Warren sheaf., 1897-01-14
CLEARS THE WAY.
Collapse Of Unsound Concerns Is Good
for Business.

New York, Jan. 9.-Ii. Il. Dun d Co.,
In their weekly review of trade, say:
1.-THE year 1897 begins with one clear ad-
vantage-the past year has swept out
OF the way great many unsoUnd concerns
which In any time Of activity would have
commercial and banking failures in 1896.
with liabilities of $z76. .Sl5. .749. a large share
represented crippling losses in previous
years, or the violence of speculative storms
In 1895 or the first half Of 1896. while thou
sands more resulted from tho fury of the
political tornado last fall: Banking fail
ures amounting to $5O, lS.915 during the year
averaged $256. .l56 each, and were lis per cent.
larger than In 1896.
Commercial failures amounted to $685.
6e6,SsA. a little over $1,00o 900 having been
added by the last day of the year, but the
average OF liabilities. sl4. .9s2. was smaller
than in some years of great prosperity.
The failures of brokerage and other COM
merclal concerns averaged $751; ,418 each. in
creasing ISL per cent. over 1895, while manu-
featuring failures averaged $2S,SoS each,
and increased "a per cent, and trading fail
ures increased not 18 per cent. and averaged
only $9.606 each.
while banking failures have not ceased
at the west. apprehension about them has
almost wholly subsided and no serious in
fuence upon general trade is now ex-
pccted. Many sound concerns were doubt
less caught by the epidemic, but practi-
cally all the important failures are traced
to disregard of law and of banking sense
at periods somewhat distant.
1T is felt at the west that all business
will be sounder after the purging, and the
return of money to New York has exceeded
shipments to the interior by s.. COZ, 900. for
the week. Heavy disbursements by the
treasury and by great corporal tions make
money abundant. and banks and savings
banks are seeking good paper, taking some
formerly sold at Chicago. Foreign ex-
change has risen tritie. as large bills are
about to mature. Merchandise exports
were II per cent over last year, while i'm
ports were q per cent. less than for the
same week.
THE speculative market has been dull.
After rising about so cents per share and
81 for trusts, stocks were checked by re-
vival of talk about Cuba at Washington
and by reduction of the dividend on the
Delaware & Hudson. Earnings reported
for December amount to $3l. .l21 ,905 in the
United States alone. "a per cent. less than
In 1885, The railway rcceiverships noted
oy the hallway Age cover We'll. .5Vy. .oVO
$2.O9a .535.e00 in the previous nine years;
foreclosure sales of the past three years
cover $2,231 l57 100, against $l.673, VA wv Ill
the previous ten years.
Wheat rose to SIC on Monday, but has
declined again to Ss.25c. with western re-
While Atlantic exports, flour included, We're
2,0a7.9OO bushels. against 2.337. .936 last year.
The trade accounts lnulcale great Quan-
tty In farmers haJu,. :~,u5.. 70 permit
more than 600 bushels to be exported
in the remaining SIX months.
Cotton started up shade, but reccipts
from plantations are still too largr for
low estimates, and the condition OF the
cotton mills SfOreSnauOWS curtaiinlent ra ther
than large consumption. The market Tor
goods is extremely slow, as many infer
that the unprecedented stocks OF print
cloths indicate a similar surplus of other
goods. The logic IS bad, but In many
branches the mills have doubtless manu-
featured goods anticipating a demand
which has not come. 1t is now proposed.
to relieve the market by selling Quantities
of print cloths abroad. or by locking un
2,O0U,00O pieces until the market improves
The only change in quotations is &c. re-
ductton in some bleached goods.
prices of wool are q shade lower. and
quotations by Coates Bros. are compared.
showing decline in six years of Is cents
in prices of northern states wool. with
relatively as great decline in western and
territory wool. which goes far to explain
the large reported stocks, and quantities
held by manufacturers are proba bly, larger
than is commonly supposed. In wooden
goods the only change is reduction Of
TIC. in clay worsteds and mixtures. and
''Orders for boots and shoes have almost
ceased. except for a few qualities, which
have been advanced only 21a to &C. in price.
but jobbers are buying a little more as
stocks run low. Leather Is sliII and hides
a shade stronger. ...A.>... =!
Enormous purchases of billets come with
a rush. most OF the large concerns contrac ct
ing for all they required for months, and
even year to come, and some OF the
largest contracts are said to have been at
SIS or even less. but there Is as yet no bet
ter demand for structural work; bars are
weak, nails have declined to $14O for wire
and $1.30 for cut and little is doing in rails,
as possible buyers think $25 is too high
with billets at SIS per ton. Nevertheless
O great trade is expected when relative
prices become settled"
Six Drowned In Missouri.
St. Louis, Jan. .. - A special from
Plato, Mo-, says that one man and five
children were drowned in Texas coun-