The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-10-21
MUNCIE RETAIL TRADE
1T, TOO, SHOWS GREAT M'KINLEY
PROSPERITY NOW IN THE LAND.
Clothing and Grocery Lines as q
BnrOmeter-Few Losses from
Extending Credit.
special to the Indianapolis journal.

Special to the Indianapolis Journal.
MINCIE, Ind, Oct. a0-In 1892 this city,
as well as the country in general, expert
enced a season of prosperity that marked
new era, reaching a point never known
before. If the experience of few selected
at random can be taken as. criterion,
this year will be fully up to the high mark
of 1892, both of them Republican years, by
the way. A few days ago / had "a talk with
c. L. Bender, head of the firm of C. l..
Bender & Co., retail merchants. Mr.. Bender
has been in business here nineteen years,
and is certainly well qualified to judge the
conditions of the past and present.
Our business now" said Mr. Bender, sis
better than ever. 1t is now about $1,000 a
week better than it was in 1885, and / be-
lieve it will continue better. Everything
seems to indicate a continuance of these
conditions. 1t is not that we are selling
very much larger quantity of goods, but
we are selling much better quality now.
Men come in here now and demand fine
goods, who, two or three years ago, were
content, because circumstances made it
necessary with very cheap and inferior
article. Mothers come for clothing for their
children and will not look at the cheap
clothing they so much sought three years
ago. In every department in our line peo-
pie are demanding better quality of goods
and are willing and able to pay for it.
Three years ago their object was to get
something that was passable and pay as
little as possible for 1t, but now they seek
what they want and are willing and able
to pay what it is worth. The matter Of
credit is another very noticeable feature OF
our business. Now, there is not one appli-
cation for credit where we had ten four
years ago. and we have no trouble in col
lectng when we give credit. Considering all
things l think / can safely say that the
prospects We're never brighter for a good
winters business
o. e. Baldwin who has been in the gro
Gerry business here for nine years, was seen
and asked to state his experience. THE
year just closing he said, lis the best
year / ever had except 1892, when my sales
were a little higher than now. but not much.
My customers this year have paid up their
accounts almost in full; of course there is
always some loss in grocery accounts-we
expect that-but this year the payments
have been so good that / am more than
pleased now have very few Delinquent
cleS. MY losses on unpaid accounts in 1893
and 1894 were greater than in any other four
years, and my sales We're much less. Dur
ing those two years the factories were
closed and sold to many of the workmen
on credit. They bought only enough to keep
from going hungry. Some of those bills are
still unpaid, while others are now coming
forward and paying up. Everything now
seems TO point 10 prosperous future. Con-
ditions were never brighter
The Indiana Bridge Company is an en-
ployer of skilled and high-priced common
labor. 1t pays none of its employees less
than $l.50 a day, so that 1t Is an important
factor in the labor situation here, although
employing not large number of men. But
its statement showing comparisons with
1884 and 1896 is instructive. In 1894 il had
one hundred employees and paid out s., 200
a month in wages, for nine months. During
the nine months the factory was in opera
ton 1t did not work full time in any month
This is also true of the year 1885, In which
year the company worked parts of ten
month. But this year the plant will be in
operation full time for ten months and is
paying $50 men S. 200 a month.
Z. Hanika x Sons agricultural iron
works has been Incorporated for two years
and can give comparative figures only for
1897 and 1893. Frank j. Smith, adirector of the
company. said: I'm 1897 we worked twenty
to twenty-five hands and now we have fifty
and would probably have more II we had
the capacity otherwise to turn out more
work We are paying the same wages that
we paid in our line i'm iS92-in fact, wages
were never cut in this shoD. We now have
all the business we can handle. We now
have orders here that ought TO have been
filled thirty days ag0.eh1u the rush for ma
terial of all kinds ga Heiayed US. We are
working 70 our utmost tapacify''
What seems to be the outlook for the
future2"
Fine We have enough business now
booked or In sight 10 keep us going at our