Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1905-02-04

| the imports are so much In excess OF
\ those OF the year named as to justify
| the assertion that the total foreign COM
merce of the country will exceed that
| OF any preceding year.
The figures for the eleven months
ended Nov. so put the total exports at
| $1.305. 1884. and imports at 1899 .345,-
$40. The export figures are about S4,-
| 100000 below those of the correspond
| ing months Of last year. about S23,O00.-
| 900 below those OF the corresponding
| months OF 1901 and about $4,000. 900
below those OF the corresponding months
| OF 1900.
| When II is remembered. however. that
in breadstuffs alone there has been a
reduction of s94 900. 900 as compared with
| the corresponding months of last year
| and OF $170. 000,0 900 as compared with the
corresponding months of 1901, the fact
that the figures of 1904 fall but 100000
| below those of last year Will prove an
extremely gratifying one I'm its evidence
| of the advantageous effect upon our
export trade of diversified production.
| Labor.
| The year 1904 in the history of organ
! lied labor furnished contrast with the
| twelve months preceding. For the most
| part the labor struggles OF 1904 Were
| contests in which the labor unions were
| combating wage reductions. the "open
| shop" the institution of piece-work sys-
|
employers organizations. In 1908 the
| unions were more aggressive.
| National Finances.
| The United States treasury receipts
| for the calendar year 1904 We're $780,
| 600, 000 according to a review of the de-
| partments operations given out to-day
| by Secretary Shaw. The expenditures.
| excluding the Panama payment. were
| $500. 000. 00O-a deficit for the year of
| s22. 900, 900. AS compared with the pre-
| vious calendar year. the receipts show
n falling off Of $4,000. 900 and the expen-
| ditures an increase Of s50,000.000 The
| decrease in the receipts Is accounted for
! by a decrease Of $9,o00,0 900 in the GUS
| toms revenues.
| Passenger Traffic on Railroads.
| The magnitude Of the railway mileage
| will be understood when 1t Is stated that
| the present rails, excluding second track.
| sidings, etc, would make, IL laid side by
| side. sixty-eight or sixty-nine complete
| lines reaching across the United States
| from the Atlantic to the Pacific ocean.
| The vastness Of their transportation is
| inconceivable to the people OF other
| countries. In the fiscal year they car
ried l 1000. 600 900 passengers, the passen-
| ger mileage reaching 20.S95. 100000 miles
which is equivalent to saying that If
| every inhabitant OF city of 1000, 900
people were to be transported nearly
| around the world the passenger move
| ment OF the American railways would be
| duplicated.
Colossal Freight Business.
The freight moves aggregated 1906
| 600 900 tons. the mileage being III ,292.
| 600, 000 This colossal total was poSSi-
bic despite the drop in breadstuffs eX-
| ports-which forms important ele-
| ment in the freight of the carriers. The
| decrease was almost wholly due to the
! shortage in the wheat yield. the fall-on
| amounting to Approximately 100000
| 600. But the earth yielded enough for
| the country-and little more-hence
| the better prices for the cereal COM
| pensated the growers for the lack of a
| bCuntiful crop. Corn and cotton, how
ever have much more than offset the
| loss in wheat, obviously shown by the
| plethora of money in the west and in
| tho south, for not the least important
| of the years fiscal aspect was the indie
| pendence of the western and southern
| bankers during the crop-period move
| ment.
West and South independent.
For the first time in the country's
| financial history the east was n compar-
| atively negligible quantity pending har-
| vest time. Formerly eastern bankers
supplied the funds with which to get the
crops TO market. This year the west and
| south had money TO lend whilst farmers
| and planters were sending their stuff
| to market. The agricultural regions not
! only did not need tSe eastern capitalist
| but they were In the market for securi-
| ties-they bought bonds some of them
| even purchased the shares of the much
| detested railways that traverse their
| farms.
Farmers Are Now Bondhoiders.
The contrast is wonderful. Less than
| a decade ago the southern planter and
| the western farmer were "mortgaged to
| their ears" as the phrase was in those
1nxr tl,a hn
mortgaged are buying up other peoples
| mortgages-after having acquired more
land, paid for, spot cash. In the south
! the transformation has been marked
| During the depression from 1890 TO 1899
| the planters lost annually. 500, 900. 900
| through the marketing of the staple at
| prices below the cost of production In
| the last lustrum, owing chiefly to en-
| HANGED prices. the volume of the output
| not materially increasing. the value of
| the crop has exceeded by 81 900 900. 900
| that of the five preceding years. The
| worth of this years cotton is put down
| at 5000 000, 900, Notwithstanding the re-
| cent slump. The Improvement is exhib-
| tied by the statement that whereas in
| 1880 the total value of all agricultural
| products of the south was s6G0O00. 900.
| the cotton crop of the last year almost
| equaled the latter sum. Even In 1890
| all southern products did not exceed
| 1878. 600. O00 while at present the worth
| of those products is about S1,700.000.
Failures Of the Year.
l Moreover, a quarter of century ago
| the south had SCI, 900, 900 invested in cot
ton manufacturing industries which
| consumed 225.000 bales annually. while
now 5000, 900 900 of capital is so invested
| and the consumption Is 100000 bales.
and while the south has expanded in this
| wise that section of the country did not
swell the total of failures which
! throughout the United States were Qor
manufacturers) 1893 against 2,Sl2 In
| 1903 though the liabilities were only
$50, 7S3,1S7 compared with s66.391. 102
year before. Traders made less credit
able showing. Here the insolvencies were
9,093 i'm number and $66.471.3SS in
amount. against 5000 and $5S.705,3S6 re-
spectively last year.
That the aggregate makes favorable
comparison with that of 1903 Is not as
gratifying as the quarterly separation.
which shows that the returns have i'm
proved as the year advances. Thus, the
first quarter was much the worst OF the
year. but still contrasted favorably with
the last quarter of the preceding year.
and the closing three months contained
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