The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1897-01-06
BUSINESS REVIEW.
More Failures in 1896 Than Any Year
Except 1895.

Except 1898.
New York. Jan. 1.-R. G. Dun & Co.
IN their weekly review of trade say:
..There have been more commercial ia H.
ures in 1856 than in any previous year except
1898. about 1885, against 1887 last year,
with liza bilities of about s225 COG. 900. against
5l73, 1876, $50 last year, an increase in num-
Der of about u per cent and in liabilities of
p per cent
The wear closes with an epidemic Of
failures. mainly at the west. and in banks,
loan and trust companies, or concerns de-
pendent on them. The action OF clearing
houses in various places indicates no want
of confidence, and several banks which
have failed will be enabled to pay in full.
but disclosures of unsoundness in few
widely-known institutions. in the abnormal
state of popular feeling after an excited
contest on monetary issues. has caused dis
trust and suspicion where II is frequently
undeserved. There has been no monetary
pressure to cause trouble, nor have inn
portant western products declined in value.
There has evidently been too liberal as
sistance given by some flduciary concerns
to speculative operations. No drain on
eastern funds has resulted since the first
alarm at two large failures, nd the money
then sent has all returned. Failures often
grow more frequent as annual settlements
approach.
The year 1896 has been one of singular
and confusing fluctuations in prices, of
which very full details are given. Wheat
rose TO 81 cents February s, fell TO COLI June
%, and rose to 90 cents Decembe % Cot
ton started at 1881, with stories of scantv
supply, fell to 81. GO March 5, rose to SS.G May
I, dropped to sos July 10, when a heavy
surplus was pressing, rose to $sS7 Septem-
Der 10, with stories that the new crop was
ruined, fell TO S7.06, but closed a. SIP. Wool
rose to an average of sl4.Ii for all domestic
grades, February /, fell to 81 l6 September
!, rose to $13.66 December !, and has since
declined. Iron and its products rose per
cent to April l and then declined every
month to December /. in all about 20 per
cent, since rising slightly. Boots AMI
shoes fell Is per cent IN the spring, against
leather is and hides z per cent Then
shoes rose gradually ~ per cent. to De-
cember and leather II per cent, but has
since fallen per cent, while hides rose %
per cent. to June 3. dropped % per cent to
July s, rose to 80 per cent. TO November
and have since declined Is per cent. Cot
ton goods were at the highest point jan
uary /, fell II per cent TO August 8, rose
about per cent to November g. and have
since declined about per cent. The in
congruity of these changes shows what
obstacles business has had to face.
In, none of the industries mentioned has
there been activity the past week. Holt
day dullness has been intensified by the
failures and the efforts of great combina-
Al
iron coke, " pol cotton and hides all some
what lower there is almost universal con-
fidence that business will soon become
large and safer than before for long time.
Cotton mills have enormous stocks of I'M
sold goods ir. some lines, the surplus Of
print cloths being the largest ever known
and about a quarter of years consump-
ton. Wool sales decreased q per cent. in
the first four months, and were smaller
than for five years; decreased Sc per cent.
in the second four months when new wool
was coming forward, and were much the
smallest ever known. except in the panic
of 1873; but enormous sales, mainly spec,ila-
tive, made the aggregate during the last
four months nearly equal to that of last
year.
The volume of business during the year
1896 has varied remarkably. Payments
through the clearing houses were slightly
larger in each of the first four months than
in 1895, but 20 per cent. smaller than in 1872
In the six months, May and October incl;i-
sive, payments were every month smaller
than last year, Is per cent. in September,
and in that month and October about "a
per cent smaller than in 1892. In Noven;-
.er small Improvement over 1895 appeared,
and the decrease from 1882 was but u per
cent, but in December payments were a.S
per cent. smaller than last year, and 29.s
per cent. smaller than in 1888 Railroad
earnings were slightly larger than last year
in each of the first seven months, aid
smaller each month than in 1892 In August
and the later months there has been de-
crease as great as Il per cent. in November
from 1895 and 1872 per cent. in August from
1892.
Wheat has risen to the highest point
since June, 1882, because western receipts
in five weeks have been but 13, 2So, 900 bush
els, against q, 606, 357 last year. The ex-
ports from New York in December were
five per cent. larger and imports u per
cent. smaller than last year