St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-12-30
he closing prices at the stock exchange to
WEEKLY REVIEW.

The presence of the holiday season, when
the minds of people are filed to certain ex-
tent with ideas of Christmas and New Year,
and the period when the account of stock
must be taken and the balances of the year
must be made, is not a time when much bust
ness can be expected to be done. Our deal
ers are all busy, and the balancing up of the
books is showing that the season of 1885, now
drawing to close, has been a favorable and
prosperous one. Even at the present time,
in many lines of business, there is great
deal of activity. The drug market
is very active for the season.
More orders are coming in than
ever before during the holidays thus far. In
prices there have been few changes of note.
Alcohol continues firm at the advance. Carda-
mons, carbolic acid and quinine are lower.
The latter article has touched the lowest
point in price ever yet known. The practice
of selling quinine and morphine at cost in
Philadelphia, paying their own freight on it
and giving from thirty to sixty days time ad-
dltional on the sale, is becoming unpopular
among respectable jObbers. Senega root is
dull. Extra ginseng is in demand, while Or
binary grades are little sought or cared for.
Drug houses generally take annual stock at
this season, and this adds to their pressure
of business at this time. The
prospective results of the years
business is generally considered favorable.
The condition of the hardware market has
not changed in any material respect from
what it was last week. There is a very rea-
sonable and satisfactory degree of activity,
while collections are coming in quite as Hber-
ally as could have been expected. 1t is re-
ported that during the current and the COM
ing week the majority of the nail mills will be
closed down. They have been driven SO hard
to full capacity during the past months that
the usual holiday repairs will probably turn
out considerably more extensive than usual.
This will tend to keep supplies from the mar
ket for the present. 1t is likely
that general reduction Of wages will
take place during the early future at the
Eastern mills. In one Or two instances re-
duction has already taken place. 1t is likely
that the men will accept the situation, since
the higher prices during the past few months
were simply due to exceptional circumstances
The dry goods market is utterly devoid
of interesting features. Apart from a few
mail orders received each day and an occa-
sional visit from some nearby merchants
there has been nothing done. Trade is very
dull and will continue so until the middle of
January. This state of affairs is, of course,
usual at this season of the year, and is taken
advantage of by our merchants to inventory
their stocks, preparatory to closing up bust
ness for the year. The stores present scene
OF great activity, as every piece of goods, and
in fact, every item has to be counted, meas
ured and the yards taken, etc. The presumption
is reasonable that the result of the inventory
will be gratifying, as the year has been a
prosperous one. The closing month of the
year, December, showed considerable increase
over the same period last year and assisted
in swelling the aggregate increase Of the sea-
son to reasonable extent. Prices are with
out change, with indications pointing to a
steady market for the coming season. Gro
ceries are entirely without change, though
sugars are very firm. Lumber, boots and
shoes, leather and finished iron and steel still
remain without any important change.