Arizona republican., 1897-09-16
Markets Fifmer and Buying Powers Better Developed
FOUR YEAhS OF ECONOMY
Contributed to the Present
 Pleasing Condition
The Long Crops and Snort Tronbles of America, the Long Troubles and Short Crops of the Rest o1 the World.

New York, Sept. 15.-(Special.)- Since my last advices. the market for securities has exhibited the irregu- lar strength and steady activity which have characterized it during recent weeks. In the general outside condi- tions affecting prices, there has been no material change.
 The drift of commercial affairs throughout the country adds new con firmation to the promise of an era of sound and steady national prosperity which has laid the basis for the gen eral large advance in securities. There is every evidence that the trade of the country has alreaoy recovered its full normal volume and that the Ob- stacles that have so long Obstructed it have now entirely lost their rep ressive force. This is placed beyond question by the fact that, for the. week ending August 18th, the trans actions at all the clearing houses of y9he country exceeded those for the like week of last year by fl per cent, while for the month of August the increase was 36 per cent. The months volume exceeded that of August, 1890 which was the largest in the his tory of banking operations notwithstanding thaeVganeral prices are now fully 10 per cent lloIwer than they were at that period. Further evidence of the large expansion of business is afforded by the loans and discounts of the New York city banks. For the week ending Septem- Der II, this item stood at S569 300, GOO, which is the highest sum reached at that season of the last ten years.
 The city banks are noiw lending 14 per cent more than the highest volume ever attained in the history of their operations. This is s'-incou-- testable proof that the amount of current buslness transactions exceeds all precedent. It is true that we now have about 10000 900 more population than we had in 1890-the period of highest previous maximum loans but against that fact must be set off the great fall in all values that has occurred since that date.
 This sudden expansion to a con dition of normal activity has-in it no clement of speculation. It is in re- sponse to bona fide wants, and shows none of the dubious clements of mere manufactured boom" The fact that such a measure of recovery has come within three or four months is very satisfactory sign of the sound financial condition of men of hasinjess. It means that the weak clements of credit have been weeded out during the recent depression and that merchants have their finaces in sound Shane for meeting the require ments of a period of large commer- cial expansion.
 What may be the magnitude of those requirements is ilferable from the extent to which the satisfaction of wide range of wants has been ' Tn evry branch of production, except ing those most essential to subsist- eANe, this process of postponement has been in force. In building, in the home and it's furnishings, in the ward robe. in our factories and in the con- struction and maintenance .of rail- roads, this avoidance of expenditures has been rigidly enforced. Four years of this sort of economizing is probably about equal to the citizens $ total expenditures of one year; and that years measure eff abstention from the supply of reasonable wants has now to be made good. It is one thing that there should be such an important pressure for an extra sup plying of wants; it is another that the business thus created should be at a fair rate of profit Of this there is no reasonable cause for doubt The downward tendency of prices has been arrested; surplus stocks are be- ing fast cleared off, and in all direc- tions consumption is gaining on pro duction. At last, therefore, we seem to be in c fair way towards remedy ing the great excess of supply over consumption which has, for several years past, been forcing the great fall in prices and the extreme depression in business. We have, in fact, reach ed new starting point upon a lower basis of costs of production and of broader production and the capacity for "a larger consumption per head of population than we have hitherto realized: to say nothing of the new r5,zs>