The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1898-01-06
is Full or PROMISE,
The business Outlook Excellent for
the Year 1903.

New York. Jan. -Bradstreets' says:
Holiday quiet and stock taking close a
year which. while not fully realizing the
most sanguine expectations. certainly con-
famed much that was gratifying and more
that Ia full of proLaise for the year 1898.
panic. stagnation and slow and even palm
| ful revival. 1897 presented a large volume
| OF business done, as g. whole, at prices
which, while not altogether satisfactory.
resulted m a total of trade larger than in
any previous year since 1892. Tariff changes
restricted demand but encouraged specu-
lation and heavy imports in the first part
| Of 1891, while the enlarged foreign demand
Tor American -breadstuffs and for some
varieties of manufactured articles bettereu
the condition Of the American farmer, and.
therefore. business men, quite materially,
In the latter part Of the year.
Price conditions have not favored the
| southern producer of cotton nor the north
ern manufacturer Of cotton goods. The
best reports come from tbs west, north
west and the Pacific coast. Prices at the
close are as whole on higher range than
at, the opening, advances being most nu-
merous In food products. raw silk and
wool, while decreases are reported in raw
cotton and cotton goods, nearly all met
| ais, anthracite coal and petroleum. Rail-
! road interests share In the revival Of pros
perity, with gross and met earnings larger
than any year since 1893, and the year 1888
| opens with the business community, with
| full frame Of mind.
"a heavy falling Off in number and in
liabilities OF individuals. firms or corpora
| tions failing was shown in 1897 from 1906
| and the four preceding years. A partial re-
| turn to more or less nbrmal conditions 8
| further indicated by a drop in the per-
| centage of assets to liabilities and by a
| reduction in the commercial death rate as
compared with every year since and in
GLIDING 1888. The total number of failures
reported to BradStreet's for the year Just
closed was 1859. decrease Of 2,V)V failures
| and over IL per cent. from 1876; falling
OIL OF Is per cent. from the panic year of
| 1923 and decrease Of more than per cent.
from 1851, year of prosperous business but
of numerous business embarrassment
Compared with 1895 there was gain in the
| number of failures shown OF about half of
l per cent, while compared with 1892 there
was an increase OF Y per cent. Liabilities
! OF those failing constituted one Of the
smallest totals Of recent years, amounting
to only $156, l66, wv, decrease OF ~ per cent,
from 1886. of ~ per cent. from 1888 and of
| ~ per cent. from 1851, but a gain Of AZ per
cent. over 1892.
Those reliable induces of the business Sit
uat1on-5ank clearings-point to- the year
1877 as witnessing the heaviest business.
both speculative and commercial, done
since the record year, 1892, just preceding
ZIG pduIC. uc tOtal Clear1NgS at 80 cities
for the year, one week estimated. aggre-
gated at least $56,926, O00,VUO, a sum larger
by Il per cent. than the total Of 1896. a year
| of silver agitation and an exciting presi-
dental election; 8 per cent. larger than
1895. the disappointing year, when a boom
IN iron and kindred products led to false
hopes Of business improvement: 25 Der cent.
over the year 1894, when the depth of de-
preston following the panic may be said
! to have been reached; 5 per cent. over 1893.
the year of widespread disaster in fina nciai
and commercial circles. and only per cent.
! smaller than the total of 1892. when the
boom following the large foreign demand
| for American breadstuffs and other prod
ucts reached it's height. Practically the en-
tire gain in clearings in 1897 was concen-
| trated in the last six months, and it is a
significant fact that the heaviest monthly
total reported for five years past was re-
ported in the month of December Gains
| were heaviest in the northwest, the middle
and New England states, and smallest in
| the south and northwest, at the latter of
which the trade improvement was rather
later in arrivinC"