Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1897-04-15
oUN.s COMMERCIAL REVIEW.

Encouraging Deductions from the Quar-
ter's Failures-The Sudden Collapse in
Wheat-Receipts and Exports OF Wheat
and Corn-Slight Advance in Cotton
The Iron Industry Hampered-LOUest
Prices Ever Reached
NEW YORK, April 1O.-R. G. DUN &
Co., in their weekly review of trade to-
dav say:
Out of 4.OO6 failures, with liabilities
Of $50, 752, SCI in the first quarter, a
banking failures covered more than a
fifth of the amount, SIS, IA, $50, and
3,345 failures with liabilities of $685.
94T, 1872, or nearly three-ffths, are clas-
sified this week according to branch of
business, leaving only 5S7 failures, and
less than fifth of the liabilities, S12,-
900, 019, in branches of manufacture or
trade not specified. Only two of the
13 manufacturing classes and only
four of the Is trading classes
show liabilities for the quarter
larger than last year. and only
five manufacturing and three trading
show larger average liabilities. For
the month of March only three manu-
featuring and four trading classes
show larger amounts than last year
and only two manufacturing and five
trading show a larger average of liza
bilities. In almost every case also, it
is shown that the increase Is due to
one or two exceptionally large failures
in that class.
The returns compared with those of
three previous years disclose much i'm
provement already, I'D bright pros
pect for more hereaft +.
A sudden collapse i the wheat mar
ket, exceeding three cents in a day, ap-
pears to have 70 other cause than a
belated perception that past accepted
estimates of yield and consumption,
official and other, have been mislead-
ing. Floods and other unfavorable
weather for seeding have no weight.
Expectation of great scarcity and
high prices burst like bubble, and for
a time, the only support was the TAX
ing of profits by spectators for
d fall. Receipts have not warranted
hopes of great advantage, nor do
they now warrant much expectation
of decline. Western receipts are
smaller than last year, and Atlantic
exports not large, though over 60 per
cent. larger than year ago.
NOEh TSCelpIS COnJIuuC ASdSy, anu
exports for the week were 1928, 337
bushels, against 1,142,71 last year,
and against Atlantic exports of wheat
amounting, flour included, to only l.
521, 122 bushels, against 967, 553 last
year.
In spite of floods, which must have
materially affected the prospect, cot
ton has only advanced an eighth dur
ing the week. The fate of those who
were absolutely certain that the crop
of 1896 was very short, has left but lit
tie confidence for further speculation.
Receipts thus far still indicate a sup
ply of American considerably greater
than has ever been consumed in one
year, but uncertainty about the COM
ing crop induces much buying.
The demand for cotton goods does
not increase, although sales of fair
magnitude continue, but print cloths
are dull.
The iron industry is hampered by the
contest between Mesaba ore interests,
which prevents, as yet, any settlement
of ore prices and leads many to sus-
pect further decline in finished prod
ucts. The Illinois steel works, the
Lake Erie works at Cleveland and
the works of Oliver & Co. and
Byers & Co., at Pittsburgh, are
stopped by labor difficulties and some
furnaces have stopped because the
product of the pig had outrun the de-
mand for finished products and heavy
stocks remained unsold. Bessemer, at
Pittsburgh, for pig brings only $40, and
gray forge, only SS.75, the lowest on
record, but no quotable decline is seen
in finished products and nails are
strong.