Birmingham age-herald., 1895-03-23
Dun and Bradstreet Hopeful of
 Better Times.
THE BIG JUMP IN COTTON
Causes Much Speculation on the Next Crop-Other
 Branches of Trade.

NEW YORK, March 22.--R. c. Dun & Co. B weekly review of trade tomorrow will say: Indications of improvement in busi- ness grow more distinct. The most obtru- sive oi them-the speculative advancs in cotton and in stocks-is the least reliable, nor can either of these be said to reflect actual improvement In business conditions. Railroad earnings are scarcely better, and the speculation is largely based on an ex- pectation of more effective monopoly on coal and some other products.
 London was buying largely, but is as likely to sell on any rise. Cotton does not rise because there is more demand for goods, but there is more demand for goods because cotton is dearer.
 Ls1 More valuable indications are that the volume@of domestic trade gains little, money is much better, legitimate demand and the force of hands at work gradually increases in some industries and in others is restricted only by strikes, which are presumably temporary. The threatened strike of coke workers has been avoided by an advance of IS per cent in wages, and the strike in building trades here has ended, the men returning to work.
 The rise in cotton to 6. 31 cents still seems to have scarcely any contact with the facts of demand and supply, but had Very sub stantial basis, nevertheless, 1T, as some maintain, more cotton had been sold in this country for full delivery than could be produced here until anotaer crop comes. American stocks were last Friday ,34o, ,028 bales, against l51, ,500 last year, with tue general expectation that something over FOG, ,0U0 bales will yet como forward, while foreign stocks of American are 600, GOO bales greater than at this date after the great crop of 1891. Receipts continue large, and the movement has really no other basis than the belief that the next crop will be small.
 The advance in wages of coke workers raise the cost of fuel for large proportion of the iron manufacturers, but as yet does not affect prices of iron or its products, as no increase in demand appears. Possibly it is hoped that larger buying will soon be prompted by the idea that pig and all pro- ducts will be rendered more costly, though the large excess of production and pro- ducing capacity stands in the way. One sale of 10, GOO tons of steel rails, one cast pipe contract for 5000 tons, bridge and five building contracts aggregating nearly 60, ,0C0 tons, are reported this week, but pig iron is weak without change, both at the east and at Pittsburg, and DO change of cous. quence is noted in the demand for finished products.
 The rise in cotton has stimulated buying of goods and given confidence 10 agents. Heavy transactions and some advance in price appears in the southern coarse goods, but not as yet iu the finer.
 Strikes in textile mills grow more numer- ens, and especially in woolen mills, which have orders enough to run full time, oper- atives apparently assuming that these must be realizing prof 8, but margins are so scanty that advance in wages is for most = works impossible.
 The volume of business through clearing hoakes gains little, being 14.1 per cent larger than last year for the week, but 22.1 per cent less than in 1893. Most of the in- crease ia at New York and here and eIaa- where, partly due to active speculation. [. Bankers report a decided decrease in com mercisl paper offered, and western banks give evidence of larger demand reducing balances here.
 Failures during the past week have been PTS in the United States, against PA last year, and B in Canada, against 30 last