Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1897-08-03
Wool and Iron,

wholesomely and moderately to new
tariff conditions, and while opening
Of Light weights below about one
dollaf II cost has met q very encouraging
demand, The adyafrce in Prices asked is not
large. With very heavy stocks of free
wool on hand. manufacturers are able, and
in the presence of large stocks of foreign
goods, are obliged to engage for the next
season without advancing prices in pro-
portion to the rise in wool, and large con-
tracts Of that nature have already been
made.
Delay In the Iron industry Is partly be-
cause wages have not been settled at ali
works, though at many, and partly be-
cause steadily rising demand does not We,
raise prices. In some products prices are
shade lower, notwithstanding a larger
demand, owing to competition between
works, but Bessemer is shade higher.
IN structural work, plates, sheets and bars
for the enormous operations Of agricultural
implement works, the demand increa ses,
dnd for rolling stock. owing to the
abundance Of drops.
"Fallaras for the week. have been 2s6 II,
ehe United States, against PSI last year. and
8 ip Canada, against 40 fast year"
Ffem tsratlstreGt's Point Of View.
Bratstreet's says:
The Unexpectedly early fall demand for
staple merchandise which Bradstreet's an
nounced last week has increased and al
though not conspicuous at some of the
larger eastern cities which 1t is approaching,
1t is notably so at points in the Mississippi
and Missourivalleys and in the larger wheat
growing states. A special investigation
by Bradstreet's this week shows that in
creased purchases by country merchants
in the region specified, based on the pros
pectively large wheat crop at home, in the
face of short wheat crops abroad, has in
creased business with western jobbers from
10 to Is per cent, compared with fall trade
at like period last year. The total vol
ume of this new business is not large, but
1t Is unusual in this, the dull month of the
year. and it is growing.
"a number of western implement fac
tories are unable to fill all their orders for
nearby delivery, and one order for shoes
alone at st. Louis calls for $35, coo worth of
goods. The depression among wooden man
ufacturers is less pronounced because
prices of cheYiots and other woolens have
begun to advance, pointing to profit in
handling high-price wool.
1.-THE greatest relative Improvement
among the jobbers and wholesalers In va
rious lines Is at Chicago, ST. Louis. Kan
sas City, Omaha. ST. Paul and Minneapo-
lis, although at other points, notably In
Texas. there Is a pronounced feeling OF
confidence In an early revival of demand,
which Is already beginning to show itself.
a numDer OF large trunk line railways re-
port that they are carrying more merchan-
disc than one, two or three years ago
:Fewer manufacturing industries than
expected have been compelled to close,
owing to lack of coal ON account of the
strike. the principal check being due to
higher prices for fuel. Iron and steel and
the cotton goods Industries are more un-
favorably situated than almost any other.
Bessemer pig iron and steel billets con-
tinue at the lowest quotations known.
The latter is a shade under s14 awaiting the
renewed demand which has begun to show
itself in staple lines Of merchandise. The
shutting down of cotton mills to force re-
duction of stocks on hand has already
stiffened prices, and with existing condi-
ton in other lines of business the out
look Is for better request for cotton goods
and for iron and steel in the early autumn.
The most favorable feature of trade is its
slow. conservative, steady expansion, it
being based on the increased wants and
larger consumptive capacity of the agri-
cultural community, for whom the prospect
Is brighter than it has been for six years.
Practically the only decreases in quo
tations this week are for iron and steel.
Prices Of oats and print cloths are UNI
changed. The list of advances is longer
and more significant, including prices OF
wheat flour, wheat, Indian corn, lard,
sugar. live stock, cotton, wooden goods,
lead and nails"