The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-02-06
CONDITIONS PERHAPS SLIGHTLY
BETTER FOR WOODEN MILLS.
Excess of supply Over Demand in
This COuntry-Weekly Reports of
Dun q Co. and Bradstreet.

NEW YORK, Feb. 5.-R. G. Dun & Co.'S
| weekly review of trade Tomorrow will say:
No important change in business appears,
| but the number of manufacturing estaD-
| lishments starting much exceeds the num-
| Der of those stopping during the week ana
| so much that the curtaiment of working
| time in many cotton mills probably does
| not lessen the aggregate productive force
| or amount of wages paid
There is distinct increase i'm orders for
wooden goods, some gain i'm the silk manu-
| facture, waiting condition with grain. III
one branch of boots and shoes and indica-
tons OF better things coming in the iron
| and steel manufacture. All symptoms are
favorable in the money market. and "a large
| sale Of securities in connection with the
| Northern Pacific and Oregon Navigation
| interests to European purchasers will put
| off still further the possibility of gold ex-
ports 1t is also cheering evidence of con-
| ridence among European investors.
TO many 1t is the most pcrplexing feature
| of current events that wheat does not rIs.,
much, though ii has advanced l%c for the
week: Atlantic exports have been only L.
| 696.0i6 bushels, flour included against 1865
| 456 bushels for the same week last wear
| While western receipts have been only l.
| 56slIO bushels. against 2.S00i07 last year
planned by any special information but cur
| rent prices show that no great confidence
/ Is 1elt IN the estimates of supplies ayaiIa Bile
| for the rest of the year
cotton fell to 1l2c after the agreement to
close Fan River and other print clotn
works became known. but recovered tn
quotation of a week ago, 7.31c without fur
ther news Spinners' takings have been so
| small THIS year-those of Northern mills
about 100000 pounds less than in lS9I-9J-that
| the admitted narrowness of demand for
soous mas at present considerable weight
Sales of wool have been smaller than i'm
| other recent weeks. and yet are far i'm ex-
| cess of the consumption of all mills for a
| Week, II all Were fully employed There has
been only slight stiffening i'm prices. but
more foreign wool Will be taken and stored.
IL is believed, If Western holders continue
10 demand higher prices. More important
than these indications is little better de-
mand for heavy weight goods. which has
led some of the smaller mills to buy more
freely and thus enable number TO starr
Prices OF Bessemer pig and grey forge M
Pittsburg have slightly advanced with
more hopeful feeling. Notwithstanding
the comparative narrowneSs of the demand
Tor finished products. and in plates and
wire and wire nails there is much more
business. with good prospects. Billets are
quoted at $l5.20, with scarcely any demand
AT present, and rods at s2l while No. p
Dlack sheets are quoted at only &c. Reports
that 2o.OOO tons of steel plate and sheet bars
nave been exported to England are only in
dications of the temporary excess of SUNNY
over demand in this country and are moi
supposed TO nave realized any profit Yet Ir
Is stated that prices of east pipe are from
- TO 50 per ton lower at New York than ~
ocotcH WORKS. Bars are quoted at the low
est price ever known at PHILADELPHIA with
out much improvement i'm the demand anc
steel rails are still inactive and unchanred
in price. the railroads waiting for = de-
cline corresponding to the fail i'm hiIIetc
But on the whole. the demand for iron ano
steel products pre-, is slowly gaining and a con-
siderable proportion of the works is fully
employed. though the gain is not We,
enough for those who have taken large
stocks of material or products ON Snac,,to
ton. NPN''i'-
Failures for the week have been All in tho
United States, against 324 last year. and
sXty-fOur In Canada against sixty-seven
last year. ''"
Bradstreet's Review.
NEW YORK. Feb. 5.-Bradstreet,s to-
morrow will say: General trade which was
retarded by unfavorable weather week
ago. has recovered somewhat at
Chattanooga, Memphis. Birmingham
and New Orleans. While the cold
cold weather cut into the stocks of
heavy goods. it delayed the sale of spring
goods. Other relatively favorable trade
reports are from ST. Paul. Chicago, Mime
apolis and ST. Louis. At most centers job
bers report business quiet unchanged,
with no prospect of immediate improve
ment The restriction of the production of
cotton goods has not strengthened the mar
ket or advanced prices yet. The heavy in
crease in sales OF wool-iO 900 900 pounds
at Boston at one time since January
against 2i,WOCOO pounds last year is based
largely on the expectation of higher duty
on WOOL
one OF the most unsatisfactory industrial
FEATURES Is the lack of demand for iron and
steel. prices of which in the central West
ern States have got below nominal quo
tations. Exports of wheat flour included
as wheaO from both coasts of the United
States and from St John. n. B. this week
amount TO 3lGS,1i6 bushels as compared
with 2,5l5,000 bushels last week 29O7 go
bushels in the week year ago. 202O 900
bushels in the week two years ago 267SOOO
bushels three years ago and as contrasted
with 1891 600 bushels in the like week of
1893 Exports of Indian corn this week
show a marked increase. amounting TO
z, $50 900 bushels, compared with 3O1l 600
bushels last week, 222. 900 bushels in the
week year ago, 92I 600 bushels in the week
two years ago, l.424.000 bushels three years
ago. and contrasted with $4,000 bushels
in the like week OF 1893
The check to the number of business fail
ures reported last week appears again in
the total for the present week COS through
out the United States, as compared with
326 last week 33S in the first week of Feb
ruary. 1856. 293 in the like week of 1895. $50
in the corresponding period of 1894 as a
contrast of 223 in the first week of Febru-
airy. 1898. three months before the panic.
There are fifty-eight business failures re-
ported from the Canadian Dominion this
week. against fifty-six last week. sixty in
the week a year ago, fifty-one two years