Crawford avalanche. (Grayling, Mich.) 1879-19??, 1897-05-13

1t was more than seven months from |
his Inauguration as President in 1893
before his Congress met to consider
any Of the propositions to which his
party was pledged and within few
days of eighteen months before the
leading promise Of its platform was full
filed in the enactment Of new tariff
law. The business uncertainties, the
long months of suspense in which man
ufacturers and dealers Of ali classes
were unable to proceed intelligently
with business enterprises, and the stop
page of business and loss Of employ
ment consequent thereon, make the
eighteen months Of mastery inactiv-
ity in which President Cleveland and
his party neglected to fulfill with hot
haste" their promises of legislation,
the most disastrous in the history OF
the business of the country. A brief
review of these eighteen months Of de-
lay in legislation by his party may in
dictate whether the Republicans OF to-
day ought to be deferred by his COM
plant of their shot haste" in carrying
out their promises.
The latest number Of the statistical
abstract shows the number of failures
of commercial and business concerns
| in the United States in the first year OF
President Cleveland's administration
1888 to be 1922, with total liabili-
ties amounting to $346, 749,SS9 This
covers only about One-half OF the pc
! Rod between the Inauguration Of Pres
ident Cleveland and the enactment OF
the legislation which his party prom
ised The record of 1898, however. is
the most disastrous the country has
ever experienced, the number of fail
ures being 80 per cent. greater than in
the panic Of 1878 and the losses also
80 per cent. greater. In addition to
| these failures no less than 613 banks
| failed during that year. This great
number of failures threw out OF EN-
| ployment such large numbers of per-
sons and reduced wages in so many
cases as to cause an unusual number
of strikes and lockouts, resulting in
great losses Of wages of workingmen
and losses to employers. Over 100000
employees were involved in the strikes
occurring between March 4, 1898, and
August %, 1894, the date Of the enact
ment of the Wilson law. The loss in
wages to the persons thrown out of
employment by the strikes and lock-
outs in those eighteen months, as
shown by the report Of the United
States Commissioner of Labor, is over
S45 .OOO, 900, while the business loss to
employers aggregated about half that
sum. Reports of the Interstate Com
merce covering this period also afford
interesting comment upon the effect OF
the business troubles which existed
during the tendency of the promised
legislation during the year 1898. Many
Of the most important railroads of the
country were placed in the hands OF
receivers. THE mileage of thirty rail
roads so treated in the first half OF the
period between President Clevland's
Inauguration and the completion of the
legislation promised in his platform
was 25,375 miles, or nearly one-sev
enth of all the railroad lines OF the
United States. Their indebtedness
was $L212, 217,O33.
The following record Of prominent
events during the eighteen months II
, which President Cleveland and his par
: ty held the country in suspense prior
to the enactment of the Legislation
promised by them will indicate to some
extent whether he was justified in com
planning of the shot haste" with which
J the Republican party is carrying on
its own pledges on this occasion.
March, 1893. General strike begal
c among the clothing cutters in New York
. strike of employees on Toledo and Ann Ar
? Dor road.
D April. 1893. Strike of 1000 workers oil
[ fair grounds at Chicago.
, May, 1893. Strike of 10000 coal min
ers in Ohio; failure of large number o
Western banks following the failure o
the Columbia National Bank at Chicago
n June, 1893. Runs on savings banks Il
. Chicago and failures of numerous bank
!. in various parts of the country.
July, 1893. Announcement Of suspen
sion of work in 800 silver mines in tn
United States; numerous bank failures
!. four bank failures in Denver; runs on 9th
i or financial institutions; numerous bus
ness failures many bank failures in tn
r West and all other sections of the coun
try.
- August, 1893. Failure of numerou
commission houses in Chicago; failure o
Madison Square Bank in New York; riot
= In New York and encounters betwee
anarchists and socialists only prevente
l. by police; close of long and unsuccessful
coal miners strike In Kansas.
o September, 1893. Strike of big -Four
employees.
}, October, 1893. Troops called out !
Alabama to suppress riots Of railroa
:. strikers. ol
November, 1893. Riots in Pennsylvani
!. mining region.
y January, 1894. Strike of many thor
sand potters In New Jersey against n
duction of wages; Secretary Carnsle Of
fers $50 900, 900 loan for public subscriI
~ ton; striking miners in Pennsylvania d.
4 stroy property at Brantville and els'
D | where. tsf. rf
II February, 1894. Sale of $50, OO0, 900 q
y bonds by Secretary Carlisle; many lare
4 silk factories in New York close on a,
h count of strike; all the mines Of the Ma
Z sillon district closed by strikes; riotou
assemblages of unemployed workmen
Boston dispersed by police.