Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1895-01-01
.REVIEWOF THE YEAR
Crops IN Virginia Were Good end Nsc.usss
r'es Of Life wsss chsap- Banking sna
Other Institutions Hold Theis Own.

tion for the past twelve months.
the injurious influences to which
tho material interests Of the couu.
try have been exposed for a series OF
years become most apparent. These dis.
turbing causes seem In 1894 to have had
their cumulative effect, and the wonder
Ii that We have passed through sa ordeal
30 severe without greater loss
The unproductive Investment of a yass
amount OF labor and capital in land spec,.
la,ion and schemes to establish Industrial
towns prior to 1905 inevitably caused a
| serious diminutlon of the accumulated
wealth OF the country. and not only I'm,
volved those actively engaged In the ur.
! wise and extravagant ventures whics
characterized that epoch. but hinderea
new enterprises Of real intrinsic merit
and checked for the time all healthy pro.
gress and development. Fortunately. thesu
operations were confined for the most part
| TO speculation In town sites and manu-.
| featuring plants. Commodities or articles
| OF trade. as a rule, were not unduly tn
flated in value. but. on the contrary. their
prices were forced TO a lower level FOR thu
reason that attention had been so entirely
directed to an altogether different class
| OF investments.
Thus. while the monetary crisis % 1874
and the prolonged tariff struggle OF iSo.a
found the country In a weakened cordi-
tion, and a shrinkage ot values inevitably
occurred and has continued in almost all
lines till the present. there was no occa-
| sion or room for any sudden collapse In
the prices Os agricultural and manufac-
| tured products, which constitute the sus.
tanning and recuperating forces OF tha.
| country. The consequent disasters 10 es-
| tabilshed Industrial and commercial enter
prises were happily escaped, which would
have occurred had those depressing in
nuences overtaken the country In period
OF general speculation and lnAailon oe
| values.
CONDITIONS IN OTHER COUNTRIES.
The situation was rendered an the
more embarrassing, however, and has
continued longer from the fact that con-
| dltons I'm other countries where we have
most intimate trade relations were such
as to aggravate rather than ameliorata
our domestic difficulties. The ready r..
lief TO be had generally from forcing an
Increase OF our exports by low prices was
! not available to the extent that was
hoped, but on the contrary, the dlsnosi-
ton abroad from lack OF confidence and
other causes. was 10 return us our In
vestment securities. II which they are
such large holders. Fortunately for the
South, bounteous nature has d0na
its part TO help the situation,
Crops as a rule. have been good.
more diversified and Of necessity pro-
duced at lower cost. and In those most
necessary for sustenance, whore other
sections have been afflicted By failure,
this section has had favorable and IN
some cases exceptionally large yields. II
is true that prices with few exceptionI
have continued to decline but this 4.
not an unmiNed evil as the planter was
compensated In a measure FOR the prices
he had TO accept by the yield and the
condition Of the laborlng classes az com-
merclal and Industrial centres has been
ameli0rated by the reduced cost OF liying
Manufacturing operations have felt most
keenly the tendency o. lower prices
| Considering the peculiar difficulties and
uncertainties that for such a protractci
period envlr0ned almost every interest
Of this character, and the constantly.
declining markets, II IS surprising tha,
there have not been more failures, more
"shut-downs," and more people out OF
employment.
Commerce. Il is needless 10 say. Ia.
operating prejudiciolly upon the interest.
OF agriculture and manufacture, so thai
both the volume Of trade AMI the proa
or transactions have Necessarily de
; creased.
u DECREASES WERE NATURAL.
We are thus fully prepared In takln'
or stock OF our situation at the end of IN
". year not To find, tho usual progress lndi
Gated by former annual statements bu,
In common with every section. to note
reduction in the value and volume of ou
business for 1894. as compared oven Wit
the returns for 1873. as the dopressinl
and prOstratng Influences operated for
longer period in lsA. The figures for IN
jobbing trade OF Richmond in 1924. ~ com
pared with the previous year, show
decrease OF some 10 per cent In value
the sales Of our manufacturers about !
per cent. and the number Of hands EN-
- ployed appear about IL 10 l6 per cent
in. less than In 1893 BanS-clearings umaii
ar- indicate quito accurately the money yllu
tor OF transactions, but. estimating tho ,ae
six days OF the year they show declin
IRE at Richmond OF only 1 Ia per cent. a
he compared with 1893. being for the presen
ng year Sll3, ,a9i i709.7s. This apparent disparit
az. between the amount OF actual busines
By and exchanges may be explained In par
arc by the fact that for several months 4
1888 number OF transactions were o
necessity made Independently or N
Z banks, and also that probably semi-annua
? and annual dividends and settlement
were appro ximately the same in 1873 an
1894 and tended 70 maintain the aggregat
OF the latter year. But making these H
w lowances for the Dank-clearanee or lN
being comparatively so large. they never
thelesJ Indicate when the lower price
w. ruling IN 1884 are considered, that IN
rs volume OF business has been wonierfuIl
p sustained. The railroad tonnage woul
K probably be the best criterion OF mi
volume but as these figures for the caler
dar year are not yet published, they mus
W. W. be the subject for future comparison. !
W. this connection It IS most encouraging
note that for the month or NoYemne'
w. Bradstreets Journal reports that a.
T.; southern group OF roads show the mat'
w. rial Increase IN gross earnings for y.
= vember 1891, over the corresponding mont
OF 1898. OF iS per cent. only one oth'
W. group OF the seyen-the Central "rt
W. ern-showing a comparative increase. tha
~ being 7-l0 OF I per cent, Another ihdiel
W. ton OF general Improvement ~ gwen
4. Dun's review. which reports for NoNeH
w, Der. in a table constructed from the pa'
rolls OF a large number of employee
w distributed from the Atldhhc " :"
w Rocky Mountains. 10 per cent NOR
hands employed than in November. h'5
HAVE DISCOUNTED THE WORST
y. I, IS hoped that 50 FAR as the tara
ay. concerned, anl the decline in prices ffol
the This and other causes outside OK on
monetary system. the industries of y
country have sustained or discounted n
worst they have 20 look FOR ana ht'
4 at about adjusted themselves 70 me cnahss
-. conditions: that while not uniuly 81
'n'' posed 10 foreign competition in the hon
market, they are upon better OASIS
compete abroad: that the small marsI
'an will offer no temptation % ov' r-pro1u
,oI ton. and that with the turn 81 tne year
Der better and safer business IN all lines ma
!, be looked for. ~,
: with respect 20 the currency q9esuo
g. so important 20 every interest,", u no
4 looks as II the history or recent even
had 80 impressed both the public anu o.
~ law-makers that the much-nsedsd s'el
& viii be taken 10 institute radical seiot