The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-01-05
TRADES UPS AND DOWNS
NO IMPORTANT CHANGE IN TIE
SITUATION AS YET.

4 Hopeful Feeling Prevails, but Re-
tarding Influences Recognized Com
plants of Railroad Discrimination
Still Heard-some Hardness in Col
lect.ons-Whst a Review Of Last
Years Failures Shows
New YORK, Jan. 4-R G. Dun & Co. S
reviews Of trade for the week says:
The new year opens with no important
change in business prospects. a hopeful
feeling everywhere prevails, and al the
same time the nature and extent of retard-
ing influences are more clearly rec 7gnized.
Prominent among these are the unseason-
able weather. which prevents the usual
distribution Of many products, the dis2osi-
ton Of farmers TO hold back products, spsc-
ulative reports having created hope Of
much higher prices, and the widespread
disturbance Of trade by railroad wars and
discrimination. The unusually open
winter. too, makes 1t difficult to get
products 70 market, and is especially dis
tf1rb'ux 70 the great lumber trade Of t1s
northwest. Railroad agree Ients DO not
stop the Determinations Of which mer-
chants in nlost Of the western towns are
complaining. while tie hopes Of stocknold-
e7s were chilled By news OF cutting IL
western passenger rates within one day
after the new compact took effect
REPORTS CENTRALLY FAVORABLE.
In spite of these i. fiuerces the reports Of
the condition Of business are generally
favorable. The growth Of manufacturing
at many we-teTn points Is no-able
feature, and especially II the ice regions,
ans a. points n y rt6e-n Illinois snd
Iowa Merchants generally reckon up a
large increase in tie amount Of business
last year. though tow I'd the close the
movement vas dlSappointingly slow Tar
djness Of collections, due in different sec
lions, 70 short o. late crops. 10 yellow fever,
20 mild weather, or to retarded dIstrlbu-
ton Is also matter Of general complaint
At many cities the record Of building shows
surprising increase, especially at the
wes.. and in Philadelphia Ike buildings
erected were 900 more than IN 1881
The present state Of trade IS generally
quiet. even more than IS usual for the s@a-
son. but the many markets, though usually
well supplied, have a Cettsr demand at
Philadelphia, Cleveland. Detroit. Milwau-
kee. Omaha, and Sioux City.
VOLUME or The CURRENCY.
The volume Of the currency, practically
unchanged during December, Is now
81 40 OUO. 900. only $li[ millions below the
A year ago it was 81 81 900, 90: in Juls
1857. only 81 80. OO0, 0OJ, and IN July, Isl,
only 81, 30. 900, 600 During the past week
the treasury has taken in half million
more tnan il has paid out, and
the Bank Of England statement
leads 70 the belief that more
money nav be drawn from this side But
the merchandise exports for the past month
from New York have exceeded those Of the
previous year l.G Per cent, against an in
crease of 2.5 per cent in imports, which
would indicSte an excess Of so, 600 90 in
the exports over t1e imports Tor the
month.
COURSE OF TIE STOCK MARKET.
The course OF the stock market has thus
far disappointed those who looked for
rapid advance; pr-ces average fifty cents
per share lower than week ago; ami the
reports Of rate cutting have a bad influence
There was serious fear Of extensive strikes
on western roads, but the latest dispatches
indicate that all difficulties have been ad-
Justed.
TIE speculative markets have not been
active. excepting for lard which Las de-
clined over = cent. Coffee is = cent higher
with sales of 253 90 bags. Cotton is steady.
with sales Of 36S, 900 bales. and wheat IN
changed, with sales Of %, OOJ, 900 bushels for
the week. Corn is = cent lower and cats
4
cent lower and refined 70 cents per 100 gal
Ions lower.
A DOWNWARD TENDENCY.
The general tendency Of prices is still
downward, and average oue-half per cent.
lower than Dec. l, and 6 per cent. lower
than beginning Of last year At the high
est point last year. prizes averaged less than
per cent above the opening; at the lowest
point, June 30, they were II per cent.
below the present level
The enormous output Of iron still weakens
the market, and while the production last
year is believed 10 have been !, 800. 900 gross
tons, the deliveries of steel rails were prob
ably 500. 600 tons less than in 1887, ana
about 900 tons less than the capacity Of
the mills.
LAST YEARS FAILURES.
The annual statement Of failures, show
ing that lO,619 firms, or trlfie more than
in 100, went into bankruptcy in 1855, is, on
the whole, especially encouraging. because
the average Of liabilities was only 81 .595
for the year, and sl0,73S for the last quar-
ter. This indicates that a remarkably large
proportion Of the failures reported was Of
concerns dong a small business On the
other hand, the number for the last quarter
was about the largest on record, and there
are other indications that the existing state
of things operates powerfully 70 crowd out
the smaller and weaker traders. Ii NAV be
noticed, too, that throughout the western
and southern states, Texas included, the
failures were both more numerous and
larger in the aggregate of the liabilities
than IN the year preceding. while IN the
eastern, middle and Pacific states an i'm
portant decrease in the amount Of liabilities
appear, and also in Texas
The business failures occurring through
out the country during last week num6er
for the United States 3j9 and for Canada
Is, total Of 3S7, against 800 last week.
Failures are usually numerous at this season
Of the year for variety Of reasons, but 3s7
In one week IS probably the highest number
ever recorded in this country in that period
Of time