The Washington times. (Washington [D.C.]) 1901-1902, 1902-02-15
SPRING TRADE SALES
GROWING IN VOLUME
Advices Point to a Season of
Prosperity.
THE DEMAND FOR COTTON GOODS
Iron and Steel Mills Unable to Keep
Pace With Business and Rush Or
ders Are AbrOnd-Actiyfty in the
Textile Markets.

NEW YORK, Feb. 14-Bradstreets to-
morrow will say:
| Sales for spring account, demand for
| manufactures and industrial operations
generally are expanding, while prices are
hardening. Specially good reports come
from the West and Northwest and the
leading Eastern markets also note the
growth of sales for spring. The demand
and consumption of iron and steel are
| alike in advance of all records of the
| past.
| The Advance in Cotton.
"A specially encouraging feature is the
advance in cotton, which is reflected in
better prices and demand for cotton
| goods, and finds echoes in reports of i'm
provement at the South, as relatively IN
| favorably situated of late. Clearings, re-
| duced by holiday, are smaller than last
week. but larger than last year, despite
| continued dizziness in speculation. Rail
| way earnings are still in excess of year
ago, but the big gains in the Southwest,
| so long feature. are no longer reported.
Fire LOSS "a Menace.
THE large and growing loss by fire is
serious menace and tax upon the COM
munity generally. Compilations by Brad
streets show that the aggregate fire loss
for the three prosperous year-1S9J, 1900
and 1901-exceeds the loss from all bust
ness failures by sS7,0O0,000, or % per
cent.
The best advices as to distributive
trade come from the West and North
west, though New York exhibits activity
in dry goods equal to a year ago. Specu-
| iation is much quieter than a year ago
at that city, hence decline of Is per
cent il clearings, though it should be re-
memDered that year ago New York
clearings showed an increase of So per
cent over 1900.
Strength in Cereals.
Least favorable advices come from
the South and Southwest, though Chicago
| notes exceptionally large buying by
wholesalers from those sections Inter-
Southwestern points report quieter trade
largely 4 reflection of the long drought
Continued strength is to be noted in
all of the cereals and -four fractional
advances being shown during the week.
while hog products. country produce gem
orally. iron and steel and other metals
are also quoted higher. The advance in
raw cotton has been rapid, &c for the
week ana t2c since the present movement
began"
Dun'S review tomorrow will say:
Business continues to progress salts
iactorily, Notwithstanding heavy losses
through the elements. The new year has
been unusually handicapped in this way,
floods and snow blockades being closely
followed by fires and explosions, destroy
ing much property and retarding traffic
II is only another evidence of the solid
ha- h .1, h.
are established that plans for rebuild
ing on grander scale were made before
the shock of the catastrophe had fully
passed.
Too Much Prosperity.
I'm the iron and steel industry it is now
being demonstrated that there is such
thing as too much prosperity. During the
last few years there has been such mar
velous expansion in domestic business
that the capacity of furnaces and mills.
as well as the transportation facilities,
has failed to keep pace.
THE result is gradual falling behind
with deliveries and tendency of buyers
to send orders abroad whenever needs are
urgent. Home producers are fully sold up
to about September 1.
An unusually large number of buyers
in the Boston footwear market promises
much business, though there Is some hest
tation about paying the recently advanced
rates. Large receipts OF cattle at Chicago
have not been conducive to q higher range
of prices for hides.
Strength in Textiles.
"In the textile industries there is not
able strength and activity in silk goods
despite slight shading of raw silk. Lib
eral jobbing distribution of dry goods has
brought gradually expanding demand ex-
cept of Southern orders, which are below
expectations.
Stocks of cottons. lightweight wooden
goods and worsted fabrics are short, and
deliveries are often later than the speci-
fed date. Print cloths advanced, but quo
tations are generally steady. with tho
tendency against buyers, and many lineg
of woolens have already been withdrawn.
Higher prices were the rule in the
markets for the leading agricultural sta
pies.
Another new high record was achieved
early in the week for the average price
of the sixty most active railways shares
although the market was narrow. and there
was little evidence of participation by the
general public.
Failures for the week numbered 24O
against 257 last week, and thirty three in
Canada, against forty last year"