l8 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



river, as at Haverstraw. The clays are usually of blue color 

 weathering to red or yellow at the surface, and are quite calcareous 

 with an average of from 3 to 6 per cent lime carbonate. In addi- 

 tion to their employment for common brick, they are utilized to 

 some extent for fireproofing and hollow blocks. Slip clay used 

 for glazing pottery is obtained from certain beds of the Hudson 

 river clays. 



The common brick are manufactured by the soft mud process 

 and are burned in scove kilns. Machine molding has been tried 

 successfully on some of the clays, but most manufacturers adhere 

 to the old hand process. 



There are more than 125 brick yards in the 9 counties along the 

 river, with a combined capacity under full operation of over one 

 and a quarter billion brick a year. So large an output is seldom 

 warranted, however, by the market requirements, and the average 

 product for recent years has ranged around one billion, reaching 

 a maximum of 1,230,000,000 in 1906. 



During the last two seasons the demand for brick has been 

 below normal. At the beginning of 1910 the yards still had a 

 stock of about 200,000,000 on hand that remained unsold and with 

 the year's manufacture the total available supply was about 

 1,300,000,000, of which only 950,000,000 were actually consumed 

 during that season. Consequently the yards carried over about 

 350,000,000 to 191 1. With this formidable accumulation on hand, 

 manufacturers were naturally loath to begin operations, and the 

 opening of the season was delayed beyond the usual time. Many 

 plants reduced their working force; others remained inactive 

 throughout the year. In spite of this curtailment policy which 

 reduced the outturn below that of any previous season for a long 

 time, the market was not able to absorb the supply. It is estimated 

 that about 250,000,000 brick were on hand at the close of 191 1. 

 As the number manufactured was approximately 800,000,000 the 

 consumption may be placed at 900,000,000, or about 50,000,000 

 less than in 1910. 



Despite the unfavorable conditions of demand, prices showed 

 some improvement over those reported for the preceding year. 

 The average price received for common brick throughout the dis- 

 trict was $4.78 a thousand against $4.54 a thousand in 1910. This 

 represented the average for the sales at the yard and not the New 

 York prices which ranged about $1.25 a thousand higher, an 

 amount equivalent to the cost of river shipment and commissions 

 exacted by the dealers in New York, 



