The Timaru Herald TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1907. AUSTRALIAN IRON INDUSTRY.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIC, Issue 13464, 10 December 1907, Page 4

The Timaru Herald TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1907. AUSTRALIAN IRON INDUSTRY.

Misfortune has nut been Inns in overtaking the Lithgow ironworks in New South Wales, which ennwneneed operal ions about <ix months ago amid a chorus of jubilation all over Australia at, the inauguration of such an impoitant industry. Mr Sandford, the promoter of the concern, has evidently got into water with liiis for bust week it wan reported that the State Government, proposed to come to his asM'stanen with an advance of £70,000. The leader <>k the Labour Party suggested tlv.it, the industry should bo nationalised, but after a lengthy discussion the Assembly negatived that suggestion, and agreed' to the Government's proposal for an advance, of £70,000, sub- < ject to a proviso that the Government, should haw priority over the bank to the extent of the who\>. advance. To-day

we hear that the bank declines to accept there tonus, and has called' upon Mr Sandford to pay nip the whole amount of his overdraft, failing which the work's will be taken over by the bank and! clceed down with the exception of the blast furnaces. According to a, message, which we -published yesterday, this will throwno fewer than 1750 persons idle, while directly or indirectly quite 3000 persons will be, affected by the stoppage. Naturally the Government are being urged to devise some means of .averting this catastrophe, for it was chiefly owing to; promises of Government support that the v orks were ' commenced, though it, does not appear that the State has actually, invested any money in tjie undertaking. There have always been the raw materials for the foundation of a successful irbii industry at Lithgow—coal, limestone, and iron ore in association—but the obstacle to the erection of furnaces lias been the uncertainty of find'mg a steady market for pig-iron at, payable prices. Mr Sandford'a works were, established with a Government guarantee of stability for a number of years, so fair, at least, as the sale of. their output wan concerned. The Car- ( ruthera" Ministry, of Which the present Premier,. Mr Wad'e, was a member, entered into a contract with the promoter . of the. enterprise, for the supply of iron •miatierialfl' (mainly railway iron) for a period of.'seven years at about the average price ruling for a period' of five years pre-, ceding. Mr -Sandford was allowed' an increase of about 6 per cent, on that average, but after .the bargain was made, . 'there was a general .rioa of 10s per ton . in the price of pig-iron which ought .'to liave put the" Lithgow works in a ■ better ] position for competing against outsiders' ' for 'th'io general!' supply, of iron in Australia, seeing that, their, raw materials...were still 'available at the price on which ' they: mada their contract for the, supply of, tho Government'a requirements. Tlio .works cost something'.like £150,p00 to coron-uct, and were designed to turn out 700 tons of, iron -per week, though, if required, |they. were .capable'"'of■.■doubling • that output. The annual average of pig, ■bar and rod iron imported-,into the Com-, : monw^altli ;; exclusive - > of rails, so that if the Lithgow works had"been.successful, the works could, with little extension, .have sujmlied l nearly the wlw-1,9 of 'the Australian demand for iron; Mr Sandford -himself is-,, a man, whose wliole li-fe.lkfi baien "dlevjbtcd to the ifon. , trade,; and as it Was understood that he had mada satisfactory, -arrangements '.on - the financial side,, 'the' public of his own ■State, and indeed -of the .whole continent, . regarded the opening of tJi-o- .Lithgow. works last May with.'-feelings',of the most . lively satisfaction. The cables have given _ no definitei-' ■explanation of' the (monetary troubles which have so soon, descended upon the new. industry, but„ it is to be hoped] that the whole thing is not going to collapse out of hand. '■,-'■