The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1894-01-02

woatber tends TO further depression al
| Galveston and other Texas points"
The san saws: Starting with the
~laroest trade ever knows, mills crowd
ed with work. and all business stlmu'
/ lated by high hopes, the year 1893 has
nroved. in sudden shrinkage OF trade,
/ in commercial disasters and depression
of Industries. the worst for fifty years.
| Whether the final effects of the panic
of 1897 e relatively more severe, the
scantv records of that time do not
show. ALI hope the new year may
bring brighter days, but the dying
year leaves only a dismal record. Inc
review of the different departments OF
trade, given to-day, exhibits a collapse
| of industry and business which is al
most without precedent. The IRON
industry still leaves 40 per cent. OF the
| force unemployed. Over half the
wooden manufactures are idle, an0,
except a brief recovery In November,
have been ever since new wool came IN
Nav, the price having fallen 20 per
cent. for fleece to the lowest price ever
known.
Sales of cotton goods are fully a
quarter below the usual quantity. The
small advance attempted In boots and
64OOS q HO6A 0NO % NV
but with prices as low as ever, the ship
ments of boots and shoes from Boston
are "a per cent. less than last year In
December. Not only manufactured
goods as a whole, but the most lmpor-
fant farm products are so low that pro
ducers find little comfort. Clear v
dence of the shrinkage In different
branches of business Is afforded by an
swers already received to several thou
sand circulars requesting figures OF
sales during the last half of 1893 and
1892. Full information of the results
will be given hereafter, but returns of
textile goods already show a decrease
of 81 per cent. Iron returns thus far
show a decrease of 38 per cent; reports
thus far of iewelry show a decrease OF
90 per cent, furniture 26 per cent. dry
goods 20 per cent, hats 10 per cent. !;
hardware 10 per cent. shoe manufac
lures 10 per cent, and by dealers 8 per
cent, and of clothing 10 per cent.
ut is curious that the only trade
showing any increase as yet is in gro
ceries, the aggregate sales being 1 per
cent. larger than in the last half of
1892. Ia 81 pears, covered by the rec
ords of this agency, the number of
failures has only ono risen a little
above 1t, $50 l a year. In 1893 n
number reported has been 16, $50. The
aggregate of the liabilities in all fail
ures reported has in six years risen
above 5000, 900, 900. This year the
strictly commercial liabilities alone
have exceeded 1891, 422;939, the liabili-
ties of banking and financial institu
tions have been 1910, CAS-, 1854, and the
liabilities of railroads placed In the
hands of receivers about 81, 212, 217, 1873.
''As all reports. hitherto have been
to some extent erroneous, through in
Guiding failures not strictly N
cial, the classified returns show 1926
manufacturing with liabilities of 1854,
7O7, 449; Is. 683 failures in legitimate
trade, with liabilities of $95, 527, 1876,
and 302 other failures, including
brokers and spectators, with liabilities
of $50, 662, 735. The average of liabili-
ties manufacturing of $50, 600; in legit-
mate trading So, 900, and in other fail
ures 81. OOO"