Omaha daily bee., 1903-01-05
TRADE ON ENORMOUS SCALE
While Wall Street is Dull Legitimate
Business is 'on Boom.
GREAT DEVELOPMENT OF WEST NOTED
Liquidation and SOLDERING Up Process
on stock Market Is Beginning
TO show n wholesome
Eject.

NEW YORK, Jan. '4--(specisl) Henry
Clews. in his weekly market letter, says:
The year opens under somewhat different
boom" was not In sight. To-day IL has
been fairly passed. at least so far as wall
street is concerned While the Industrial
commercial aud agricultural interests OF
the country continue enjoying great pros
perity Wall street is soberly contemplat-
ication Is over; the depression following has
also fairly passed on, but the rank ana hle
are still ponderinE over the extraordinary
ing to return to moro normal conditions
The result is a somewhat confused though
not unprUmising outlook
A look into trade conditions shows that
the volume of business continues on an
enormous scale; The growth OF population
and the spread Of prosperity among the
masses mean great consumption OF the
necessares and comforts of life TO say
wealthy. The spirit Of lavishness is abroad
in sharp contrast with n former spirit of
economy; and this alone is tremendous
trade stimulant In many cases production,
rapidly as IL is increasing in various lines,
has failed thus far to overtake consump-
chief Industries are actively employed; and.
IL profits are declining, the volume of or
ders shows no diminution.
No Reaction I'm IrOn Trade.
Everyone has been expecting a reaction
In the iron trade; yet the great steel cor
plenty uf business i'm sight for months to
come in spite of increased competition; The
for iron setting aside all calculations based
upon former standards. The same Is true
In many other lines of industry, old es-
adjustments and new ones being tully en-
ployed, with no immediate prospect of
oversupply In the agricultural field sim
liar conditions prevail, Another crop fail
ure like that OF 1891 would have been dis
astrous Instead, we have been favored
with large crops and good prices, 50 that
fHfall
do Throughout the west there is great
activity and astonishing development This
Of traffic on all the principal railroads, as
well as by the fact that the freight moved
on the Great Lakes in 1902 was about q
per cent greater than in the previous year.
Just how soon the progressive movement
will exhaust itself cannot be toretold; but
these activities are marvellous testimony
of the vigorous growth of the country.
There are indications, however, that the
pendulum has swung almost TO Its limit,
one being the speculation in real estate
throughout the country. Experience shows
that all great trade movements ale ioi-
lowed by heavy Investments In reE es-
tate after every other Held has b'"n eN-
plotted. There is no reason to be,.Gve o,her.
wise than that the same rule w;ll rod ;rue
Sgain. Increasing importations mps! 40, be
lost sight of as depression abroad encnur-
Gges the shipment of products at prices that
must sooner or later compete with our
another good season, to be continued at
least until the next harvest, and that will
be n pivotal teSti TOT good crops lnNaTlaDlN
insure good times, while a partial failure,
should II come this season. will certainly
precipitate reaction.
Improvement in stock Market.
As for conditions within the stock market,
they show distinct Improvement OF course
national prosperity is the bedrock of values
on the Stock exchange; speculative eN-
cesses OF the last few years naturally pro-
duced the recent severe reaction. But Wall
street has commenced discounting all the
good features again, and is now recovering
from the forced contraction that followed
the imitation OF 1901 and 1902. There Is
still n large mass of undigested securities
to be disposed of, and while money con-
tinues high stocks cannot DO excessive
climbing. Nevertheless, the liquidation of
the last three months has done good;
credit is in better shape and money prom
ises to be easier following the large an
nual disbursements and return of cur
rency from the interior. Our indebtedness
abroad has been reduced, and exports of
corn and cotton should soon increase, thus
diminishing the tendencies for gold exports
/ that later on will have to be reckoned
need not be forgotten. The market is In
control OF strong hands and concentration In
banking, railroads and industrials has ere
ated a resisting force Of great and unknown
capacity. This vast power can be readily
used to restrain downward movements; its
effectiveness in stopping a speculative
mania has already been demonstrated dur
ing the last three months; and so long
than promoting questionable ventures the
effect on the stock market will be bene-
fetal January should witness a more ac-
tive market. There is much less reason for
suspense; prices have had a sharp decline
and the opportunities for trading promise
to be safer and more attractive than in
the last two months Conservatism how
ever is still the wiSest course