﻿OOLITIC LIMESTONE INDUSTRY 



87 



than in the small quarry settlements, even at the expense of rail- 

 way charges. 



In general it would appear that profits are fair. Some of the 

 smaller companies, it is true, are apparently always on the mar- 

 gin, and frequently such companies are forced to abandon their 

 quarries, or perhaps to sell to some of the larger corporations. 

 During the industrial depression from 1893 to 1897, many small 

 quarries owned by local capital were bought up by capitalists 

 from a distance, and some of the largest companies now operat- 

 ing had their inception at that time. It is said that many of 

 the smaller companies rarely or never pay dividends, but not 

 infrequently this is because earnings are tied up in unsold stock 

 or in improvements. The lack of dividends may thus result from 

 insufficient capital, and does not always indicate the absence of 

 real earning power. On the other hand, a number of men are 

 known to have acquired considerable wealth in the business, and 

 some quarries are now reputed to be making their owners very 

 large profits. 



The development of transportation facilities and the improve- 

 ment of quarry methods and machinery have resulted in a more 

 or less gradual reduction of prices. Before the introduction of 

 channelers in 1877, the stone was all marketed either in rough 

 blocks, or as scabbled to dimensions. The following table shows 

 the prices per cubic foot at various times r- 



Srahhled. 



Dimevnion Saioed. 



Years. M>n Blocks. BlorJci. 2 Sv1*"t. u Sides. 



1866-1872. 25C-35C 45c-$l 



1873-1877 30c 



1878 25c 



1881..... 25c 30C-35C 55c 75c 



1891-1895 20e 25c-30c 35c 50c 



1896 llc-20c 20c-25c 28c-35c 43c-50c 



1904 15c-20c 20c-25c 35c 50c 



Prior to 1895 there appears to have been no effort to estab- 

 lish a uniform scale of prices ; what uniformity there was re- 

 sulted from general consensus rather than from definite agree- 

 ment. In March, 1895, the Indiana Oolitic Stone Association^^ 

 was formed, which, though existing for about a year, really lost 

 its vitality in October of the same year when several of the larger 

 firms withdrew, after which time each quarry fixed its own prices. 

 This failure of the agreement in a time of industrial depression is 



22 Ind. Geol. Report, xxi, 341f. 

 *3 Ind. Geol. Report, xxi, 342. 



