New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1873-11-13
READING PENN.

hEADlNO, ILNN'
A PROSPEROUS ToWN-THE PANIC LITTLE FELT-A
CANDID CONFESSION FROM A MANUFACTURE
WAGES AND HOURS GENERALLY REDUCED TEN
PER CENT-ALL TILE SMALLER INDUSTRIES IN
FULL OPERATION.
IFRoa A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRIBUSE.l
READING, Nov. S.-The first impression OF
the traveller he approaches this town from harrisburg
or Allentown and sees the tall steeples OF its many
churches the neat and tidy appearance OF lis Drlck
dwellings and the beauty and fertility Of its surround
Ing country that Reading must DO thriving, pros
porous and healthy placein fact pleasant and COM
Portable city 10 dwell in Nor is the impression changed
on closer examination There said to be no city in
this country Of the sizeit the third city in
Peunsyv aua, and has population OF 4OOOO-which has
- many real estate owners Reading. am crediby
informed that there are not two families living IN the
same house the entire city, 1t surrounded by an
agricultural cOuntry richer in accumulated wealth than
almost any other in the United States where almost
every farmer holder Of Government bonds rang
ing in from S. 900 10 $4,000 and more That
city situated is not likely TO be serious sufferer from
money panic may naturally be inferred, and such is
the fact Although there largo manufacturing in
tcress CeBterod here, employing thousands OF hands,
the only effect OF the panic thus far has been contrae
ton in few Of the hours OF labor and general
reduction OF per cent wages The stoppage Of the
hat factories about which sensational reports were sent
abroad at the time, was not matter Of such serious
the number drown out OF employment was greatly exag
geratod There hat factories the city, employing
90 an average about 80 hands EACH only 700 in all
very large portion OF the employees boys. In the
second place, there is generally Stacking up" OF
work at this Of the year. and the number turned
out Of employment temporarily was but little larger
than usual In the third place, the soppage, as am in
formed by one OF the largest manufacturers was not
made necessary by the panic but was IN consequence OF
surplus Of goods in the market aud the slight demand
that prevailed before well since the panic I" To
tell the truth about It," lie said, ave stopped more for
the purpose OF forcing the price Of hats than any
thing else He thought that all Of the factories would
start again by 1st Of January The hat manufacture
here is almost entirely for the NewYork market, and
the goods mainly consigned to two or three large
houses -
Another report sent from here TINS week. that the cot
Ton mills owned by Garner & Co. of New York had
stopped. without foundation The imill, which en-
pOys hands has not only not stopped but has
lately furnished by its with fresh supply
OF cotton and expected keep running through the
Winter superior quality OF drilliDgs, which
are said good demand, and this is the
why the mill is kept going while so many other mills
owned by firm in various parts Of the country
have been closed
The Reading Railroad Company are among
the largest employers the city, having
IN their car shops, machine shops, forges, roll
s. mills locomotive works, and usually employing
from $500 to 5000 They have reduced the time OF
a their employees from ten hours to nine, and have also
reduced 10 per cent, making reduction alto
gsthcr Of 20 per The reduction in time. however
u OF the year with portion OF their
hands. No have been discharged, but in some
branches their work the set employed only
during alternate weeks. or the iron manufacturers here
the largest firm is that OF seyfert McManus Co., which
has large blast furnace rolling mill for railroad iron,
another for sheet ron nail factory, founderies &C.
stopped temporarily, is TO start again in few days
They discharged no men, but have made
waeas MeIlvain 4 Co.. another iron firm, msnuisc.
turing bOlerplae and employing 100 men, are running
on full time bat with 10 per cent reduction in wages
Tie same may be said OF Smaller JohDs0ns fOuDdery,
employing 90 men, and Maert Kingey, employing 100
r. j 0bert. boiler maker 100; Kraig Koch's Keystone
Rolling Mill for the manufacture OF merchant iron;
Iarhsfer Bros manufacturer Of ornamental ronware;
Ick Bros Sternbergh, several others. Bushroung
Bros have stopped one furnace put are running the
other. together with paper mills and other
works on fun time.
THE FARMERS MONEY IN A SUSPENDED BANK
THIS Is the banking firm that suspended few days
ago am told that their Indebtedness in Berks, Leba
non, and Lancaster Counties is very large BY offer
ing interest on deposits they got the farmers round
about here who formerly deposited in the National
Bank, to intrust their money with them, and thus
srapd up aarge proportion OF the loose money OF this
region country which Invested In various enter
pgses and much Of it sent to and lent on rail
of money this mainly TO this cause. and like
che OF Pittsburgh Cleveland, aud other places.
favor OF q law prohibiting DaDkiuV
from paying interest deposits They attribute large
share Of the present financial troubles to this practice
The Berks County Railroad, building from here 10
SatnglOn, and which IL Is said is 10 be formidable
competitor the Reading Railroad as an outlet for the
I.hfgh coal region made the last payment 20 their
Nyorkmen the ut In scrip, Of which $4,000 was
paid out When 1rsi issued it was not much appreciated
6y the men, good deal of IL sold at discount
at 20 per cent but has since risen in the estima
fon Of and brings nearly its ru value
The scrip taken at ali the stores for goods and con-
Yertble into first mortgage bonds OF the road
The smaller manufacturing Industries OF Reading, In
GLIDING FIRE BRICK terra Gotta potterles speetace-lDak
lug Be- &C. are all in operation as usual, some with
and some without a reduction or 10 per cent in wages
Nearly all of the manufacturing population OF Reading
are Americans by BIRTH aud very large snare OF then
own their own houses. There are IL building assOcla
lions here which are great avOres with the mechanics
aud operatives and have been the means OF aiding them
20 a great extent in acquiring homes Tor themselves
much larger proportion than Is usually found IN manu-
featuring towns own their houses which are either
wholly partially pad Tor, aud have something more
than their labor from day day 10 depend on. An oc-
asOna cToaker be found here elsewhere but as
a general thing the people OF Reading take hopeful
view their prospects n the present crisis 10 well
Us those OF the country at large.