METAL MARKET IN 1884. 



481 



a box, improving up to June to 16*., but closed 

 the year at 14s. The demand being brisk, 

 many idle mills restarted in Wales, during the 

 last four months of the year, and some old 

 works changed hands, working in December 

 with such renewed vigor that there were signs 

 again of overproduction. 



SHIPMENTS TO THE UNITED STATES. 



Boxes. Boxes. 



18T3 1,511,632 1879 2,755,421 



1374 1,535,994 1880 2,959,380 



1875 1,673,485 1881 3,134,402 



1876 1,609,515 1882 8.505,'249 



. . 1,943,444 1S83 8,755,707 



1873 1,931,128 1SS4 8,572,782 



From the foregoing statistics it will be seen 

 that exportation from Wales to the United 

 States nearly doubled between 1878 and 1883; 

 yet it can not be said that there has been, at 

 any time during the interval, a glut of tin 

 plates either in New York or in the interior, 

 and although the shipments in 1884 were again 

 liberal, the American market entered the year 

 1885 with a very moderate stock. Ample fruit- 

 crops and an extensive canning of provisions, 

 fish, etc., especially on the Pacific coast, were 

 mainly instrumental in the consumption of 

 those enormous shipments. While in 1884, 

 Wales shipped to all quarters 5,121,001 boxes, 

 the United States took of this amount 3,572,782, 

 or 70 per cent. The extraordinary cheapness 

 has of course stimulated the use of tin plates 

 for many purposes, particularly in building. 



Lead. Although lead fluctuated at times 

 during the year, the gen'eral course of prices 

 evinced great steadiness, as the following ta- 

 ble exhibits, which gives the price of common 

 domestic lead at New York, in cents per 

 pound : 



The production of lead decreased in 1884, 

 a comparison with that of 1883 shows: 



This shows a decline in the output of about 

 4,000 net tons. 



Up to 1884, lead production has been in the 

 ascendant everywhere except in England. The 

 export of pig-lead from Spain in 1883 was 

 12(5,888 tons, against 115,368 in 1882, and 110,- 

 875 in 1881. The aggregate European output 

 in 1883 had been 386,500 tons of pig-lead, our 

 VOL. xxiv. 31 A 



own 130,000 and in other countries 3,500 

 together, 470,000 tons of 2,240 pounds, against 

 440,000 in 1881, an increase in two years of 

 about 7 per cent. During the first eleven 

 months of 1884, Spain shipped only 108,227 

 tons, against 116,049 in 1883, and 106,783 in 

 1882, thus also showing a falling off. The two 

 chief producing countries, the United States 

 and Spain, thus both contributed less toward 

 the world's supply than in former years. 

 But this did not prevent the price in London 

 of common English pig from declining during 

 the year from 12 2s. Gd. on January 1, to 11 

 2*. 6Qd. on December 31, due to dullness in the 

 metal trade in Europe. 



Spelter. The course of spelter prices in 1884 

 was, on the whole, very unsatisfactory to the 

 majority of producers. There was much rivalry 

 between the leading producers and the rest, 

 and, working under specially favorable circum- 

 stances, the former had for months kept the 

 price low, hoping thereby to force the compet- 

 ing smelters to suspend work. As these ma- 

 noeuvres were not attended with quite the 

 success that had been expected, but, on the 

 contrary, several other works were able to 

 form a combination enhancing the price, the 

 market was kept in an unsettled state most of 

 the time. The lowest and highest price of 

 common spelter, in cents per pound, were : 



1884. 



The production of spelter in the United 

 States, in net tons, has been : 



1873... . 7.848I18S2 88.765 



1875 15,883 1883 36,872 



1880 23,239|l8S4 88,644 



The production in net tons was distributed 

 as follows : 



Concerning the ore-production in south- 

 west Missouri and southwestern Kansas, the 

 following facts have been collected : the out- 

 put of the region was the heaviest in its his- 

 tory, aggregating 74,250 tons, the bulk of 

 which was mined in Jasper and Newton coun- 

 ties, Missouri, and in Cherokee county, Kan- 

 sas. Of this quantity, 67,250 tons were blende, 

 and 7,000 tons silicate. The zinc-works of 



