Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-07-10
COMMERCIAL NOTES.
Great Activity in Canned Meats,
While Bicycles Are Booming.
DEALERS UNABLE TO FILL ORDERS.
Uncle Sans Custom House Keeps Up Its
Usual Bright Record.
HAVANA CIGARS IN ACTIVE DEMAND
OFFICE OF PITTsBURG DISPATCH,
TTESnAY IDlv 1870

OFFICE OF PITTsBURG DISPATCH,
TUESDAY, July 9, 1889.
Tradesmen who can are preparing to fit
to the mountains or seaside, and the situation
in most commercial lines is that of suspend
ed animation.
A week ago the general prayer among
trades people was that rains would cease.
Now the cry is for rain to come and cool
the atmosphere.
1t is a pleasure to find that in some
branches of trade there is great activity,
notwithstanding the intensely hot weather.
A representative of the canned meats in
dustry SAID to-day: ''Our trade was never
as large at this season of the year as it Is
now. Since April 1 there has
been growing demand for our
goods. and this and next month promise to
be the best we have known. So far this
season our trade has been fully SO
per cent larger than for the cor
responding period of last year, with
the best two months yet to hear from. Our
sales for last week amounted to "a OOpounds OF
stuff, the bulk of which was canned corn beef.
The trade in large H-poGnd cans. which fell off
for two or three years, is coming back Ten
years ago the amount of canned meats handed
by loDbers was not one-tenth what is handled
to-day. The rainy June. which had the effect of
stavlng off picnics and outing parties, no doubt
lessened demand for our products to some ex-
tent but there is ample time left to make up
for this, and July and August will without =
doubt eclipse all corresponding months In years
gone by. Whatever the results may be, we are
already assured of 80 per cent larger volume OF
trade this year than last"
Fourth of July Good.
One of our leading dealers in Fourth of July
and sporting goods reports an unusual activity
for n do Tho afrint of Ptff hnrr
never drew as heavily on pyrotechnic and noise
making goods as this year. Dealers who laid
in heavy supplies, having had large faith in
Pittsburg patriotism, did not trust in rain.
Stocks of fre-crackers and rockets are seldom
as well cleaned up after the Fourth as they are
now. The interview with this dealer developed
the fact that bicycles and tricycles were never
in such active demand as in the past month or
two. 1t is impossible to fill orders for BOYS
bicycles. Some orders have been on the books
for two or three weeks and the factories are
unable to respond. Said the above dealer:
I'VE have been writing and telegraphing to the
bicycle factories almost daily for weeks to
hurry up stock, but it seems to do little good
and all we can do is to possess our souls in
patience and wait. 1t is very plain that the
calculations of bicycle makers were entirely
too modest in view of the inability to meet
orders. 1t will, at the very least, be few
weeks before our firm can catch up to orders.
You may say for our firm that Fourth of July
week brought an unusually satisfactory trade
all along the lines of our goods. and that we
never handled as much stuff in the same time"
Uncle Sans Warehouse.
The first half Of 1889 has made a record at
Uncle Sans warehouse, Penn avenue and
Garrison alley, about equal to the correspond
ing period of 1888. which was one of the
good years for trade in imported goods.
The books of the Custom House show that
April of this year was the best month on
record and May was very little behind. June
was d.. owing to floods which kept back
stuff. l., the last week of June, when the rail-
road blockade was lifted there was rush for
few DAYS, but business has again quieted down.
Said Secretary Heating to a DISPATCH re-
porter: There has nOt been as much business
done in imported liquors and iron through the
Custom House this year last In 1888 there
were very large imports Of iron rods, billets
and bars This has materially declined. The
efforts to evade the whisky tax by keeping
stock in foreign seaports where storage was
cheap has not proved SO remuneratiVe as was
supposed a few years ago. The loss in proof
and quantity has in many instances spoiled
great expectations of proht The only import
goods that hold up and keeps growing in
volume all the time are cigars. The Havana
cigar holds its own and more. Its constituency
is steadily on the increase, if our books are a
fair criterion. The warehouse is unusully
bare. By the Isl of August goods will be pilIng
in for fall trade"