Omaha daily bee., 1899-08-13
CONDITION OF OMAHA'S TRADE
Business in a Retail Way is Generally a Lit
tie Dull in Omaha.
COUNTRY RETAILERS ARE BUYING FREELY
Omaha Jobbers Very Busy for This
Time of Yenr and Most Hope
full of an Active Fail and
Winter Trade.

Local trade Is In the doldrums and 1t Is
not strange that 1t should be. 1t Is August
and the weather is not enough to sap much
of the energy Of the average human being.
The chief aim and object in life Just at the
present time is to seek a cool and shady
place rather than to throng to the places
where things are bought and sold. People
who have the leisure and can afford the ex-
pense nave been going away by the nun
dreds to the mountains. to the lakes and TO
the seashore. With the list of absentees
running UP dnto the hundreds and with the
customary midsummer lassitude of those
left behind. there is nothing surprising in
the assertion made at the commencement
With very few exceptions business of a
pureiy local character rs decidedly dun, tine
want OF lie and snap not being character-
tstic Of any special department. put prac-
tcally true OF all branches OF mercnanuls-
ing. Even the handlers of. produce ana pro
visions say that their trade is rather quiet
Plies and less appetite. AT this season OF
the year everyone has been supplied with
" anp @eat rene EVSapGb a ayH !. IS At i'it the ie0 same
time 1t must not be inferred that BUSINESS
Is any more quiet than Is to be expected at
more strangers in the city a year ago, whlch
made the city appear %livelier than would
no doubt, contributed to some extent to To-
cal RETAIL trade. So far this year very rev
visitors Visit h iaoyoesbs been In ens city =, 'ed 5nd eysf s
travel in this direction later on In the fail.
While the retail trade is quiet, everything
is coming to the jobbers. The splendid crop
conditions prevailing in the country, Ne
braska leading all the other states, accord
ing to the government report, has stimula-
ted business in a marked degree. Country
the most prosperous fall and winter trade
not be human ", they did not buy with more
than usual freedom. The orders now being
filled. as well as those being shipped out,
show the influence of the splendid crop
prospects and the feeling of confidence so
universal among merchants of all classes.
From present indications one would be safe
in predicting the best seasons trade ever
enjoyed by the tobbers of this city.
Business in Nebraska, outside of the
larger cities, is being helped very materially
by the high prices at which live stock Is
selling. Both cattle and hogs are bringing
prices that are highly remunerative to the
PRODUCER. Nebraska has really enjoyed
quite a boom dn hog raising this year. There
was plenty of corn for feed, a large crop of
young hogs and very little disease among
them, so that this state has had a big sur
plus at a lime when other states have been
rather short and prices above the average
for recent years. This accounts for the
large gain In the number of hogs packed
at South Omaha while other large centers,
like Chicago and Kansas City, have been
running behind their records of a year ago.
South Omaha has been able to forge ahead
so rapidly that 1t is crowding Kansas City
for second place as a hog-packing center.