The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-01-07

DUN 4 Co.'S Annual Report ON the
Misunderstanding, Agricultural snd
other Indastries OF the Country.

Manufacturing, Agricultural and
Indastries Of the Country.
New York. January l-Dun's Trade
Review will say on January 4th:
Most marvellous of all the phenomenal
evidences OF advancement In business
during the e was the progress made
in manufacturing. II is impossible to-
| be too extravagapt In d~elineating the
movements of the Industrial world
| Never In the history Of this or any 9TH
| e. nation has such development occur
| ed within his space of a twelve-month-
| The expansion OF productive capacity
I; was enormous: the improved methods
| Of work and organization were conspic-
| uous; wise economies were introduced,
| but more h all other factors that
| made for permanent prosperity was
the conservative resistance to price in
fiation.
Iron and Steel.
After the reaction of 1900 the level OF
| prices remained depressed for some
| months. but gradually responded to the
! increasing demand as excessive accu
| mutations were absorbed. From a on-
| dition of glut there arose almost a
a famine, greatly exaggerated by the
stubborn strike. some idea Of the
| changes in size of supplies may be
found in the comparison OF furnace
stocks of pig iron as published in Tho
Iron Age. which amounted to 1865
tons On January 1st. These figures
teadily declined throughout the yeai
until only 223, 49, tons were held on De-
cember 1st.
Aside from the slight fall during the
period affected by the strike there APP
| peas almost a steady gain in produc.
ton. closing with the maximum quanti-
ty on record. Judging by the mount OF
business already placed for 1902. the
current years yield NAV not unreason-
ABLY be expected to Surpass IL, 000, 900
tons. Output of rails was beyond all
records. yet contracts for 1902 already
assure another high water mark OF
probably 5000. 600 tons
Cole and Coke.
All records of output for hard and
soft coal were surpassed df-.ng 1901.
! despite the scarcity of cars n q retard-
ed operations. A feature of great ad-
vantage was the expanding export
movement. which reached more encOur-
aging proportions than in earlier wears.
In ten months the value of shipments
was SIG, 0S7. 1853, against SIT, $50, 1854 the
| year previous. Coke ovens made a phe-
nomenal record. establishing a new
| high water mark of weekly output al
244.529 tons late in November.
The Produce Markets.
While 1900 was the best wear ever ex-
perienced by domestic agricultural in
| %tereStS. the opening year of the new
/ nantIIrU yxaS in MANY w. W nonra nrnft
able. n the two together have put
the farming population in much the
most satisfactory position in the ma
tons history.
FoI merlv the season of harvesting and
crop moving brought heavy borrowing
of n at the east. but interior con-
ditions have changed to such an extent
that western banks are lenders at New
York and Chicago. n while there is
still a large movement of money away
from the east during the fall months. 1t
is of funds that were held here for the
account of interior correspondents
There is a steady tendency to enlarge
the acreage sown in the lie aiding crops.
yet supplies do not increase, owing to
the better demand both for home con-
sumption and export.
Heat and drouth caused a serious cur
tailment of the corn crop, which prov
ed the most important event of the
| year. nile lLlS lIlllUeIlCe IdluIdllJ
induced an advance in price that prac-
tically prohibited exports and thus Sc
riously affected foreign commerce., it
was by no means an unmiXed vii. since
the return to growers was even larger
than in a year Of normal production.
while the enormous yield of wheat was
absorbed by stock feeding and foreign
in place of corn. Hence, In
stead Of a low price for wheat in pro-
portion to the heavy crop there was
maintained an even higher average quo
tation thar in the short crop year pre-
ceding.
Meats naturally reflected the expen-
sive position of fodder, and it was graft
flying to notice that exports were not
materially reduced by the high level.
Cotton passed a season of wide varia-
tions, in the early months attaining the
highest price Of the decade. but falling
hack sharply as the spinning situa ton
was rendered ~unfavorable by exorbi-
tant raw material. Crop estimates
were also far apart, causing irregulari-
ty and a tendency to await more def
mite information. The outlook grew
much more cheerful from the producers
point of view when the closing month
brought a higher price than s cents.
Expanding crops of sugar a the eff
feet of lowering prices, while competi-
ton of refiners caused a still larger fall
in the finished product, to h great
benefit Of consumers.
Petroleum was less nuctuating. the
extremes Of the year being $50 and 7.65
cents for refined in barrel argoes. Ex-
tensive fields in the south were develop
ed. which tended to hold prices down.
Exports of the staple products reach
ed a new high record, Notwithstanding
the lower average prices Of oil and cot
ton. n the scarcity of corn.
The crop year opened with q new re-
cord of wheat and flour exports,
amounting to a. $50, $50 bushels. in Au-
gust. far SURPRISING any previous
month. while for five months ending
November 30th the aggregate was l26.-
92S. 162 bushels.
Bank Records.
In the year Of big things it was natur-
al that new high records should be
recorded in deposits and oans. Fin
ancing of big syndicate operations and
unparalleled stock market dealings
combined to raise the total OF oan n
discounths to 1914, 623, 600 on February
18th, against 1925. $50. 600 on September