The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-03-14
BRADSTREET'S REPORT.
Says Business For Week Was Unsat.
isfaetOry.
THE RAILWAYS SHOW INCREASED
EARNINGS HOWEVER.


And That Is About the Only Favora b lie
Feature-Jobbers Report Spring Ira de
of Waiting Character-Snow Storms
and Cold Weather Partly Responsible.
New York, March 13.-Bradstreet's to-
morrow will say: The only conspicuous
ly favorable feature of the general bust
III ss situation is found in the report of the
February gross railway earnings through
out the country. The receipts of 1876 COM
panies last month We're larger with a
single exception than any preceding
mon th, but were unsatisfactory. Jobbers
report the spring trade Of waiting
character, due to belated snow storms
and unusually cold weather. The col
leotions with a few exceptions are no
better, and in many instances less satis-
factory, which tends to Tetard the move
ment Of merchandise.
Building operations at some of the
eastern ports are not as active as antici-
report trade slow. Eastern makers ad-
NIT that orders are increasing slowly.
The cotton manuf acturing industry is
unsatisfactory, with slack demand and
heavy. stocks. The production is restrict
ed further and shut downs are talked of.
Prints and ginghams are most active
Transactions in raw wool are limited
and market very dull. There is less
business than at any previous time since
January 1.
IRON AND STEEL
is quiet as in preceding weeks and in
some respects less favorably situated. Or.
ders for steel at Chicago have decreased,
and the price is barely steady. The de-
mand for pig iron is the slowest since
January.
Quotations at eastern markets are
nominally unchanged and could probab-
ly be shaded on new business. No agree
ment has been reached on ore products
for the 1896 delivery The production
of pig iron was restricted to about 40, 900
| tons during February. The stock in
creased nearly TO- 600 tons in the face of
| it. From all this the general trade sit
uation throughout the country may be
| regarded as less satisfactory at tine mid
die of March 1896 than was anticipated.
Even prices of staples have refused to
make and maintain advances.
| Among the decreases in quotations are
| those for -four, wheat Indian corn, oats
| lard, print cloths, steel and pig iron.
| Prices OF wool, leather, coal, pork, sugar
are nominally unchanged. Coffee is
higher, but the price is not based upon
domestic conditions affecting the de-
| mand. The improvement in the actual
| is back of it's advance. Petroleum is
higher, as are lead and nails at Western
centres where the demand improved.
At the south, Augusta jobbers in shoes
ana dry goods report sati sfaotory spring
sales. Atlanta reports larger
VOLUME OF BUSINESS
New Orleans jobbers regard the prospect
good for trade, with steady weather,
while at other points, particularly Texas,
the trade movement is moderate and
collections are unsatisfactory. The least
favorable reports concerning collections
are from the west and northwest Tele-
grams from the state of Washington ex-
and grain by frost has been exaggerated.
Tacoma has received large quantities Of
cotton for export.
The total exports of wheat, (fiour in
cluded as wheat) from both coasts of the
United States during the six business
days ending March 10, amount to 2, 4O1
600 bushels, against 9, 791, 900 bushels in
the corresponding week last year. The
total exports of Indian corn in the same
week amount to /, ,70S, 600, compared with
882, 600 in the like week last year.
The weeks bank olearings aggregate
S943, 600, 600; IL per cent smaller than
week ago, per cent larger than the Sec
ond week in March, 1895.
The failures in the United States num-
Der 282 for the six business days ending
March IL, compared with 1862 in the COR
responding week one year ago and are
larger with q single exception than any
preceding month. For more than three
years, the February total for 1896 being
1874, 464, 000 gain over the total of last
year of nearly IA cent in January.
This year the gross earnings are about
II per cent larger than year ago. In
February, 1895 they decreased 2.8 per
cent from that total in 1894. These results
are due in part to the favorable weather
conditions in February, a larger grain
traffic, and the infusion of
ONE MORE BUSINESS DAY.
The heaviest gains in gross earnings
last month are reported by grangers,
Pacific and southern lines In the order
named, with from 90 to 90 per cent larg-
or totals than in February of last year.
The smallest increase is reported by
coal roads. Other groups report increases
ranging from 5.4 per cent for eastern
roads to 10 per cent for southwesterns.
The trunk line increase is nearly per
cent, central western rs per cent more
than three-fourths of all the companies
reporting show gains, compared with
the February totals year ago, and
23 companies show February increases
this year in excess Of $50, 900 each
For two months the total gross earn
ings Of the railways referred to amount
to $72, 217, 600 In 1895, 1873 per cent more
than the fist two months of 1896 The
increase for the entire calendar year of
1896 over 1894 was only SO per cent.
The general trade shows no marked
change.
The distribution of merchandise is
most active for dry goods, hardware.
shoes, and millinery, paints, oils and
heavy chemicals.