The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-05
OCTOBER INsoLvENCIEs.

Commercial failures during October,
according to reports to r. G. Dun &
Co., numbered 1888, involving liabilities
Of $10,525, 72S. This is a striking i'm
provement as compared with the CORE
spending month last year, when there
were 1,0S6 defaults with liabilities of
SIS, 1881, 567. Manufacturing insolvencies
were 226 in number and $4,603,272 in
amount, as compared with S16 failures
year ago, when the defaulted indebt-
edness aggregated $11, 1895, 1853. Trading
failures were 633 in number and $780,
21S in amount. against 72o for $3.50, 12s
failures, not properly included in the
two principal divisions, were % in num-
Der and $723, 23S in amount, compared
with so insolvencies and 1856, 069 liabili-
ties a year ago. Banking suspensions
numbered seven and involved $342, 800;
a most gratifying improvement over the
II failures for SIS, 635 in the same
month last year. Comparison with the
same month of 1903 for both commercial
and banking failures shows a decline of
1872 per cent in number and 65.5 in
amount of defaulted Indebtedness. This
is an exceptionally satisfactory exhibit.
Examination of the months record by
occupation. shows some striking
changes. The splendid improvement in
manufacturing returns was largely due
to the decrease in iron and steel and
machinery insolvencies. A year ago
there was a reaction in those branches,
which precipitated many failures, and
the decrease this year is notable. In
clothing, liquors and tobacco, and mis-
cellaneouS manufacturing there were
also large decreases; in fact the only
T.
turns showed a notable increase in LA
bilities was the lumber and building
class. This was due to one suspension
or a builder at this city whose liabili-
ties were almost a million dollars. One
glove manufacturer suspended for about
half a million dollars, and still the ag-
gregate for hats and gloves was less
than last year. There was also a very
large ice default at Baltimore. but it
did not bring the aggregate in the mis-
cellaneous class above 60 per cent of
last years record.
Trading comparisons are much closer,
exactly half of the fourteen classes
showing gains and seven recorded
smaller liabilities than last year. The
most notable increase in defaulted in
debtedness was supplied by a large to-
bacco suspension. but there was
scarcely any alteration in number of
failures in that class which embraces
liquors, cigars. etc. Second in impor-
lance was the grocery and meat divis-
ion, which recorded almost double the
liabilities of 1908, but there were no con-
spicuously large individual defaults.
There were fewer general store failures
and a much smaller amount involved,
which is doubtless due to the success
full agricultural year, as stores of that
nature are most numerous In the farm
ing districts. The greatest decrease was
in miscellaneous trading failures, liabii-
tiles falling to less than a third of last
years. Dry goods, clothing, hardware,
furniture and footwear lines made
about the same exhibit as last year,
and a slight increase in liabilities of
suspended hotels and restaurants was
by a decrease of about 20
per cent as to number.