The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-05-06
HUGE BANK 0LEAR|NGS
Pre-eminentIy in Evidence in
ApriI's Operations.
FORMATION OF COMBINES
Responsible for the Vast In
crease in the Item.

New York, May BRA dstreet's Of Ma
s, will say: Widespread business activity
and,heavy financial transactions. resultine
from or consequent upon the large num.
Der Of industrial combinations planned OF
executed during the month Of April seen
to have been largely responsible for the
heavy bank clearings reported Cor that
month, because stock speculation was
| rather quieter than in March or the pre-
ceding months. The April cIearings, in
fact, deserve special notice, because
| though they were smaller by per cent
than the aggregate for March, this was
| owing chiefly to the smaller number Of
business days that month, because the
average daily clearings were heavier than
| the like amount 70 rthe month of March
In percentage Of gain, too, the increase
| shown over April year ago was the
| heaviest noted this year and the result Is
further enlargement of the grain re-
ported for the calendar year OF recent
preceding periods.
The aggregate bank clearings for the
month just closed svere IS, 266, 469, 069, gain
an increase of 102 per cent over the month
of April, 1897. gain of 122 per cent over
the corresponding month in 1894 and an
increase of 60 per cent over the like period
of 1892. The heavy gain for April COM
paTes with an increase of 54.6 per cent
during the month of March, of PSI per
cent in February and of 41.3 per cent in
January over the corresponding periods
of last year. Relatively the best SHOW
ing for April, as indeed for many precei-
ing months, was that made by the MIDDLE
states group of cities. In this section the
increase reported over April a year ago
was in excess of SO per cent, the next
heaviest gain being that reported by the
New England cities, IS per cent. Other
considerable gains are those of % per cent
in the southern cities, 1871 per cent in the
western group and 113 per cent in the
northwestern. As for some time past,
the gains in the southwest and the far
western groups have been comparatively
moderate, but even here the increases
have ranged from 6 to per cent. a
rather better showing is naturally made
by the individual cities than was re-
ported in March. The gain at New York
is heavier tina nit was in that month, "a
per cent in April against 70 per cent in
March, and the increase in the rest of the
country in April was 2S.8 per cent against
q per cent in March. In the southern
group the large gain by Baltimore, Al per
cent, is largely accountable for the in
crease in that group as a whole, although
fewer southern cities show decreases than
in March. In the west the heavy decrease
by Omaha, % per cent due to
the withdrawal of some banks clearings
from current totals, is a notable feature.
Boston's clearings in April were very
heavy and the gain over a year ago, 50 |
per cent, is a notable one. The gain /
ever. Chicago shows gain of 145 per /
cent over year ago.
Activity in the iron trade IS reflected /
by the gain of rs per cent at Pittsburg. j
ST. Louis shows a gain of Is per cent, as
does also San Francisco.
For the four months period Of the cal
endar year, the clearings aggregate SS2,-
io5, 1855, a gain Of 464 per cent over 1898,
Of 81 per cent over 1897. of 12O per cent
over 1894 and of 90 per cent over 1892. In
he four months compilation, as in that
,Or April, the middle states group, con-
aiming the metropolis, shows the heaviest
Increase, 5S.4 per cent. The gain in New
England is over % per cent, while the in
,reases in the northwest and south ex-
'eed 20 per cent in each case. The gain
n the far west for the four months
losely approximates that shown for April.
A ner cent. while the gain in the south
vest is also a moderate one, 50 per cent. Il
Canadian bank clearings, while smaller
han those of March, note a heavier pro- I
'ortiOnate gain in April than for num- !
er Of months past. The cleartncs at
tx Canadian cities for the month ags-c-
ate Sis. 56.564. an increase of 70 per cent !
ompared with a gain Of only per cent
q March. or less than per cent in Feb 5
uary and less than 10 per cent in Janu- !
~, while for the four months the clear
1gs aggregate S491 1854, 795. an increase Of
5 per cent.