The Savannah morning news., 1901-04-04
BOARDOF TRADE YEAR
EIGHTEENTH ANIMAL MEETING
LARGELY ATTENDED.
TWELVE MONTHS BUSINESS
PRESIDENT PURSES REVIEW OF
TRADE CONDITIONS.

Have Lower Prices to Face-Presi-
dent Purse Compliments the
Boards Work for the Year, and
Predicts Greater Progress for Sa-
vannah When Deeper Water Is
Obtained.
| The eighteenth annual meeting of the
Savannah Board of Trade yesterday was
| characterized by the favora bleness of the
various reports submitted showing the
years operations. The reports submitted
| by nearly every committee showed the en-
ergy and enthusiasm which has been dis
played in the discharge of the duties by
| those entrusted with the direction of the
boards affairs.
President Purse called the meeting to
order, with the membership well repre-
scented. The reading of the minutes Of
the previous annual meeting was dis
| pensed with so as to facilitate the dis
patch of other business. Capt. C. L. Ches-
mutt. superintendent and secretary, then
read the reports of the various commit
tees, all of which were accepted.
President Purses annual report was the
feature of the meeting, and was read by
him after all preliminary work was finish
ed. The enthusiasm manifested by the
board during the past year has enabled
it to accomplish things which distinguish
it as the browning year in the illustrious
administration of Capt. Purse as its chief
executive Through his untiring energy
and progressiveness in the Board Of Trade
and his unselfish pubic spirit as citizen
Savannah has made matchless strides for
ward in her commercial and industrial de-
velopment, and it was in recognition of
these valuable services that a motion was
offered by Mr.. j. F. C. Meyers and adopt
ed, rendering Capt. Purse the thanks of
the board. Among other things Capt.
Purse said in his annual address,:
To-day, for the tenth time, by your gen.
erous suffrages, it is made my pleasant
duty, under your bylaws, to place be-
| fore you the reports of the committees
of the body, that you may be informed
of the operations during the current year.
Your attention is particularly directed to
the very gratifying reports of your eff
Client Finance Committee and their rec
! concentrations, which latter call for ac-
| ton to-day.
Your membership is far from what it
| should be yet, but the roll is the strong
est and largest in six years past What
has been accomplished should be an adj
| ditional incentive for the upbuilding work
of the coming year.
Your finances are now on a sound basis
| again, and a very comfortable surplus
| balance goes over to the ensuing year
| During the year eighteen members have
been admitted, and in the same period
| there have been three resigna tions on ac-
count of removal from the city, and death
| has claimed another of our most devoted
| and valued members. The membership
carried on roll to-day is so, a net gain of
IA over the previous year.
| The naval stores year records another
| large crop that shows at this port in an
| increase of 1887 casks of spirits of tur-
pentine, and 1912 packages of rosin. on
the commercial side of this important in
dustry the year ending with April l inst
has been unremunerative to the producer
and an embarrassment to the factors
who have handled and exported, who have
distributed the receipts at this port over
the world. If the season had been at all
! favorable for cropping, the output of the
year would have marked hgh-water
mark in the history of the industry From
| the beginning of the current year to the
end there has been a steady decline in
| prices. This year the price of both spirits
/
er prices, always resulting in an unsatis-
factory business year. The ensuing season
! opens with heavy stocks but low prices
| tnat always stimulate consumption
in every branch of manufacturing
industry and afford ground for hope
that more favorable conditions for a
healthy traffic in naval stores are ahead
| OF us. Savannah more than holds her
| own as the controlling distributing CEN
ter for naval stores, in comparison with
| previous years and the marvellous ship
| ping facilities will claim this position for
her long after the industry has ceased to
| be profitable in territory naturally tribu-
| tary to her.
AT the opening of the cotton year in
September the generally accepted theory
| of a short crop far below the spinning
needs and requirements of the world caus-
ed an enhancement in price of the staple
that has been so completely upset by the
| subsequent course of the market that
| cotton foresight is again at quite a dis
| count with the trade. 1t has. however
! been good year for the producer even
at the lowest point prices have reached
since September. OF course, those plant
ing, who sold earliest, reaped the great
est benefit. But, there is a hidden dan
ger in the profits over previous years if
the planters permit themselves to be de-
luded into the belief that the world can
now stand up, in price, under a large
crop the present year. which they are
making preparations for producing. If
spinners can control the cotton market
short as it was this year, it means that
another record breaking crop would mean
untold disaster to the agricultural inter
ests of the South. So long as Texas,
With a capacity in favorable season for
marketing millions of bales by which
prices are fixed, the South Atlantic sec
tons of the cotton belt in planting in
creased areas are simply specializing on
what may happen in Texas to make them
moderately well off If unpropitious season
and floods devastate Texas. but poor, in
deed, If Texas is blessed with an abund-
ant yield. No agriculture built upon
such an unstable foundation can make
for the wealth of any country
THE growers OF rice have had another
favorable season for this crop though the
result of the harvest brought disappoin.-
ment in the per acre yield. The prices
for the grain have been generally satisfac-
tory and steady. Carolina and Georgia
rice no longer control the market, the
crop of Louisiana being now the main fac
tor i'm the fixation of prices.
shipments Of lumber from this port for
business year of that trade reached 49,
900 900 feet b. m, an excess of 5000 900 over
previous year. or this enormous total
167, 100000 were for domestic and $1,000 90
for foreign consumption.
General trade in Savannah has reflected
the unsatisfactory conditions appertainine