Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1884-12-17

AFR. Jay Gould again fayors Tho public
with bis views upon the business situation.
r AS usual he Is hopeful, Mr.. Qould's In
terests lie In the direction of au advance
IN prices aud bis wish Is father ~ The
thought, no doubt. Stlll the thought may
be well founded one and, anyway, II Is o
good deal wiser 10 be expecting better
things of the future Dan 10 be predicting
that the country has gone TO the lad for
good and all. II is this class of spirits who
really postpone the return Of prosperous
timee. They never act upon fact but are
always swayed by fancy. When things
are bauooning they sail along gaily and
boastingly; when their air ship strikes the
ground, they despair Of ever seeing IL aaoat
again.
What is chiefly needed now is confidence
and courage. Prices Of commodities, as
everyone knows, arc down TO the cost Of
production. Everyone knows that they
must continue to be consumed; and 8s
they cannot DO produced cheaper, their
present prices are most probably tho lowest
that they will see. Under this assurance
II would seem TO be q good time 10 buy.
And it would, be If people were pot1so un-
reasonable when they ore frightened. The
business failures that continue 10 take
place make them doubtful of ev@ropes
gretii, and those who have mouay due
them press for It's payment With Dnrsasona-
BILE urgency and bring suit for II that they
may get judgments and fall upon their
debtors personal property before some one
elae Gobbles It. OF course he is no' going
to Let other creditors, who have
lent him money suffer By The act Of these
hard and other hungry fellows and
he confessea Judgements 10 those FROM
whom be las borrowed and makes an as
signnent for The benefit OF his general
creditors. This merchant has thus bern
forced into bankruptcy, although perhaps
perfectly solvent, by tho urgency Of few
frightened merchants from whom he had
bought more goods than In these dull times
he could dispose Of. This was the case
with George 3. Schaum, who Is now In the
sheriff's hands iu this city. Thanks to the
avidity with which our Lancaster people
buy at an auction, aud TO their ignorance
of values,th sheriff sale Is proving first
class method Of dspos!ng Of the large stock
Of furniture at high prices, frequently
much higher than the retail rates. Mr.,
Schaum's assigneos expect 20 have largo
property left after dlscharslng his debts,
and he will be ready 70 resume business
with fresh stock at low prices and freed
from a heavy burden Of interest
This is u sample Of kind Of business fail.
ure that IS prevalent now, and which Is
wholly brought about 10y the sIackness of
trade and the lack Of forboarsnce OF credit.
ors. Mr. Gould thinks that in the new
year trade will improve, and quito possibly
be is right, II will take, however, q better
prophet than the world now lIR, TO fix
the time when tho revival will come, al
though any one Is good enough prophe, TO
declare That II iS coming somo Time. If
anyone could tell US when tue people would
regain tAcir confidence in market values,
we would fix precisely the time when husi-
ness would become brisk, The present
dullneNs Of trade does not come from lack
of cash or capital. There is an Overlooking
abundance Of that in the banks, and II can
be borrowed at very cheap rates on tre
proof securities. The trouble u that the
most Of securities are not Of The Gre
proof kind. The fret government
bonds even are not held 10 be as good as
gold. Such feeling as this will parulgse
trade at any time, and 1t must be got rid
Of before business will revive. Mr.. Gould
can do good deal himself towards satisfy
ing the public that values are al @ safe
figure. As 10 commodities this il well
believed ; but as 10 stocks II Is doubted.
Mr.. Gould and his fellow gamblers havo
been rigging the stock market 10 Cob
tnnally, that the outside public have no
confidence at all in the prices they estab-
hsh and the values they declare. II Mr..
Gonld will settle all his contracts, close up
his business, exhibit his remaining stocks
in o safe deposit vault and sail away in his
yacht for year to the uttermost parts of
the earth, we will guarantee q business
boom eoincident with Es exposition and
smigration.