New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-03-02
hfONEE IND BUSINESS.

lower than at the end of January. Inc llttle eA-
| ports of gold an excuse rather than reason
| Negotiations by the presidents have met no set-
| back. though they resemble the score of French
| constitutions that would not march,. with an
agreement or without it earnings continue good be-
ing for three weeks of February As per cent larger
than last year. in spite of decline in east-bound
shipments The volume of business. measured in
values is greater than year ago. Clearing House
exchanges for February outside New-York show
| ing a gain of per cent But stocks are in the
dumps.
When one looks for reasons they are not hard
TO find Stocks were holsted So per share in
January. on the theory that unlimited coinage
would send them up like rocket. The shrewd
fellows who knew the rise would be as short-lived
as the rise Of the rocket, but calculated to sell
just when the lambs were ready to buy, find that
this time they are the lambs. The popular dream
in these days is that great rise must follow the
adjournment of Congress, the enormous appropria-
| lions or payments for PENSIONS and the resulting
cheapness of money. The dreamers may turn out
to be prophets, for Virgins hits it once in a
| hundred times. But experience teaches that
pensions money does not go mainly to Wall Street
speculators or New-York banks. Scattered all
over the country in small sums, it affects money
| markets less and more slowly than any other kind
| Of disbursement. The large appropriations by
| this Congress are mainly not for this fiscal year,
| but for the year beginning next July. Mean
| while the Treasury will be prepared TO pay off
So 900, 900 Of 4 1-2 per cents September l, and
may have to curtail other disbursements until that
| time The interior demand for money is gradually
increasing again. and money markets at several
| interior points are close, or approach cOseness.
The sense OF relief when Congress gets out of the
way ought TO be worth something, and State Leg
1 Al.
some Of the crazy cOmmunstic measures proposed
at the West, but an irresponsible and ignorant
Legislature is about as handy thing to have in
a State as bull in a china shop. and until all of
that sort have adjourned it will be impossible to
| reckon up breakages.
The Legislative influences are feather
weights, for the greatest factor at present is the
uncertainty in some important branches of trade.
Two years ago real estate speculation swept over
| the South and the far West like prairie ire,
and people now find that it has left behind large
| crop of ashes. Then the crops of grain short,
| and the crop of cotton so large that the price
not far from the lowest for nearly forty years,
and the production of iron has also put the price
| close to the lowest mark. All these things mean
a difference in the purchasing power Of multitudes.
| Thus, Southern buying Of cotton goods has de-
| creased enormously and Southern purchases Of
boots and shoes are smaller than usual, and the
| whole shoe trade is somewhat unsatisfactory as
| to prices, the economy OF consumers having wiped
out the little advance of last fall and the same
force prevents any advance in woollen goods, and
makes cheap or low-grade goods the one demand
| of clothiers The country is too big and too
prosperous for a serious setback, and the influence
of the new tariff is starting hundreds of new
| works, and causing greater activity in many
branches, thus, n part neutralizing tendencies
toward depression. But until and full crops
arc assured there is little probability of general
change for the better.
Happily, the apprehension Of grave disasters
which prevailed toward the close of last year
has vanished European markets are not in
state to threaten serious disturbance, though
some exports of gold would not be surprising.
In spite of an excess Of merchandise exports over
imports of $40 1926 in the four months end
ing with January, exports of gold appear to lie
justified BY the state of the exchange market,
indicating foreign selling of securities In Feb
ruary exports from New-Yorl were S3,0O0,O0O
less than last year, that if elsewhere the same
the total for the month would be 1856, 500, 600,
while imports at New-York were 81 800 900 over
last year, and if elsewhere the same, the total
would be S64 800 900. Interest and other pay
ments abroad would, therefore, make balance TO
be settled in specie and silver is kept at home.
In western Pennsylvania $4,000 persons, who
usually support other people, are on strike and
supported by others The coke and the MonOn-
gahela strikes have cost employers some millions
already, and the workers nearly much, and the
destruction of values is as absolute as if much
property had been destroyed by fire or mood.
| Calamities usually bless somebody and 80 the
strikes stifen the price Of iron and wake up buy
| ers of iron and steel products TO a little more
| energy. But the strikes will not last always and
when they end the excess Of production must again
| ne felt Furnaces that were projected and built
| for the purpose of selling Southern lands still
cause sales at very low prices in Northern mar
| kcts, and until business grows active enough to
demand over 100000 tons yearly, the price is
| likely to be trying. The enormous demand for
| that product of late, for lumber brick, glass
| and paints has been largely due to the nnprece-
| dented building operations throughout the coun-
/ try, in which 81 900, 900, 900 may have been
spent last year, but marked decrease has APP
peared, and it would not be strange if there should
/ not be similar demand for new buildings again
| for several years.
Wheat has been little lower, receipts at the
| West in four weeks reaching 5,761,2 80 bushels
| against Al ,653 for the same weeks last year,
while Atlantic exports were but ABB, 05 bushels.
| -four included, against ACRE, 1926 last year. The
people who predicted famine, and ciphered out no
wheat for export weeks ago, have their
| hands full, but not their pockets Corn has risen
over cent and oats IL cent and exports Of corn
| in February were but 822, 1000 bushels against
| 1856 900 last year. Cotton has gone q shade
| lower for futures, receipts in February having
been 81 ,467 bales against 410,044 last year. and
the quantity taken by Northern spinners has been
6, 900 bales less, but exports were 576.S93 bales
against 42s, 900 last year. With the average OF
prices more than o per cent higher than a year
ago the increase of 3 per cent in clearings does
not indicate an increase in quantities Of products
transferred, and east-bound shipments from Chi
cago for three weeks were 225,e74 tons against
| 27s, ?lO tons last year.