These works had been built originally by a syndicate of manufacturers, with the view of obtaining the necessary supplies of steel which they required in their various concerns, but the steel-rail business, being then in one of its booms, they had been tempted to change plans and construct a steel-rail mill.  They had been able to make rails as long as prices remained high, but, as the mills had not been specially designed for this purpose, they were without the indispensable blast furnaces for the supply of pig iron, and had no coke lands for the supply of fuel.  They were in no condition to compete with us.

It was advantageous for us to purchase these works.  I felt there was only one way we could deal with their owners, and that was to propose a consolidation with Carnegie Brothers & Co.  We offered to do so on equal terms, every dollar they had invested to rank against our dollars.  Upon this basis the negotiation was promptly concluded.  We, however, gave to all parties the option to take cash, and most fortunately for us, all elected to do so except Mr. George Singer, who continued with us to his and our entire satisfaction.  Mr. Singer told us afterwards that his associates had been greatly exercised as to how they could meet the proposition I was to lay before them.  They were much afraid of being overreached but when I proposed equality all around, dollar for dollar, they were speechless.

This purchase led to the reconstruction of all our firms.  The new firm of Carnegie, Phipps & Co. was organized in 1886 to run the Homestead Mills.  The firm of Wilson, Walker & Co. was embraced in the firm of Carnegie, Phipps & Co., Mr. Walker being elected chairman.  My brother was chairman of Carnegie Brothers & Co. and at the head of all.  A further extension of our business was the establishing of the Hartman Steel Works at Beaver Falls, designed to work into a hundred various forms the product of the Homestead Mills.  So now we made almost everything in steel from a wire nail up to a twenty-inch steel girder, and it was then not thought probable that we should enter into any new field.

It may be interesting here to note the progress of our works during the decade 1888 to 1897.  In 1888 we had twenty millions of dollars invested; in 1897 more than double or over forty-five millions.  The 600,000 tons of pig iron we made per annum in 1888 was trebled; we made nearly 2,000,000.  Our product of iron and steel was in 1888, say, 2000 tons per day; it grew to exceed 6000 tons.  Our coke works then embraced about 5000 ovens; they were trebled in number, and our capacity, then 6000 tons, became 18,000 tons per day.  Our Frick Coke Company in 1897 had 42,000 acres of coal land, more than two thirds of the true Connellsville vein.  Ten years hence increased production may be found to have been equally rapid.  It may be accepted as an axiom that a manufacturing concern in a growing country like ours begins to decay when it stops extending.