Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-01-23
Unchanged Trade.


The frequent prediction in the closing
weeks of December that when. accounts
had been balanced for the year and its
losses known, a crop of failures would be
harvested, was at least partially justified
by the closing last week of two banks i'm
Jersey City, 566 failures in all parts of the
country IN the past fortnight, or twice the
number in the first two weeks of any wear
Tor three years past, an official defalca-
ton to the amount of 100000, an over
issue OF $2,OOO,OO0 stock discovered i'm a
street car company in this city and sew
eral minor flights, defaloations and fail
ures elsewhere, Add to this fire
losses, which must make every fire in
surance company dread the coming twelve
months and be mindful that we are now
at an average distance from a great fire:
ana ana the lact tnat, IN spite of an erroneous
'Dalance" rolling up in our favor on eX-
ports, exchange still hangs below the
shipping point of gold, while no signs ex-
lst OF the foreign or local investor. and the
past week Will be seen to be one in which
nothing has happened to remove the an
prehenslon with which the year opened on
DOth sides OF the Atlantic. for 1889 was as
pad year III England as here, and disas.
ter IS predicted for 1888 there as here.
The financial weekIies. as aft any time
during the past five months, are still see
ing prosperity just around the corner and
SOId shipments fortnight ahead. They
have this strong reason for their predic-
ton now that last week the country felt
the influence of an approaching crop year,
III WhIch large crop here will lap small
crop abroad. This is the only condition
on winch rests great prosperity for this
country. Experience has shown that il
is always unsafe to predict small crOps as
consequence of floods, but the opinion
abroad that cold weather and floods have
reduced by One-third the wheat acreage
OF Europe seems well founded, and
grain prices advanced last week in this
country. This advance is accompanied
ana was preceded by the largest winter
shipments on record. In all previous
years grain receipts at the Northwestern
markets have fallen off from 80 to 40 per
cent. on the closing of navigation in No.
vember. This year the average weekly re.
ceipts have been very nearly the same.
month by month, from August to Decem-
Der, inclusive, and promise to increase.
rms is, OF course, part of the general
change apparent in recent years bv
which q steady supply. fresh from
the farm, replaces the ''yisible supply;
OF the past; but it is of more
Importance that the steady receipts show
that the farmers of the Northwest are at
last sending on their grain, convinced
that prices are not likely to advance or
lIGISuJ TdIeS 10 Idll. Graln receiDtS are
now averaging over 100000 bushels
week; as large an amount % was reached
year ago under the pressure of cut rates.
Cotton receipts continuous since the
crop year opened-10 per cent. in advance
OF last year, The crop is believed to be
20 per cent. larger.
Balancing this harvest of large croos
are the daily and recurrent proofs of over
production. Coal, a DELICATE barometer of
manufactures, is accommodating in a way
which has led to proposals for a suspen.
sion OF mining-for the effect on price.
probably. Iron does not improve. Each
week seems to increase the difficulties
under which textile manufacturers
labor, and only the makers of
finer grades of goods are making
money. Other trades in which this
is true would simply catalogue the indus.
tries of the cQVnJry. Railroads. whose
aggregate covers half the gross receipts of
the country, return $305, IA, a53 in 1882.
against 1912, 49,, oil in 1881; net increase
OF $33, 2l6, 432, or II per cent. advance. 1t
Is not likely that the increase in the gross
earnings of the railroad system of the
country was larger. This is not pros
perity. From 1879 to 1880 and from 1850 to
cent.