The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-12-30
RECORD OF THE YEAR
Dun & Co. Make the Present Times
the Worst Ever Known.
Failures Reached 1850 While the To-
tai of Liabilities Including Rail-
roads Is S1,754,595,83

NEW YORK. Dec. Or. G. Dun's week.
~ review Of trade will say: Starting with
the largest trade ever known, mills crowded
with work. and all business stimulated by
high hopes. the year 1893 has proved. in
sudden shrinkage OF trade, In commercial
disasters and depression of industries. the
worst for fifty years. Whether the final re-
suits OF the panic OF 1897 were relatively
more severe the scanty records Of that time
do not clearly show. The year closes with
prices of many products the lowest ever
known. with millions Of workers seeking In
vain for work and with charity laboring to
keep back suffering and starvation in all
our cities. All hope the new year may
bring brighter days, but the dying year
leaves only a dismal record. The review Of
different departments OF trade given to-day
exhibits a collapse OF industry and business
which is almost without precedent The
iron industry sustained a weekly produce
ton of 1851 tons pig May /. but by Oct
the output had fallen TO 1895 tons. and
the recovery TO about 100000 Dec. l still
leaves 40 per cent. Of the force unem<
ployed. Over half the wooden manufactures
are idle, and excepting a brief recovery in
November, they have been ever since new
wool came in May, for all sales at the three
chief markets in the eight months have
been but loo. 1885, AGO pounds partly for spec
ulation The price has fallen 20 per cent. for
fleece. the lowest point ever known. Sales
were 2l2,SS90O3 pounds In the same months
last year. Sales of cotton goods are fully
a quarter below the usual quantity. The
small advance attempted in boots and shoes
year ago was not sustained, but witn
prices as low as ever, the shipments OF
pootS and shoes from Boston are "a pen
cent less than last year in December.
Not only manufactured goods as a whole.
out the most important farm products ard
H,,1 fteIn
Ofhcial and other reports deluded traders
with the notion that crops of last year
We're SO snort that famine prices could be
realized on purchases: Enormous stocks
were bought and held with the aid OF banks
until heavy receipts I'm the spring caused
collapse of wheat, pork and cotton pools
Disastrous failures helped to produce the
alarm, which soon made money impossibla
TO get but even at the worst hour of the
panic, prices were scarcely lower than they
are now. Wheat has repeatedly sold hers
and at Chicago at the lowest price ever
known. and is but half a cent above it
now Pork fell 81 I'm an hour when the
speculation burst, but sells lower yet to-
day. Cotton was lifted a cent with ac-
counts of scarcity in September, but has
lost most OF the gain and sells below 4
cents. Thus, unreasonable speculations by
preventing the sale OF surplus products,
have proved a great injury to farmers at
a time when their enforced curtailment OF
purchases Is disastrous TO all other indus
tries.
Clear evidence of the shrinlxage in differ
ent branches OF business is afforded by
answers already received to several thOu-
sand circulars requesting figures OF sales
during the last half of 1893, compared with
those of 1892. Full information OF the re-
suits will be given hereafter. but returns
of the textile goods already show sales
amounting TO S43, SO this year, against
1884 $50 last year, a decrease of 81 per
cent Iron returns thus far aggregate So
$50. $50, against $50 $40, 921 last year, de-
crease of So per cent; reports thus far OF
jewelry show a decrease of % per cent:
of furniture, 20 per cent; OF dry goods, 20
per cent; Of hats 1873 per cent; Of hard
ware, 10 per cent; OF shoe manufactures,
is curious that the only trade showing any
increase. as yet, is in groceries, the aggre-
gate sales being ! per cent larger than in
the last half of 1892.
In thirty-seVen years covered by this
records of this agency, the number OF fall
ures has only once risen a little above 16.-
$50 in a year. In 1893, the number reported
ties reported has, in six years, risen above
500. 600, 600. This year the strictly CONNER
ci2l liabilities alone have exceeded SS3l, H.
| 9S9 Liabilities OF banking and financial in
situations have been $2l0.956. S64, and this
| liabilities of railroads placed in the hands
| of receivers about 81 .2l70 33. AS all re-
ports hitherto have been, to some extent,
erroneous through inclusion OF figures not
| strictly commercial, the classified returns
given on the next page Will be found more
complete and instructive than any hitherto
published. They show 3,226 manufacturing
failures with liabilities of Sl64. 701 449; l063
failures in legitimate trade, with liabilities
| ing brokers and spectators, with liabili-
ties of $50 662, 725. The average liabilities in
| manufacturing is $50,O00 i'm legitimate trad
| ing IS CO., and in other failures, $1,000.