The true northerner., 1899-01-25
EVERY INDUSTRY ACTIVE.
The Present Volume of Business in
All Lines Is Said to Break
All Previous Records.
CONFIDENCE IN THE FUTURE is STRONG.
The New Year Continues To show
Trade beyond All Expectations
The Iron Industry Remains the
Absorbing Feature Of interest-Lit-
tie Change In Cereal Market.

New York. Jan. 21.-The trade situ-
alton as considered by II. G.. Dun q Co.
in their weekly review is as follows:
"A new year rarely opens brilliantly.
Too many traders have to wait for the de-
mand which i'm winter comes slowly. The
industries resist fairly well the tendency
To unlimited expansion which some have to
meet Speculation in products Is gaining
but little, while in stocks an enormous vol
ume of business results in continually
higher prices. The volume OF payments
through clearing houses is extraordinary,
42.7 per cent. larger than last year. 969 per
cent larger than In 1897, and 5l.5 per
cent. larger than In 1892, even the transac-
tions outside of New York showing a gain
over 1892 of 44.6 per cent Speculation al
New York therefore cannot be the main
cause of gain. Difficulties between holders
of material and manufacturers continue 10
hinder in some industries, and in some
may prove seriously embarras ssing, but the
activity is on the whole unsurpassed hith-
erto, and the volume OF traffic Is beyond
all expectations. In some branches con-
sumption is running beyond the producing
capacity, but in others IL is hindered by
doubts about the future supplies and prices
Of materials.
Failures for the week have been 249 In
the United States, against 374 last year.
and 80 in Canada, against SO last year"
Bradstreet's Review.
Bradstreet's review says:
1.-THE continued strength Of staple values,
accentuated this week by further advances
In iron and steel and other metals. in cot
ton at the south and in lumber at some
western points. has undoubtedly added to
the confidence with which the outlook for
the ensuing year is regarded. That this
confidence has a fair basis in fact will
be gathered from the reports received from
the iron and cotton goods trade the firm
ness in cotton goods being of considerable
interest in view of the depression ruling
throughout the larger part of last year.
THE iron trade situation remains, as for
some time past. a feature Of absorbing in
terest Large as the production OF pig
iron is. eager buyers are found apparent
ly for every ton offered. Most furnaces
are reported booked ahead on orders, and
some advances are frankly stated to be
Que 10 the desire of makers to discourage
orders incapable OF tuliiliment within any
reasonable period strong side light up
on the strength of iron and steel the world
over is offered by the statement that iron
in Glasgow this week reached the high
est prices noted for ten years past Fea-
lures of the domestic market have been
gains in prices Of Bessemer and Southern
pig, steel billets. wire rods and steel rails
and in addition. copper. lead and tin are
all higher.
Little change is reportable in the
market for cereals, and the market for
cash wheat still reflects the commanding
position held by the United States the
supplies OF the worlds wheat, notwith-
standing the predictions of near approach
ing compe etition from Argentina and from
Russia shipments from which, particu-
larly the latter, do not at all accord with
the liberal estimates of production pub
lished some little time ago There is per-
ceptibe Improvement i'm the demand for
dry goods. particularly cotton fabrics. at
New York and Boston, where late advances
are firmly held. There is also more doing
in dress woolens at those markets The
lumber trade at most markets is in a salts
factory condition. The strength of prices
is unimpaired and advances in white pine
arc reported from the west, while in hard
woods values and confidence are alike
unchanged