Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1893-12-30
Dun = Co. Review of Trade.

NEW YORK, Decem Der 29.-h. U. DuI
& Co. s weekly review says
Starting with the largest trade eve
known, mills crowded with work anc
all business stimulated with high hopes
the year 1893 has proved, in sudder
shrinkage of trade, in com mmercial disaS
ters and depression of indutries she
worst for fifty years. Whether the tina
results OF the panic OF 1897 we're rela
lively more severe, the scanty records
Of that time do not clearly show. The
year closes with prices OF many pro
ducts the lowest ever known with mil
lions OF workers seeking In vain FOR
work and with charity laboring 10 keep
back suffering and starvation In all our
cities. All hope the new year may
bring brighter days, but the dying year
leaves only dismal record.
The review of different departments
Of trade given to-day exhibits collapse
OF industrial business which is almost
without precedent. The iron industry
sustained a weekly production OF ISL
SOL tons OF pig Nav l, but by October l,
the output had fallen TO 73, sos tons and
the recovery 10 about 100000, Decem-
Der ], still leaves 40 per cent. OF the
force unemployed. Over half the
woolen Manufacture is Idle and except
ing a brief recovery in November has
been ever since new wool came Ia
May, for all sales at the three CHIEF
markets in the eight months have been
but loo, 795, 400 pounds, partly for spec
ulation, the price having fallen 20 pei
cent. for fleece TO the lowest point ever
known, against 212 $4,000 pounds in
the same months last year. Sales OF
cotton goods are fully quarter oelo"
the usual quantity. Not only manu-
factured goods as a whole, but the
most important farm products are SC
low that farmers find little comfort
Disastrous failures helped to produce
the alarm which soon made money I'M
possible to get, but even at the worst
hour OF panic, prices were scarcely
lower than they are now.
Clear evidence of the shrinkage in
different branches of business is afford
cd by answers already received to sew
eral thousand circulars requesting hg-
ures Of sales during the last half OF 1895
and 1892. Full information OF the re-
suits will De given hereafter, but re-
turns of the textile goods already show
sales amounting TO S43, S93, S75 this year
against $40, ,347,Ss2 last year, a
decrease Of thirty-seven per cent.
Iron returns thus far aggre'
gate 1858, $50, against S65, 500, 92l
last year, decrease OF 80 per cent: re-
ports thus far of jewelry show u de-
crease Of % per cent; OF furniture, &c
per cent; OF dry goods, 90 per cent; OF
hats, 1875 per cent; Of hardware, 10 per
cent; of shoe manufactures. 10 per
cent, and by dealers, 8 per cent; and
of clothing, 10 per cent IL is curious
that the trade showing any Increase as
yet is in groceries, the aggregate sales
being one per cent. larger than in the
last half of 1892.
In 81 years, covered by the records OF
this agency. the number OF failures has
only once risen little above 1860 in
a year In 1898, the number reported
has been 1860. The aggregate Of liza
bIities in all failures reported has In
six years risen a bove 5000, 600, 600. This
year the strictly commercial liabilities
alone have exceeded 1891, 422, 93g
the liabilities of banking and financial
institutions have been S2l0, $50, s64,
and the liabilities Of railroads placed
in the hands Of receivers about 81, 2l2,
217,O33. AS all reports hitherto have
bean to some extent erroneous, through
inclusion of failures not strictly COM
mercial, the classified returns given
on the next page will be
found more complete and instruc-
tive than any hitherto published.
They show 1926 manufacturing fail.
ures, with liabilities OF Sl64, 707, 449
10, 6S3 failures in legitimate trade, with
liabilities of SIS, 597, 500, and 3O2 other
failures, including brokers and specu-
lators with liabilities Of $50, 662, 735.
The average Of liabilities in manufac'
turing is $500 in legitimate trading
IS, 900, aud in other failures Sll,