The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-30
BANKER CLEWs' VIEWS,
The Financial OptIOOk as Seen
from Wall Street.

from Wall Street.
New York. Dec. 2S.-This is the clos
ing week of a most remarkable year.
While all other commercial and indus
trial nations have been suffering re-
verses of greater or less severity. the
United States has enjoyed another
year of unexampled prosperity far ex-
ceeding the most optimistic expecta-
tons. Germany has been passing
through a period of distress, induced
by excessive industrial expansion and
overspeculation, while Great Britain
has suffered severely from the Boer
war. France seems to have been fairly
prosperous, but Great Britain and Ger
many are really our chief rivals in
commercial or industrial supremacy.
and it is with these only that compsr-
isonS are of interest. Meanwhile. the
United States has made gigantic strides
in the production of wealth with al
most supreme indifference to conditions
in other parts of the world. In these
days of close interdependence the spec
tacle of country making such re-
markable and continuous exhibitions of
growth, while its chief rivals remain
at a standstill or retrograde, chal-
lenges attention.
There is but one explanation for such
situation, viz, that the United States
has just passed through one of the
great bursts of national development
which have always occurred at very
well defined periods, and which have
usually been termed "booms. This
particular BOOM" which began with
the defeat of Mr.. Bryan in 1896, has
been prominently characterized by ex-
traordinary industrial activity.
Along with this astonishing develop
ment we have seen an irresistible ten
dency towards Capitalization; a read
justment of economic forces, which in
industry has taken the form of trusts,
in transportation the grouping of rail-
roads, and in finance the consolida-
ton Of banks into institutions capable
of meeting the larger demands of
these combinations. Our exports and
imports for eleven months of the cur
rent year, compared with the corrc-
spending period last year, have been
as follows:
1901. 1900.
Exports e. Isl 1926. 1881 1882, O56, PAP
Imports =. ~ S00,424,607 $50, 452, 507
Excess exports 52S,06S,764 81, 500, 1856
Our exports of manufactures show a
falling off due to the operations in
copper, lower prices for oil and the
more pressing demand at home for
iron products. The clearing house re-
turns of the United States for eleven
months of the year showed a total of
Sos, 724, 900. 900 compared with 81, 123,
900, 900 for the same time last year, an
increase of about 40 per cent.
The most extraordinary feature of
our home industry has, of course, been
the demand for iron and its products.
We are producing pig iron at the rate
of over 900 to 100000 tons
year. or nearly double the product OF
1896. Our output of coal will be about
81. 900. 900 tons We have already sur
passed Great Britain in merchandise
exports, in pig iron output and in coal
production. For this great and con-
tinued activity in iron the chief ex-
PLANTATION is the demand from rail-
roads for cars, engines, rails, etc. To
secure the highest efficiency at lowest
cost the railroad systems of the coun-
try are being practically reconstructed.
The year closes. as I have said, with
the most satisfactory reasons for con-
gratulation, the United States having
had more than its share of success.
THE neyt question Is, What of the
canning year? Time only can tell.
There are evidences that we are near
the ton. Values are generally the
highest Of the decade; the upward
movement is much less general than
a year ago and recessions are more
frequent.