The sun., 1880-12-13

quence was that prices have reached fig
uro which made 1t exceedingly profitable 10
bring iron from the other side. Many car
goes OF foreign ores were also. shipped
hither. In the month OF April of this year
alone 23a,9O7 tons OF British iron were sent
to tho United States. The result was glut
in tho market. followed by some failures
and much loss among spectators. During
the year, however, tho trade has got into
healthier state. and now tho great demand,
which promises next year to be In excess OF
any We have known, IL absorbing tho do
nestle production, and prices have settled
down TO figures which make 1t impossible to
bring over foreign iron and sell ii at the
rates current here, for prices are now I'M
proving abroad.
III the iron market s left to take It's natu-
raj course. therefore, there will be profit all
around. and probably n steady improve
ment In prices between now and spring.
fortunately, tho iron speculatOrs have al
ready burned their fingers.
But the tendency to speculation which
was 30 soon developed In iron has extended
to oil the great commodities, and the tape
in brokers Offices In Wall street has been re-
cordtng the prices Of grain and provisions,
as well as OF stocks and bonds. 1t looked ut
ono time as IL the whole OF trade would be-
come game OF chance, fight between bulls
and bears.
And even now, warned by tho failures In
the coffee trade, people are asking whether
prices are real and stable, or how far they
are speculative. That is the feeling In the
provision market, which has been marked
by advance and decline during the week.
Coffee and tea have fallen In price. and the
market ia very unsettled. owing to the fail
| ures OF the great speculative houses. The
cotton market. always a favorite one for
| spectators. Is in the came unsettled and
| abnormal condition. The bears had their
way for time during the weok; then there
was reactionary advance, then depres-
sion again.
In breadstuffs also the evils OF speculation
: have been seriously felt during the week.
| Great fluctuations have occurred in wheat,
but the tendency OF prices has been down
ward. The supply has increased. and tho
export demand has been small Corn has
also declined, in consequence of rapidly aug
menting supplies. 1t is the same with
other grains.
The dry goods market Is in better eondi-
ton. It gives evidences of more legitimate
business methods.
| As TO the coffee trade, in which the great
and suggestive disasters have occurred,
each depending on the other, 1t has been
for year in condition to render abortive
all attempts to control or corner the mar
ket. The new and greater facilities for
transporting the crop from Brazil have
Overstocked our market, and made a decline
in prices entirely legitimate. We had on
hand In November more than double the
quantity OF Brazilian coffee we had year
before, and Of other coffees the increase In
the supply was even greater. Jobbers are
also importing largely on their own
account, and any attempt to control
the market Is therefore made more
difficult. The production Of coffee has also
been on the increase, and. though we are
the greatest coffee drinkers In the world,
the supply is large enough to give US the
beans at prices which are low, compared
with what they have been frequently in the
past.
The people, therefore, have reason to re.
joice that natural causes are defeating the
efforts OF the spectators to push up the
gElsss e e. sss s.sss.ss M sd
merchants who do sound and Legitimate
business are injured and rendered anxious
by the introduction OF Wall street methods
Perhaps the late failures will servo as a
| warning.