The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1885-09-24
Relief Of the Buslness DePres-
An0Hs

Renewed activity in various branches
Of manufacturing industry and mercantile
pursuits is significant of approaching re-
lief to the business depression which has
long prevailed at commercial centres and
has necessarily been felt through ont the
country, checking the initiation Of new
enterprises and suspending the prosperity
of long established interests. We have
the following in business review issued
from Philadelphia:
The steel rail- makers have orders on their
books Mt the present time for over 100000 tons
of rails to be delivered between this date and the
last OF December They have inquiries for up
wards of 100000 tons in addition to be delivered
during the first quarter of the year, but they are
holding prices at $50 per ton, instead of $27-
the price ruling before the recent advance Buy
ere believe that this advance cannot be main
tanned. The production agreed upon for next
year is 10000 tons. Last years consumption
was I, 0OO, 600 tons. Makers believing that by
refusing to make as many rails as will be want
ed they can crowd buyers into paying an ad-
vance of $3 per ton. There are contracts in
hand tor 800 miles of wrought pipe for between
40 and so railroad bridges; besides heavy orders
for nearly all kinds of iron and steel. Sales Of
wire for the past three weeks foot up 10000 tens
and prices have advanced
Numerous orders are received Tor merchant
iron and steel from agricultural implement man.
ufactures, and from wagon, carriage and ma
chinery makers. The manufacturing interests
are inclined to the opinion that the depression OF
the past two years has not reached its end, and
that the coming winter and spring will develop
a moderate improvement. Last week orders for
| fifty locomotives were placed, besides large
number of freight cars and goOdly number of
passenger cars
The lumber dealers in all Atlantic tide water
| markets are meeting with an active demand
for white pine, yellow pine and hemlock, besides
hard wood; bnt owing to the recent drop i'll
| freight rates to l3c. per hundred from Chicago.
| considerable dissatisfaction is created in Penn
| sylvania lumber interests, who find themselves
| deprived of the customary market The lumber
| dealers of the Northwest will therefore be able
| to control large amount of the lumber trade
| along The Atlantic coast during the winter.
| Building is being rushed with great activity and
| there is everything TO encourage the lumber
| trade.
The anthracite coal trade is very dull, although
| 10000 tons OF coal are mined and sold every
day Another shading in prices to The extent Of
| lOc. or 2Oc per ton is probable after Oct. |. a
great deal of mining territory is being opened in
this State, but is probable that btuminous coal
will hold its own during the winter.
| Inc wiring paper manufacturers are pTcpaT-
| ing to advance prices. spirit of demand has
absorbed considerable of the summer Stocks and
| they are running their mills less than full time.
| The manufacturers of newspaper report better
| demand, due in part 10 the action of some pub
fishers in placing long contracts for future dev-
cry, on account of the fact that prices now are
lower than they are likely to I've later on.
| The carpet manufacturers have orders in hand
for 100000 yards of carpet, and are working,
| many of them. day and night to fill their con-
| tracts on time. Prices range from $50 to $40 for
| brussels and ingram, and the markets are ex-
panding throughout the South and West. A
| good many strikes have taken place, but most
| OF them have been compromised. No further
advance in prices is probable. New designs are
being constantly brought out, and the industry
is in very healthy condition. Eleven thousand
persons are busily engaged in turning out hosiery
and knit goods The production of Philadelphia
factories is estimated at $4,000 per day, nearly
| all made to fill orders. great deal of knitting
| machinery has been put in during the past three
or four months, and manufacturers feel encour-
| aged to increase their capacity Although COM
petition is very close, the silk manufacturers are
quite full of orders, and arc employing 1000
hands, mostly full time The improvements made
in the manufacture of American silk makes it pre-
| ferable to most OF the foreign silks, and, to many
| dyers not familiar with American goods, the lat
ter IS frequently sold as imported. The Bingham
| and cotton yarn goods mills are all working full
time, furnishing work to 10000 or 10000 hands.
| There are orders sufficient in hand to run the
mills through the winter The heavy cotton
crop will possibly work slight decline in cotton
| goods for the spring trade
Prices of all kinds of staple products are not
likely to vary much from the present. Several
trade combinations are talked of to control prices
| and production. The boot and shoe manufacturers
are working full time and have sixty days orders
| on hand. The New England factories arc
crowded with orders and their shipments are in
excess of last year. The clothing manufacturers
have orders enough TO run them up to November
| 1, and are now preparing stocks for the spring
trade. Medium clothing is in very active de-
mand, and is selling at lower prices at wholesale
stores than ever before Every day develops
something OF special interest, and indicates that
if we are not at the end of the depression we are
| very near it.