New-York tribune., 1886-02-01

II "a believed that much freight is diverted 10
Southern lines, and the movement OF gram i'
checked by the wide speculative margin DC
tvvecn Nav contracts and cash grain, Wnlch III
duccs holders to store until navigation opens
The market for stocks has at times SHOWN
much strength because OF excessive short sales
Al the close 60 stocks averaged $50 32 per
shore. an advance of 1.31 for the week, but the
average is still 81 below the closing lor i"9'
wear. The condition Of The railways Is certainly
less favorable than it was then. what miscilel
the Baltimore and Ohio already makes Is less
feared than the suspected cutting or rates e"9'-
ward by tnat line or some connection. Medh-
while it is rum0red that IA new parallel line Is
to be completed by the Llckawanna to ChicaSo
in connection with the Chicago and Atlantic.
The trunk lines would indeed be unhappy II
their combination should 10 them no good, ana
vet should have vitality enough to prompt the
building Of new line.
Other markets have been variable in tone,
wheat closing half a cent higher than the week
before bat corn 2ll cents lower III spite Oh
UoWrrtul demonstrations that the corn crop mas
been orercsticiated by everybody except the
proulc now holding corn +; oats show an advance
of only Quarter OF Il cent, butter about l cent,
and cae-s about cents. a large decrease III tie
consumption Of sugar Is noted in January ana
the lower prices OF beet sugar abroad, With re-
ports Of increasing French production, prevent
an advance here The price OF crushed declined
an eighth Coffee also declined an eighth, bacon
- cents per / 90 pounds, lard , cents and talIow
II cents. The cotton movement has been pc
culiar the price declining SiXtc}nth,Whlic thc
price Of prints rose one eighth. Inc manll"cI-
urcrs bid up prints because there Is strike ana
the strikers persist because the manufacturers
bid up prints, and it looks a,if play spell was
wanted by both parties. Oil rushed mp the hiil
and then rushed down again, closing rs cents
lower than the previous week, after consider
able selling Speculative influence, appear too
strong for natural conditions the exports are
Is ppr cent larger thus far than those Of the
previous year, and refined fell only an eighth.
The wool market has improved for some quail
lies, and sales at Boston and NcW-forN are
larger. Great. hope prevails in the dly-goods
trade and there is Il larger distribution, with
increased Withdrawals, from warehouse.
The iron market is on the whole the most en-
c0uragng one II hardcus IN spite Of the adj
dI,ion of several furnaces since January l, AID
the Official reports show ihat the production IN
creased greatly during the latter part OF last
year. The business is still disturbed, however
/ by the coke strike and by fears Of strikes OF
other miners, and if railroad building should he
checked by a decline in stocks or a rupture OF
the pool. the iron busnes, would be found less
pro.prrous than some now suppose. Its future
may, perhaps, be influenced by the contract
which gives to the Pratt Company OF BlrmihS-
! ham, Alabama, the exclusive right to maniidct-
urcstecl in thiscountry by the bascprocc>s with
which such enormous progress has been made
| in Germany.