, 1875-01-01

tDk !A4At1t
HATS, CAPE, AND FUR5.
TnE RALEs OF THE PLaT YEAR
aggregate atont ~, 500, ,0n6 on capital OF
IS, cox, 600. Tile VOLUME Ut business ia about tic
sasna - in 1473 and has beea tfsasscted by
fewer firms, 10 that i. l,As heen quits satisfactory
to those who remain, though sone nevere losses
wero cxperieuced. Eeforo tue iire the number
OF flrma had never exceeded 7. After thai
evcnt it tose to ~. During tho rebuilding the
bnsiueHs was prosperous, hut It uoon became eg-
Ident that It rss overdone, and eDes then there
has been
AnGADCAL REDUCTION;
nearly nns-half Of tho firms having retired
during the past three years. in viow Of the
dsminution Of proata csused by tho too great
competition. Probably this class Of gooda has
been sold nowhere elsa SO cheAply as IN this
CITY. tho business 10 now conAdered to be In =
healthy condition. Prices have tilrnnk nearly
10 Per cent. A factor. for making woo!en hats
has recently beeu established in this city-thc
first OF its kind IN the WcEt.
FISH.
ovn LEADING toBREA5
Of cured hsh report their gales for the Season Of
1874 u fully 20@25 per cent in excesB Of 1919.
which III turn we're larger than IN any previous
year suce Chicago becamo city. The largely
Increased business Of the past year IS no doubt
partly attributable to the relative cheap
ness Of Ghh a. compared with meats
prices Of all descriptions. except. perhaps. cod.
having ruled lower thAn for nutnbar Of sea4uns
past,-hnt the steady and rapid growth of the
trade Ia chiefly due to the "nide-Avake" chat
acter Of the men by whom the business is con-
trolled. Our jobbers havo Pushed out
Their SCENTS to points near aud re-
mote, securing hero = new customer
and there one. until to-day Chicago enjoys the
distinction Of being the iAtgcst fBh-distrLuting
point in the United btates, with possibly one ex-
ccption. Prices have been subjected to fewer
fluctuations than in past yeara. aud the season
* 1874 may, therefore, be set doHn as rros-
peroue one.
rHs CATCH or COD
has been about one-tb,rd less than in 1878, and
priees haye ruled from !; to 1c per II, higher.
George's il now quoted At -; SOC SIS, .hsle a
year ago it wta selling at 55.75@G.GU Tie ynar
closes on light stocks. and If prices do not
further advauce with the opening OF tbs new
year, there ia at aft eveulH no likelihood of
lower rates. Mackerel has bean rery plenty aud
| averaged between $500 and e4.UU per 4 brl.
cheaper than III 1873. No. shore is now auoted
! st S3.5oGDl0.0o, Against tl9.bo1l4.0u year
ago Tho lake dshesies were attended
| with more than ordinary success, aud low prices
have prevailed tho Keason through. Closing
1
and u. 10000 for trout. The growth ef the
! trade in California salmon has been marvellous.
1t iH scarcely than five years since thiA DE-
licious tsh WAS frat introduced in this market.
| Whllo tho sales during the past twelve
monthB have exceeded st1 hou8d1sd
| t0,rets. 1u addition 10 the above
there have been sold within the year from Is 900
| to 1900 cases OF cannoa salmon. narreted
BAlmcn have sold but tri1o lower than in 1873
but the canned article showa difference o.
| something like 80 per cent. No new firms hAys
| embarked in thb iieh business nor Lave any re-
| tired.
| FRESH FISH.
| There arc at present si1 houses represented IL
] the freBh+isn trade, the snnua. sales OF which
ate about 1900 COX, amounting In weight to 10 0o3.
| 000 pounds, or $500 0a0 tsh. Fully uine-tenthl
Of tneso are our lake-front trout anil whitchuh
which haye beeu very plentiful during the pas
Season. 1he capita! represented Ia this business
ia about el60, 600.
Since the completion OF the Baltimore X Ohit
| Railroad, lxrge aud sudden increase in sAt
Oyster trade oi this CITY has boon plainly per
celtble. There are now ten houses Iepre
| sented here i'll the business. most Of then
acting as agents. for the Baltimore houses
Which city probably furnishes tour-Gtths O
tho bivaivcn used III the United States
The value OF fresh oysters uaed in Chlcsgo spt
shipped to tho Northwest is fully 4, 800, 600; O
which the city consurnes about 5ou, 700 worth
and the remainder goes to supply the exteuaiy,
country demand. The figures make Chicago
the great central oyster-dstributing point Of ih
West. The value gi7eu above repreeents sbou
0,S00. 900 quarts, OF 5l7, SOC, coo oysters.