The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-09
Good American Business.

A walk through the wholesale district Of Los
Angeles any day, except sunday. would cure the
worst case OF business blues that ever existed
Hundreds Of wagons, big wagons, being loaded for
the one or other Of the three transcontlncntal
depots with food and necessates Of all kinds. 500
carloads a day, for the American Southwest. for
the Pacific States north. for Alaska. for Mexico
ana lsewhere. And this great business has come,
as II we're. almost In a day.
That is why the bank clearings Of Los Angeles
are running from twelve 10 fourteen millions OF
dollars a week. san Francisco, Seattle. Portland,
salt Lake City and Spokane arc also showing in
creased bank clesrings weekly. Factors like these
add TO the world leading increases In the monthly
bank C~learngs Of New York city. enabling the total
clcarings OF the United States to be S4, 500. 900
for the month Of October. Of which New York city
contributed s9,OOaOOO 90. The Pacific Coast in
crease over October 1906, was more than Is per cent,
and 50 per cent. more than October. 1904. Last
week the c~ounty's total bank c~lcarngs OF the
United states was almost s. O0. 900. 900. an Increase
over the week Of last year OF II per cent. For that
week the Pacific Coast cities increases, with los
Angeles leading their aggregate clearngs with
sl2, esq. los. were: Los Angeles. s7 per cent; San
Francisco, a. per cent. Seattle. ~ per cent: Port
land, a. per cent; Salt Lake City. Soi5 per cent,
and Tacoma, 1871 per cent. There's good Amer
lean business doing on the Pacific Coast.
All the world wants American timber. lumber
and planning mill products. Exports Of this char
acter. says the Bureau Of Statistics, have Increased
by 81 per cent, In the first nine months OF this YER
over the FIRST nine months OF last year. The total
exports in this nine months were Of the value Of
sal. 100000. Ten years ago the total was only
sS2. 100000. or about one half. Planning mill prod
ucts form the chief item and furniture comes next.
Ninety seven million dollars increase In the net
earnings OF our steam railroads In the year ended
June 30 last Is a tremendously satisfactory proof
Of the good American business done through all
that year. Two hundred and twenty thousand
and twenty SIX miles OF railway In use. far more
mileage than any other two OF three countries In
the world have combined; gross earnings OF o. .Sis..
90 900. The best news Of all Is that freightS
earned o. .e4OoOO.O0O Of that vast sum. The net
earnings were tTss.OOO, 600, or $3.50 a mile.
American railroads lead the world.
Southern Pacific earnings for the months Of July.
August and September were s2s .67l IA. or 81. 0Os. e3d
more than for the same months OF lssi year. II
this rate Is kept up Southern Pacific earnings will
be Sl2O,O QUO, 900 for the year ending June 80. 1907.
Union Pacific also gained sl.4s0. sos In the same
three months,
These railroad increases do not. as they did only
a few years ago. depend entirely on the couniry's
crops. Tho American factory Is a great factor
because Il gives the railroads two hAuls instead OF
one: frs the raw material 10 the factory. then the
finished product from the factory. Bearing that
fact in mind, in conjunction with the further fact
that our yearly manufacturing per capita of our
largely Increased population is now $500. against
SiOT in 1880. or nearly 100 per cent. increase in
twenty -nve years. and that on the per capita OF
many millions more people. one can easily realize
what the busy American factory means to the Amer.
lean railroad. As stated before. II can be stated
again that the busy American factory Is the chief
factor In good American business and all round
American prosperity.
The port OF san Pedro, Los Angeles, In October
received sixty two steamers. eighteen sch0oners.
two barkentines and one bark. lumber laden, hav-
ing a net tonnage OF A5.Sli tons. and crews aggre-
eating 1891 men. In addition TO this lumber Meet
the port also received one Italian cruiser, eight
tugs. one Chinese war junk and seven barges. The
imports In October included 8 1850, 900 feet OF lum-
Der, 1917 900 shingles. 10000 shakes, $50 poles. snz
piles. 1850 ties, nity seven tons OF shocks, forty
nine tons OF slaves. 2.t07, 900 laths, COS doors. as los
barrels OF oil. 635 tons OF grain, lisa tons of MGR
chandlsc and 500 passengers. Exports were III
tons OF merchandise and .63S passengers. All that
reads very much Ike the manifcsts OF New Eng
land aud other American ships In days of yore -
when the Stars and Stripes was really In the ocean
shipping business, Nearly all the lumber. latb
shingles and oil. &c. was for use IN Los Angeles
where buildings are going up by the hundred and
power plants, &c. crying for oil.
The Census Bureau reports an Increase OF SIS llg .
900 900 In our wealth as a nation In the four yeenS
1900 %. or COT per cent. For every E we had
In 1900 VIC got ST.. 20 more by 1904, while In isoo
fourteen years before, we had nearly s42 600 600 600
less total wealth.
II Is because Of that enormous national wealth
that our national banks are able TO carry "a aoO
900 900 OF loans as well as t524. 0Oc. 900 Of ctrculation.
and also. as a result OF our great wealth, the toLai
banking power OF the United States. capital. sur.
plus, deposits and circulation Is SIS. 900 900 Oo0
against 1000. OOo.OO for the rest Of the world.
ssvH Comptroller Of The Currency RIdgsly.