The Indianapolis journal., 1898-12-19
BANNER SHIPPING DAYS
COMMISSION MERCHANTS HAVING A
FINE BUSINESS.
Retailers I'm Towns Over the State
Even Doing Better than In
dianapOlItans.

The common remark on the wholesale
streets and on Commission row on Saturday
was that the merchants had seldom, If ever,
experienced a buster week than the one end
ing Saturday, Dec. II. The weather could
not have been well improved on for busi-
ness, and it is stated that the shipments
Of local merchants on Wednesday and
Thursday were record-breakers, the
grocers, the dealers In fancy goods and no
tions, the confectioners and commission
houses all being heavy shippers. In fact,
says one of the freight officials, there has
never been two days in which the shipments
exceeded those of the two days mentioned,
the mild weather enabling the commission
merchants to fill delayed orders. THE fact
is,' says one Of the older Of the wholesale
merchants. "all OF us are doing the best
business in any December Of years past"
He doubted If the much-boasted business of
1892 would equal that of December, 1898. He
said he thought that the retail merchants
in the cities and towns over the State were
really doing better than the Indianapolis
merchants In such towns as Nobesville,
Muncie, Anderson, Brazil, Martinsville, and
even smaller places, the retail merchants
are having an unprecedentedly large trade.
This was demonstrated by the orders
brought in by the travelling statesmen, all of
whom report money to be more plenty in
the outside cities and towns of the State,
and in fact over all territory from which
local wholesale houses and commission
merchants derive business.
The weather during the week was excel
lent for shipping corn and hogs, and this
gave life to the country towns on the lines
of railways. Then, in the western part Of
tat fha and fos
is very important item, the Vandalia, the
Chicago & Eastern Illinois and the Indian
apolis & Vincennes roads all handling a car
load of coal where they did ton the first
few years after natural gas came into use
at Indianapolis and in its immediate terri
tory. The local packing houses have been
large buyers Of hogs and this market has
paid better prices than has any other Of
the Western markets The packing houses
are killing more hogs than ever before some
days killing 10000 more The cerealine
mills, the hominy mills and the starch
works are all busy, converting 1900 to 1900
bushels of corn every twenty-four hours
into products, some days thirty to forty car
loads Of cerealine products being shipped.
Iron industries are exceedingly busy. Dean
@ Br9s: have oyer three hundred men at work.
says one Of the firm. On Saturday the
works shipped to Boston two immense
pumps weighing SIX tons eacn, ana Tor the
lake craft they are building many large
sized air pumps and condensers Atkins &
Co. are working over five hundred men. and
overtime in some departments, and the same
activity characterizes, the Atlas engine
works, and in fact all iron industries are
crowded with work. The chair manufac-
turers report their business at high-water
mark. The Parry Bros. are turning out
over one hundred vehicles a day, and are
now studying how to increase production to
such an extent as to more promptly fill or
ders, and on all sides prosperity is fast maxi
ing its appearance.