The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-01-06
Commercial and Financial Matters

Commercial and Financial Matters.
I The receipts Of cotton Mt 81. Louis up to Jam
uary amounted to 1s0546 bales. against 1877 AGA
for the same time last year.
The stock OF -four In store in Chicago January
was 7s.o4s bbls, against 1893 bbls December /.
and 1851 bbls the same time last year.
The receipts by river during the past week
Include Saba bales OF cotton: $780, 49s sacks OF
cotton seed; $500 hhds Of sugar, and MA bbs
OF molasses (which are heavy. even for this
season.
The ships mentioned In our marine column
as having cleared from this port yesterday.
carry away 81 .025 bales of cotton. 1o57o2 bushels
4 Of corn In bulk, AGA sacks Of cotton seed and
4 1o,s67 sacks of oieake.
The stock of pork in New York on the LIST Of
January is reported ut 80 as7 bbls against ~ 1884
last month aud 49, 4s9 one year ago. The stock
Of lard is reported at 4e174 tierces. against 4176
one month ago and 29.o43 one year ago.
Col. Topper, the delegate from the Chamber
OF Commerce to the Washington convention.
has already left for that point. aud Gen. Bussey.
as the representative of the Cotton Exch ange,
will leaye next week. These gentlemen possess
ability and experience, and will. no doubt. rep
resent the interests of the New Orleans COM :
mercial community In q most acceptable
manner.
The fee for registration of letters In England
Ia from the opening of the New Year to be re-
duoed to an equivalent to cents Ia our money.
instead of g. as 1t has previously been. England
derives large revenue from her Postoffice De-
partment, while ours is managed at heavy
loss. Rates for transmission are less there than
here, and this is. no doubt. one among the
many reasons for the difference.
The members of the old Chamber Of Com
msrce will hold meeting on Monday evening
for the purpose Of electing officers. That an
cient institution is manfesting some degree of
liveliness. more especaly.as there.is prospect
OF Its entering into marital relati ems with that
younger and more vigorous body. the Board Of
Trade. which some Of our prominent produce
merchants are pushing forward.
The latest news received from China by mail
confirms the impression previously existing
that piracy has by no means been extnguished
Every coastwise steamer leaving Canton is
heavily armed, and the native passengers, II
present In any numbers. are kept below with a
heavily armed guard mounted over them
There are, in fact. renewed signs of disturbed
condition Of public feeling all over the empire
from Canton to the borders of Kashgar.
The latest New York papers report tn at the
Christmas business transacted thus far has been
very much better in almost all respects. except
furs and other articles adapted to an especially
cold winter, than 1t was in 1876. Both the num-
Der of buyers and the total volume of transact
tions were better. There seemed, however, a
more than usual disposition to neglect the fancy
for the more useful articles. and the same ten
dency was manifested even by those who we're
evidently purchasers of presents. This Ia good
sign of the times. for New York is in many COM
mereial respects the best pulse from which a
good diagnosis of the general business pros
poets of the country at large can be made. SO
says st. Louis contemporary.
In the present condition of our commercial
and financial affairs we see no cause for de-
spondeney. On Friday there was a very large
amount Of notes falling due at the banks of our
city. and they were met with even un.
usual promptness There are in this COM
SAunity, and they are not confined to any
Particular locality. very large number
ofSthat lachrymose set of individuals who
seem to take great delight in looking
at the dark side OF commercial affairs. and in
disasters. The croakngs of these birds of ILL
omen should not be entitled to the least atten-
ton or consideration. Throughout this coun-
try, In fact all over the world. there is an op-
pressive dullness prevalent, the causes OF
which are readily com pretended by every man
who IL endowed with the usual quantity OF
brains.
Here In Loulsiana-more especially in New
Orleans-we have cause for hopefulness. Cot
ton, the great source OF our wealth and pros
perity, has. of late. poured In upon us in I'M
preeedented large quantities, and though prices
are esteemed to be low. tho aggregate amount
that will be realized from the crop will no
doubt be remunerative to the planter In our
opinion, there has been altogether too much |
Importance attached to tho curtailment of the |
sugar crop by the severe weather of last month |
1t is true that there are many individual in |
stances of loss and suffering but there is reason
TO believe that the yield will not be so seriously
abridged as was supposed some days ago. Be- |
sides. our sugar planters generally are In /
good condition to meet temporary drawbacks
For two years previous to 1877 they have been |
blessed with abundant crops: have realized |
therefrom full prices. and many of them who. |
q few years ago. were deeply involved In debt |
and trouble, have thereby been enabled to ex- |
tricate themselves from that disagreeabe |
dilemma They planted their crops, as general |
thing, with but little assistance from the city |
factor and many. though sustaining losses |
from providential causes, feel much more inde- |
pendent than they have done for years past OF |
course there are exceptions. which some OF |
our readers will readily call to mind.
The sugar planters who have suffered the |
most are those who, encouraged by former good |
crops. have made improvements on their |
places. purchased new and improved machine |
ny, and INDUCED in other expenses which they |
deemed necessary. But these additions re- |
main; they are not affected by frozen cane or /
short yields, and II the present proprietors can
not run their plantations. there are other |
men with the requisite capital and enterprise
who will step into their shoes. Indiyiduallv
Gil, oh trnf1hlan nj 10 L