The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-10-03
October.

This month, the brightest. the briskest,
the most delightful Of the year. finds the
country with gaincrcd harvest for which
there ia both home ana foreign demand.
Manufacturing interests are still under II
cloud and capital hides away, but the
autumn outlook for business generally Is
less discouraging than it has been for sew
eral years past and merchants are hopeful
OF a fair trade.
The foreign demand for our cereals Is now
uneXampled. but We have a supply which
has only begun to be drawn upon. For the
nine weeks ending Sept. % the shipments
Of bushels of wheat or Of Hour reduced
TO its equivalent in bushels amounted 10
37,500,0JO, as against 100000 for the same
period of last year. The cotton crop IL now
coming forward rapidly. and the market for
1t is active both here and in England. The
early representations OF a crop Of the great
staple larger than any ever before harvested
IN the country are not justified, perhaps, by
the results of the picking, hut the estimates
are that the total yield will exceed that OF
last year by three or four hundred thousand
bales.
The prevalence OF yellow fever in some
portions of the cotton-growng region has
interlcrcd little with the gathering Of the
crop, for which the weather has, on the whole,
been very favorable. The pesticnce has been
almost wholly confined to the towns and
settlements, and had not till the last day or
two reached the plantations, which really
have, in some cases, gained by reason OF the
large number Of refugees who have fled to
them seeking employment. In the districts
tributary to New Orleans the crop is re-
ported as n full one, and that in Mississippi
Will come up to the average, though 1t will
fall below early expectations, on account OF
| excessive rains in the spring and summer
while In Tennessee the yield is fair though
the acreage is somewhat less than last year
| The i'll effects Of the yellow fever are felt
| after the crop has been gathered, quarantine
regulations preventing the forwarding oi
the cotton, and fear Of the epidemic driving
away buyers. New Orleans cannot fail to
suffer severely in her business interests
so largely concerned with the movement OF
the cotton crop, and It's merchants count the
fall trade as lost. The receipts Of cotton al
the shipping ports Of the country for tho
month Of September however, show large
increase over last year. They were 2si.9Ji
bales, us against logic bales, all the cotton
exchanges, except that Of New Orleans
being very active, with steady market AT
fair prices.
The grain crops of both England and
Franco are below the average. and tn,
grain districts of the Black Sea are still un
settled by war-facts which go to explain
the present remarkable foreign demand fol
our cereals, and afford promise of its con
tinuancc. During the year 1877 France cX
ported 34,Ol3,5 92 bushels of grain and lloul
and imported A., 53l, jiS bushels, an eXces.
of imports over exports of more than :, 900, OO
bushels, and this excess is likely to be in
creased In 1873 and 1879. Commercial pros
poets in England are reported rs Il lirtl'
brighter, and tho demand for our products
as active Business in our New York markets
has been fair during the week, and with firm
prices there is hopeful feeling prevalent.
The record OF business failures in New
York for September shows II smaller mum
Der of them and lower aggregate Of liza
bilities than tho exhibit OF any month fo
more than year past. There were onl.
thirty failures recorded, with liabilities o
about four and quarter millions, and rs
sets for more than half that amount Tn
only great failure was that of the OXfor'
Iron Company with liabilities put at thre
millions and assets OF two and n hal
millions. All tho rcst were for small
amounts, from about $780, 900 down to 81, O0C
or course the main cause Of this decline i
the repeal of the Bankrupt act, tu obtain tn
advantages Of which 50 maay firms wer