The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1885-05-04
The Financial situation.

The warm, forcing weather which has
prevailed quite generally over the conn
Try during the past week is a feature OF
no little promise. Accompanied as il
has been with seasonable rains in most
sections, the effect ON the crops must
have been very favorable. With a con-
nnuanee of thess conditions, we ought
" Ie aple 10 know ny the LIST of May not
Snaf lhe real situation of winter wheat
uIs Tue extent OF the spring planting,
wnlle corni also, in many sections, BY
tnst time Will be fully under way. We
notlce that IN the south corn is already
torted as well started, and cotton
planning is making such progress that
~ Will De nearly completed, except IN
more northern attitudes, by the end OF
the month. We are prominently an
agricultural country, and from that
scource our growth ia wealth and our
power 10 fecuperate must chiefly come.
consequently these improved weather
condluUps have helped 10 remove the
anxiety which Was beginning 10 be felt,
ana infused more hopeful spirit III
business circles generally.
Other than the crops, IL is impOssible
tolgnofe the TACT that The progress vi
tne Anglo Russian dispute and the war
which ~ threatens, still has chief place
IN mems MINDS as an influence which
viii DO ilhely iavorably 10 effect trade.
vi course war opens up wide question,
and to attempt To iOrotell the changes
and Influences such a struggle would
cause and exert if long continued
would require more oil the prophetic
spirit man most men possess.
Yet the immediate results al
most any one can see and
measure. Veal know Tor instance (I)
that food products woulC, to an extent,
rise in price, and (2) that cotton would,
for time at least, decline in price. But
a more serious, because "a controlling,
question, would be its effect on the
money markets OF the world, Tor that
currency system, would attack us atour
weakest point. l, is well 60 ask, there
fore, whether 4 state of war be-
tween two such nations would not
naturally make capital conservative
and lesd on the continent an
well as In England 10 strengthening OF
bank re orves; and il so would not we,
under the circumstances, be the source
from which their new supply would
have to come?
This is mere hint, but may perhaps
cover al important suggestion; for
with gold flowing out OF the country
would prculaJ ons in wheat or in fact
anything else be promoted? Would
there not rather b. a natural effort to
stop that outflow, AM how could IL be
done except by new depression III
business which would effect further
decrease in imports and an increase in
exports. One is reminded of this feat
ure in the situat on by the tact that
foreign exchange has gone up again this
week and Is now only just below the
gold-shipplug point while What we call
money is 4 drug here and continues at g
per cent in London. We hold, there.
fore, no check whatever on gold exports,
tor our forced currency keeps our
money market outside OF natural in
huences. In tact this week our Clear.
ing House banks that pay interest on
deposits have had meeting To see ii
they could not come to an agreement
TO pay less than per cent hereafter, as
they cannot without too great risk earn
the 2per cent they pay now. Conseu
uently, we can see nothing in this
feature OF the case that favors tho idea
that an immediate effect OF the war will
be TO give new impetus 10 enterprise
here.
This idea ia further enforced by the
changed conditions our foreign trade il
now assuming. The Bureau OF Statistics
has this week issued It's March state
ment, which shows an excess of import,
during that month, result reached
not mainly through diminished exports
for they are only $2,500,000 less than il
February, but through the addition ol
nearly $ll 100000 in value to our imports
making them nearly S53,60O,ON
against about $42 900, 600 a month for In,
three ptevious months. -- Finaucia
Chronical