Birmingham age-herald., 1895-04-20
THE TWO POINTS IF VIEW. What Dun and Bradstreet Say
 as to Business, NEITHER ARE OPTIMISTIC. The One Believes that Recent Prices are Purely Speculative While the Other Endeay-
 ors to Assign Reasons.

New York, April 19.-R. G. Dun & Co., q weekly review of trade tomorrow will say:
 In every speculative department bus mess is growing, but this is really the least satisfactory feature of the situa- fion. Coal, oil and wheat climbed above the export price, so that the marketing of the products abroad must be checked, and money is absorbed which ought to be employed in productive industry and in the distribution of products to con sumers. Everybody knows that oil has not risen 200 per cent because 1t is 1n- trinsically more valuable, nor is wheat actually worth more than 1t was two or three weeks ago, but the expansive and uplifting force has unfortunately taken to speculation rather than to productlon and so we have higher prices in all speou- lative markets without larger demand for consumption.
 There is no evidence that cotton is in larger demand than it was when the price was cent lower but prices have been so low for months that an upward move ment was easy without much reason, though stocks here and abroad are 300,- GOO bales larger than they were at the same date after the greatest crop ever produced heretofore, and spinners here and abroad have taken about 100000 bales more than they have consumed. The rise tends to prevent the decrease of acreage, which is it's one reasonable ex- cuSe.
 Outside of speculative markets the most important feature Is the rise in the price of beef, but which is largely due to the control of sources of supply by few strong corporations. There ought to be, but apparently is not, sufficient power in the hands of the government to meet any such conspiracy against the public, and the proposal of Secretary Morton to admit Mexican cattle and cattle from Canada on easy terms for the benefit of consumers, is heartily commended, though it is not likely to have much in fuence. The actual decrease in receipts kets has been 1000 head during the first quarter of 1885, and the quantity killed has been only 80,000 head less than last year, about 10 per cent, but facts have little to do with prices in this case. as in the case of oil.
 The iron and steel situation is rather disappointing, although the output con tinues large, as the demand for finished products does not seem to increase. Structural forms are in large demand, but sales of wire are about 80 per cent less than last year, and in other branches there is no particular gain. It is still an open question whether the consumption will support the manufacture at the pres ent rate.
 Some textile mills have advanced wages 
 the rates paid after the reduction In September. 1893. Labor troubles are comy paratively less serious this week, and the tendency is towards larger returns for labor, which will increase the con suming power for other products. The cotton mills are encouraged by improving prices and are fairly busy.
 Money markets are comparatively dull and the accommodation from the interior continues, although there is no material increase in the comercial demand, For eign trade shows a heavy balance due abroad, and gold would undoubtedly go out in a large amount but for the nego- tiation of bonds by the syndicate. The government deficit for the month thus far Is over $10,000,0 900 and no reason ap- pears to expect that it will much dimin- ish.
 Failures for the first eleven days of April amounted to S3,413,765 of which 1,424,238 were of manufacturing and $l.952.527 of trading concerns. Failures during the past week have been 241 in the United States, against 219 last year, and thirty-four in Canada, against forty five last year
 Bradstreet's Summary.
 New York, April 1s-Bradstreet's to- morrow, April 20, will say;
 The VoIuuia of oeneral frada hae main.