Omaha daily bee., 1891-12-27

u snug OalanCe TO their credit, y year ago IL
was hard work to keep them from getting
into u.s."
Prosperity Not Temporary.
Mr.. A. T. Hopkins, president of the Com
mercial National bank, had noticed an inn
provonent in business. He said
Money matters throughout the state arc
Improving. The country banks have more
money than they had n year ago. Mohey is
easy IN the east. | believe that business will
ne much improved during the coming spring,
because the corn crop moves slowly and it
WIN continue to move all spring and
summer"
In Commercial Circles.
The %iobbers and wholesalers OF Omaha
nave also noticed the great Improvement IN
business. Collections among country mer.
chants have been much better than last year
aud the demand for goods mas been very
heavy.
MIR. Robert Crowell of the firm OF Xii.
patrick-koch Dry Goods company said:
lhe hrSt six months of 1891 was rather
backward in our business. The country
merchants had carried over a large amount
OF goods and it required some time to clear
THESE goods out of the way. During the last
SIX months of the year the trade
mas been very satisfactory in every
way. Our invoice taken November
81 shows that it was the second
best SIX months that we have ever had in
Omaha. Our stock was smaller when we
TOOK the invoice than ever before aud we
nave been persuaded to put two additional
men on the road this spring to take care of
the growing trade. In view of the fact that
that there have been crops in Ne
Oraska, the largest part Of which has not yet
moved, and the country merchants during
the last ninety days have almost cleared
their counters of stocks on hand we fully eX-
pect that the coming year will be the most
satisfactory we have ever had We are
glad to be able to state that
Omaha is now recognized as a
market where the retailer can procure any
thlng necessary to meet the demands Of the
trade. AS a result Of this we have found
what is termed house trade that is sales
made direct TO merchants right here in the
mouse, growing a great deel faster than the
commercial travellers sales have. This is n
very healthy sign. House trada is something
that every iooDer wishes to encourage. BY
THIS means we become better acquainted with
country merchants
As to Hats.
w. A.. l.. Gibbon-The nat trade for the
fall and winter was the best that we have
mad for three years, and we look for a
largely increased trade for the coming spring.
Better times are also manifest in the dis posi-
tlon OF buyers to purchase better and higher
priced goods than heretofore. Collections
are good; many buyers are d%iscounting their
bills instead of taking their time, another
very striking proof of an easier money mar
ket. We. look for Improved conditions in
Omaha, but they will come more slowly than
IN the country towns, where they realize the
DEMENT'S OF the good crops Immediately.
Better Than Ever Before.
ID. A. Baum-Trade In the line of heavy
hardware has been particularly satisfactory
during the past three months. 1t has been
better than ever before. We have every
prospect for a very heavy trade right along
through the winter and spring. which is
SDmnthinp npnGunl for tbia limo nf huciracc
There is a better feeling in the country. The
merchants have more money and are able to
clean up old obligations. There has been a
decided improvement in collections over last
summer. We look for next year to be the
most prosperous ever experienced In Ne
braSka.
Rig Clothing Business.
J. G. Gllmore:-We have just closed a
very successful and satisfactory season in
the wholesale clothing business. Collections
have been very good and we have gotten a
good many more discounts than usual, which
would Indicate that money matters are easy
with country merchants. We think that the
outlook for a good spring trade is rather
bright. There is still a good deal Of unsolu
stuff IN the country that will be marketed
and that will place the farmers and country
merchants in still better shape.
Improved Sales and Collections.
e.. II. Allen Trade in the grocery line
Deeu COnSluGTdDly D0LLDr curing the DhSt
sixty days and better than for the cores
ponding time last year. Collections are very
easy in the country and better than last year.
The prospects for the coming year are better
than they have been for years. The farmers
have money and the merchants over the
state are getting out of debt.
Very Few Failures.
Z. B. Hall-The trade in boots and shoes
is first class and 1t has been the best fall that
we have ever had. Collections are decidedly
better than they were last season. Indica-
tions are first class for the coming year in
every seculon of the territory which we
cover. The failures among the boot and
shoe dealers have been much less frequent
than a year ago, which of itself shows an i'm
proved condition.
Couldn't Ask Better Prospects.
M. F.. Smith There has been u marked
improvement in the dry goods trade and it
will show quite an increase over last falls
business. In fact we never had a better fall
trade. Collections have been good. Pros
poets for the springs business coald hardly
be better than they are today. The
retail merchants are in better shape
than they have been for a long time.
The farmers throughout the country have
large quantities of grain on hand which they
have not We; marketed, aud that will insure
plenty of money for the springs purchases.
Big Per Cent of Increased sales.
w. o.. WTlBuJ'-l rdu6 III Suell nara ware
shows II very marked Improvement over the
corresponding time last year. Our De-
cember business shows an increase Of so per
cent over the same month last year. While
previous months do not show so heavy "a gain
the increase has nevertheless been large.
The prospects for next year are just as flat
tering as the results have been for the last OF
this year. Everyone is feeling good over the
prevailing conditions and the future pros
poets. Collections might be better, but there
Is nothing to complain about. The farmers
are still holding a good deal of their produce
and have not yet turned it into money. which
accounts for the condition of collections. We
never had such a good trade since we have
been in business. January is usually n dull
month, but we expect this year that 1t will be
as good III proportion as December.
Siding the Right Way.
Dudley Smith The grocery trade this
year has been on a sliding scale since the
trst of last February, that is, goods have
been gradually declining until they reached
bed rock. Even with the heavy decline in
if not larger than it was last year, which
means that to do the same volume of bust
ness as was done in 1890, we have had to put
out % TO 40 per cent more goods. For the
past sixty days business has been increasing
rapidly and prospects were never better for
"a good business in 1899. We think that the
merchants of Nebraska and of the whole ter
ritory west of tho Missouri river have
realized more than ever before that they
can do better to buy on the Missouri
river than to go further east, and western
lows merchants who q few years ago bought
largely In the east are now purchasing almost