The herald., 1897-05-07

sions. The official returns show the i'm
ports and exports. for the nine months
ending March 31st, to haye been as fol-
lows:
Merchandise ........ $s22, 200 900 $49S, 800. 600
SILVER .;..;;;............ 46,eoo.Coo 5000, 900
Totals ............. 1885,, 600 900 $6O3, 400, ,OG0
Balance OF exports. PSI, 100000
The movement in merchandise and the
precious metals thus shows an excess of
exports over imports amounting to $751;
100000. If we charge ourselves with $780,
10000 as the net debtor sum accruing on
interest payments, travellers credits,
freight and passenger charges, immi-
grant money, outlays Of foreign vessels
in our ports, etc.-which is certainly n
highly liberal allowance-there will still
remain over $780, 900 due to US on this
nine months balance.
In his circular of the 1st inst. Henry
Clews the New York banker says: The
general condition of the country must,
with fair allowance for special inciden-
tai circumstances. be regarded as pre-
oSheih6 uOpelul X. VI course.
antil the new tariff bill is disposed of.
manufactures must be. to some extent
held in check. and imports may be ex-
pected to be large. These conditions
are abnormal and produce some tenn
porary arrangements and a good deal OF
grumbling; but, when the tariff takes
effect, the imports will moderate and
there will be sudden increase of ac-
tlvity in the industries to compensate e
for the now postponed production. In
the meantime, the retail trade appears
to be. for the most part, in a healthy
condition; and the jobbing trades there
fore cannot have much reason to COM
plain. except about the obstacles to ar
ranging for their supplies for the fall
trade.
An increased amount of attention is
being given nowadays to the possibili-
ties of rapid telegraphy. By the Wheat
stone system, In which a previously
punched strip of paper is fed into the
transmitter from 100 to $50 words a min
ute are now easily sent over a single
wire, a speed which is three or four
times that of the operator who manipu-
lates Morse key. BY the Rogers sys-
tenn, not yet in general use, 1t is claimed
that 200 words minute can be handled
and printed on a typewriter automatic
ally. What is called the Delany system IS
still more rapid. But all of these achieve
ments and projects are eclipsed by a
plan which was described recently to
the American Institute of Electrical En-
gineers in New York by Lieutenant
George owen Squier of the Third United
lStates artillery and assistant professor
of physics at Dartmouth. The same sto-
ry was told simultaneously in Chicago
by Prof. Bedell, a well known expert in
such matters. In some experiments con-
Quoted by Lieutenant Squier, in Coop
Grafton with Prof. A. C. Crehore at Fort
Monroe, a speed Of 1900 words per min
ute was actually attained. and the as
sertion is made that from 5000 to 5000
words minute may be sent by the same
system between points as far apart as
New York and Chicago.
AS an illustration of the manner in
which taxation keeps up the rate of in
terest, it is only necessary to look for a
moment at the condition of matters In
this state. Municipal and county bonds
u tuc CAtCHl VI % pVVV,VVV HdNc OSSh 10
sued in California. These bonds yield
an average of 5 per cent on the price for
which they were sold. Every buyer bids
q lower price for these bonds because
Of the fact that they are taxable; yet, OF
the total of seven millions OF them, not
half a million really pay any taxes. The
bonds disappear by being carried out of
the state, hidden or their ownership de-
MED. At all events, assessors only find
one in fourteen of them. 1t is said that,
but for the mortgage tax and the taxa
ton of town and county bonds, eastern
ard English insurance companies would
lend millions of dollars in this city and
state, none Of which under existing con-
ditions comes here. In an address made
by Mr.. E. b. Pond before the bankers
convention, he quoted from Chicago pa
pers, showing that money is freely lent
by New England or English corporations
ir that city at per cent, because there
is no mortgage tax there. These corpor-
atoms have also lent $50 1000, 900 in the
state of Washington and $4,000, 900 in
Oregon.
The government of Peru has issued a
prohibition against the importation of
silver coins. which Is to become operative
after May 10. The coinage of silver has
been suspended, and 1t appears to be the
purpose of the government to reconstruct
its currency system. Currency reform in
Peru was actually begun in 1888, when
the redemption Of paper money was un-
dertaken by the exchange of silver sole
for 35 paper soles. At that time it was
the purpose to put the currency on
silver basis. Peru produces from 3,000,-
900 to 1900, 900 ounces of silver per annum.
The present movement looks to a gold
basis.
Swiss railroads were built with the
eventual privilege of purchase by the
government, and the bundesrath has
made an offer of nearly 5000, ,O00,0 600 for
them, based on government loan, re-
deemable in sixty years.
At the San Francisco stock and bond
exchange yesterday Hawaiian CONNER
cial sold at 101A to 10, Hutchinson planta-
tion at 171s to II and Southern Pacific Of
Arizona 6 per cents at 90. The sales for
the first four months Of the year were