The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-01-03
Observation-Disclosures
HRADSTREETS so DECLARES THE
FIRST YEAR OF THE
LIZ CENTURY,
MOST REMARKABLE PERIOD

Has Suffered From a Combination of
Happenings That in Normal Times
Would Have Proved Dsastrous-ln
Spite of Them Production Has
Grown Until Larger Figures Are
Needed to Express the Output
New York, Dec. 2S.-The annual re-
view of American trade, finance and
industry prepared by Bradstreets de-
clares 1901 to be a record breaker"
among the five succeeding years Of
commercial expansion enjoyed by the
United States. It's pre-eminen-e, the
review stated, was all the more not
able because it suffered from COM
bination Of happenings that in a nor
NAL year would have proved depress-
ing if not disastrous. Enumerated in
the latter were the machinists' and
steel strikes, the stock panic of May,
the failure of several imprudently
managed combinations, the efforts OF
some combinations, including that in
copper, to fix prices, the shortage In
corn, cotton and oats and the assas-
sination of President Mckinley. Sum-
marizing the general situation the re-
view says:
Briefly summarized the year has
seen transacted an aggregate OF gen.
eral business, las reflected in bank
clearings, far in excess of any proceed
ing period; has seen wild stock specu-
lation, rampant beyond the dreams of
old time brokers, checked and cur
tailed by one of the sharpest stock
panics in history, and yet with re-
mrakable minimum of disturbance OF
general financial operations; has
watched general industry and produc-
ton grow steadily until new and larger
figures were needed to express the out
puts of coal and ore and iron and steel
and leather and lumber and a multi
tude of other branches; has seen the
freight transportation facilities Of the
country strained to the breaking point
prove insufficient to handle the vol
ume of business offered; and, finally,
has witnessed a volume Of holiday
business passing all previous bounds
both on the quantity and quality, and
the vastly increased purchasing power
of the public in late years. From the
standpoint of the present estimates
the clearings this year will exceed the
highest records of preceding years by
one-fourth. Gross railway earnings
have increased II per cent and net
returns have gained 16 per cent over
the best preceding year. Pig iron pro-
duction will be not far from one-sev.
enth larger than the heaviest ever
recorded. Shoe production and ship
ments, and, therefore, presumably
leather production, shows almost as
large a gain. Iron ore production and
shipments were never before equaled
certainly lake
Shipments Were Never So Large.
Anthracite coal production will be
fully 10 per cent larger than last year
and per cent heavier than the record
The bituminous production promises
as heavy again over past records
Woollen manufacturing has beer
helped by low cost of material and
good demand for clothing. All the re
turns are not so favorable. There has
been less money in cotton for the
South this year and the margin o.
profit in manufacture has occasioneC
complaint there and in New and ole
England. The agricultural intereS1
has been favored by heavy advances
In farm products, which have done
much to counterbalance reductions il
yield. Export trade has shown sign!
Of hesitation after years of steady ad
vance and imports have increased
but mainly in materials intended TO
domestic manufacture, and the margin
in favor OF export is still enormousl.
heavy.
The bank clearings are estimated a
$11S, 100000, gain of 3S per cen
over last year and 26 per cent over tn
record of 1899. The middle state
showed the greatest increase in clear
ings. The failures for the year wer
placed at 10,775, with aggregate lia
bilities of $130,000,000 and assets O
$60,300,000. This is a gain of SO pc
cent in number over 1900 and of nearl
II per cent over 1899, but back of tina
year comparisons favor the curren
one. Liabilities have not gained rels
lively so heavily rs shown by the fac
that they are only "a per cent large
this year than last and SO per cen
larger than in 1899.
Regarding prices the review say
that wheat has reached the highes
point since 1898; corn and oats ar
higher than for almost decade, an
other products have sympathizet
Food products as a whole are highe
than in the general boom of 800
while manufactures are lower, notabl
in this respect being leather, textile
coal and coke, naval stores, buildin
materials, chemicals and drugs an
miscellaneous products. Prices as
whole are per cent lower than Fee
ruary, 1900, and December, 1899, bl
are higher than in any year from 1Ss
until the third quarter Of 1899.