement, India House, Kingsway, London. _____________________________ MIMIMG AMD OTHER MOTES. Great developments are contemplated by the Alabama Power Company, who have raised capital of 100,000,000 dels, for the development of various water power sites on the rivers of Alabama, including the construction there of a cyanamide plant to cost 3,000,000 dots. There is no plant at present in the United States, outside of the recently opened one at Nitrolee, S. C., where nitrogen is extracted from the air, but a big plant is in operation at Niagara on the Canadian side. During January and February the exports of bituminous coal from the principal Atlantic seaboard ports in the United States totalled 879,559 tons, as compared with 510,274 tons in the same months in 1915. In March it is estimated 339,575 tons were exported. Considerable shipments have been made to Europe and South America, but the shortage of tonnage still operates to delay delivery. Freight rates to the River Plate have advanced to 102s. 6d., whilst those to the West Coast of Italy are as high as 115s. to 120s. Germany has been fortunate enough to get her “ Wolf ” safety lamps passed by the Russian mining authorities, and only these are allowed to be used in the mines in the Donetz basin, says a recent consular report. The demand is very large, and a lamp of a similar design is now wanted, and would doubtless be passed by the authorities. These lamps burn mineral oil, and are supplied by the German firm at 3 rbl. 50 c. and 4 rbl. per lamp franco Rostov. « The United States Steel Corporation announces that it will shortly erect steel tube works at Gary, Indiana. It is estimated that the improvements, including ore docks and yards, blast furnaces, converting and blooming mills, power station, water works, sheared plate mill, universal plate and butt mills, job shops, and all auxiliary departments will cost 25,000,000 dols. (about £5,139,000 at par rate of exchange) and that the new plant will give work to 15,000 additional men. The late Mr. William Vyce, miners’ agent for the Ebbw Vale district, left estate valued at T125. The Local Government Board has, on an application made by the British Electrical and Allied Manufacturers’ Associa- tion, extended the period for the repayment of municipal loans in respect of storage batteries from seven years to ten years, satisfactory guarantees being given.