, 1877-01-01
about $24.00 per ton, tho present price Of No.
Lake Superior being $500 per ton. =.


HARDWARE.
puntsa THE FAST YEAR,
rs compared with 1875, tho sales OF general har1-
ware felt on about TO per cent. Thcbad weather
intcrfcrcd with trado IN the first quarter Of the
year, but tllfs loss was more than compensated
for By the business OF tho late spring md sum-
mcr. Tho fall trade was lighter than usual,
the partial failure Of tho crops, excitement
over the Presidential election, and the Ctnien-
nfa1, nil combining 10 diminish the volume Of
business In tho autumn. The year was only
moderately profitable. The shrlnkaae In vAlues
1as ltas than In 1875; the market was steadfer,
and dealers generally carried smaller stocks.
thus averting much Of tho loss. Prices were s
@lQ per cent lover, the most severe dccltne
being IN metals. 1fasdwara has ruled lower
than since tho War: and tin plates lower than
At any time In the history OF the trade. The
decline In goods Is attributed to The hard times
large production, and competition with Eastern
Increased by tho. extensive employment
OF machinery instead Of hand labor, mid q conf
parison OF the goods turned ont now and
twenty years ago shows what great strides have
been made towards perfection In late years.
rHR4R FAiLuRHs OCCURRED
in the city, due partly TO losses incurred In the
great fire. of 1871. Two OF these sopr, resumed
business, and tho other will probably do like
were forced to the wall. Tho year closed With
tho trade in = healthier condition. The hard
ware Interest Of Chicngo ts firmly cstablished,
and tho business With tho Wcst md Southwest
harlwarc and four metal houses, Tho aggregate
capital Of which Is about &, OF, 0oo, and tho
ssies Tor 1875 about $40, ,ooo, co.,
THE cAhR1A0E AND CABINET HARDWARE
houses alsorepoFt smaller trade, the iuss being
principally In tho fall, mud small profits on the
seasons business. The four cnrriage hartiwaro
or sadlcry houses represent i total capital Of
t300, ,000, and the estimated salos were $500 200.
The four cabinet hardware concerns have a capi-
tai Of 1000, with sales Of 4, ESQ 600.
8o1nc houses report a decrease and others an
increase In tho sales Of nails. The traje wns
river frcights enabled other cltics to undcrscll
Chicago; but aconblnattnn Of manufacturers In
the spring cquatfzcd tho rates for tho different
distributing points, making them permanent,
and afterwards Chicago revovercd much Of the
lost trade. a good many Of tho orders arc I'LL
cd direct from Tbs factories, s!nec the co,nple-
ton Of tho CROSS railroads In tho Interior that
the tonnage shipped frum Chicago is probablv
$3.50 md declncd. to sa.75, which figure attract
cd largn orders, an,i THO combination ratio Of the
past eight months wRs 81 pct key.
MRKCuANp1sE IRON.
In iron and heavy hardware the volume of
busintss WIS fully ~ large as In tho preVions
year. Prices declined about 10 per cent, yet
The season was moderately profitable to job
btrs, who generally avoided carrying heavy
atocks on the declining market. Tho salus arc
estimated at $i75o 600, on d capital Of about
81, SOC, 600. One failure occurreti. Tho Iron
industry has been dcmoraiizcd ever since tho
panic. The markets havo been oyerstockcd,
ind common Iron sold hero at lower price
than sIncc the War. Early In March the mAntl-
facturers formed combination, and agreed to
adhere to certain rates, thus ending tho ruinots
competition; but many buyers tlu previously
naae their cohtructs, ard aitor thai OF about
two dull months tho Association, finding its
Efforts fruftlcss, abandoned tho attUtnpt, an,i
the market subsequently declined to d 1ower
figure than since 1878. Several failures occurred
anlong manufacturers. The depreciation In the
value Of mil property In latu ycngs has been
enormous. Many Ut tho mills arc closed, anu
others aro now running single in placc vi double
Time, sumc Of them only Oh orders: 50 that II ia
Thought that tie preteps production doca not
greatly cxcrria the demand. The capacity FOR
manufacturing is 80 large, however, that tnrll
IN the market that would Yield profit would
be the signal to start up, and soon ovefproducc
and dealers anticipate littlc improvement in the
stntc Of affairs unt!' AineFea call eon,rete Will,
other buttons for tho foreign trade. This will
only be possible when the prIcu of skilled 1nhor
ca1i 10 reduced. All cl1ortA In that direction
Lave thua lar been unsucccssf1l.
Prices for sofnc Of the leading staples at the
close Ut 1875 md 1875 Wcsc ~ fullDws:
1870. 1875.
Tln.p1atcs ......".......... 81. ~ $0. 20
shcrt.i1on ,............. ........ .ElA .Ot
1ththA Hon...:s.- ,.,...,...-,.t - -
NallA >. ......s.......s.-,'.s.. Ssop oso>
a. ffn nfu1f Hrt, raj