Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 242, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 October 1917 — MONTICELLO HAS COAL FAMINE [ARTICLE]

MONTICELLO HAS COAL FAMINE

DEALERS’ SUPPLY EXHAUSTED AND SCHOOL MAY HAVE TO CLOSE. Monticello Journal. r A fuel administrator is to be appointed in each county of the state to work in conjunction with the new state fuel director, Evans Woolen. If it would help out the fuel situation right now in Monticello and the county it would please the anxious public as well as the harrassed dealers if the appointments were already made. L . The coal situation today in Monticello is about as dark and gloomy as it could well be. About all the coal there is in towns is in private bins. The dealers have very little. And what coal there is is mostly anthracite. The problem seems to be to get soft coal, although there is also a woeful shortage of hard coal. Woolen, the new fuel administrator, has asked for reports from all local dealers as to amounts being received. One dealer reported that he had not received shipment of a single car of soft coal during the last four weeks. How could anything be worse than that?

Inquiry of the dealers this morning brought the information that there is very little coal of any kind in the yards. Some hard coal has been an*?ving, but very little comparatively, and this is shipment* made on last summer’s orders. There is not a dealer in town who can bank on giving a present order for coal of any kind with the assurance that it will be shipped. The factories and mills are also getting down to the bottom of present supplies. With the exception of the water pumping station, which has been extremely fortunate in getting shipments of steam coal, there is not an industry in the city that it not on the edge of a coal famine. The thread mills is the next institution that is better fixed than the average. They have enough coal to last two or three weeks, but no new shipments in sight. Loughry Bros, have enough on hand to run the big mill two or three days. The schools are right up against it, too. Supt. Elder thought they had enough coal to heat the buildings today and possibly Monday. Unless coal can be secured by Monday the schools will be forced to close. But before that is permitted, it is quite likely that the dealers with their meagre supplies, or even individuals who have a fairly good supply of. coal on hand, will come to the rescue.