New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-04-03
1TDNEV md BUSINESS.


MONEY AND BUSINESS.
1t is surprising and very encouraging that
the banks lost so little money last week.
Compu,ation of the effect Of Treasury receipts
and disbursements upon the daily averages
shows that a decrease Of $1,772,076 in bank
reserves was caused by the Treasury but the
whole decreasc reported was only 1881, POO
If the report of average Is correct, therefore,
the banks sent TO the interior less than
$4,000 in excess of thc amount received
from the West and south. As the known
shipments principally to Ncw-England, were
about 80 600, 600, if appears that very I'M
Dortant and effective movement OF money
hitherwa1d must have commenced, and the
fact is the more gratifying because IL had been
feared that active speculation At Chicago and
st. Louis would lock up so much money that
none would he sent Eastward at pres nt. The
demands from New-England having now been
met, aud the 1st Of April, usually point Of
some danger, having been passed, there is no
visible reason to expect any pressure IN the
money market for some months to come. Dis
bursements Of the Treasury, and return of
money from the interior, will pour Il very
large supply into this market before
long, and though some may go abroad
if the rate of interest here becomes low, it
does not now seem probable that shipments
can occur in sufficient amount to cause any
stringcncy or disturbance this summer. The
great foreign banks are still Increasing in re-
serves. The Bank Of England holds
$40, 10000 and the Bank of France
SIP 772, 900 in gold. The collapse of specu-
lation on the Continent renders it improbable
that n new fever of that sort can speedily
absorb the available supplies Of money. ard
the condition Of legitimate trade and indus
t1y is not such, in England, France or Ger
many, as to warrant the expectation that any
great increase in the demand for money can
arise.
Assuming that there is to be period of
comparative ease in the money market, we
may hope for increased activity in trade. The
volume OF business has been large ever since
the new year began, Notwithstanding the great
shrinkagc in quantity OF leading staples han
! died. The less actual wheat there is to be
sold, the more wheat men bay and sell. Since
January 1st the sales OF wheat IN the New
York market have amOu ted to ZO2, 100000
bushels against only IS, 600 bushels for the
same thirteen weeks in 1851. Yet the total
receipts of actual whoa, ut New-Yorll during
| the quarter have been only 1921, 6G6 bushels
in 1852, against 5,282,GiG in 1851. The
sales of corn here have been 72,O3G. 900 bush
els, against %, 7J9, 900 in 1881. But the re-
ceipts Of actual corn have been only 2,596,SS4
bushels in 1889, against t,939,3l7 bushels in
the first quarter of 1881. Speculation has IN
creased vastly more than the business which
represents transfers Of actual products and
precisely because there is Onl one bushe of
wheat to be had where there were two, the one
bushe is sold two or three times as often
Doubtless the condition of business is much
the same at the other commercial centres ;
while manufacturing and the movement OF
goods from producer 10 consumer have been
on a smaller scale than in the first quarter of
1881, the speculative branches of business
have greatly increased in activity This is Il
natural result when short crops in some
branches. and decided excess of productions in
others, have caused some prices to Use very
much, while others have fallen
The progress of the railroad settlement
toward completion is now everywhere
recognized, and the opinion is gain
ing that the settlement win be of more effect
and practical value than any that has preceded
it, For some points of difficulty no adequate
provision has yet been made public, hut there
is reason in the claim that the rail-
road managers, who know better than any
body else what is needed to make their work
effective, cannot be supposed to have neglected
anything that is essential. For the present,
there is but little freight to be moved. Rates
by lake ere IT n,arkably low, and the rates by
canal, which will open unusually early, will
doubtless be low also. But all this will change
if good crops bring ample business for trans
porters. Then a satisfactory and well main
tanned arrangement between the railroads will
be found highly beneficial to their owners.
Though the number of strikes increases,
none Of them has yet proved of great import
ance. Those which affect the largest number
of bands-the strikes III the Lawrence mills
and in the Cumberland coal region-do the
less harm because the supply of goods and of
coal had been largely in excess of the de-
mand. Difficulties in the locomotive works at
Paterson also seem TO be peculiarly ll-timed
for the workmen, because not few orders for
locomotives have recently been countermanded
In some instances the inability of new railroad
companies to place their securities is having
| an unfavorable effect upon the iron trade,
though other establishments are at work with