The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-12-01
BLISS ON GOOD TIMES
HAS SERENE CONFIDENCE IN
 PROsPERITY.
New Yerk's First Merchant speaks His Confidence on Returnfng Pr0s- perfty-Factories Are
 Again Starting Up.

Conndenee on Returning Rros-
 perity-Factories Are
 AgsiH Starting Up.
 Cornelius N. Bliss ranks first among the great merchants of New York. and among the solid. conservative business community of this great city his name and his opinions command respect and confidence, writes William D.. Curtis in The Chicago Record Herald. He might have any honor he would ask. He has enjoyed many, and has deelin- ed more. He might have been Cover nor of New York half dozen times if he had been willing to accept the nomination, or he could have had a seat in the United States Senate. He has declined the post of Secretary of the Treasury several times. but dur ing his long career. dating back to the civil war. he has never held ofiice but once. and then for only short time he served as Secretary of the In- terior to obiige President Mckinley. and because he was the only man upon whom the conflicting factions of the Republican Party in this State could unite MT. Bltss has been Treasurer of the Republican National Commit tee for a generation, and has taken prominent part in every presidential campaign for thirty years, but he has now WlInQIAWn EHkkcly RVANASeR has resigned all of the great public responsibilities he has been carrying in the past and is gradually retiring from active business. although he keeps In touch with financial and ner- cantile affairs. and may be found at his bank and his counting house every day.
 restoration of prosperity througnout the country, and it's continuance for an indefinite period.
 'aThe recent panic was not caused by any organic, trouble" he said yes- terday "but from overspeculation and sn unnatural imitation of prices. Ev. erything was too high. and readtust- porary cessation of activity. and near iy year of depression. but the trou- ble passed away easily. and there was not one serious failure in the mercan- tile world. Then came a brief period of anxiety about the election. and re- cuperation was naturally slow. Many men were convinced that the election of Bryan would be. disastrous to the industrial and commercial interests of the country, and they continued in a conservative course until two or three weeks before the election, when 1t be- came clear that Taft would be. Press ident. Then apprehension rapidly pess- ed away. the factories called back their hands and began running on full time. and the jobbers began to buy goods. Immediately after the election the crops and every other condition combined in a most favorable manner, business has grown more and more active. and confidence fs now almost entirely restored, There is no boom. but healthy busineps conditions Tn financial, commercial and industrial AasNmarahMNtk fAA aWtfYa country. while the farmers have had extraordinary crops and will be able to sell them at almost unprecedented prices. It is unusual that a biz crop and high prices should come in the same year. feel not only hopeful but confident of the future. I do not want a boom. Every wise business man would dcplore a revival of the abnor- maj and hysterical activity that pre- ceded the panic but we are gradually but surely approaching normal trad ing and normal prices.
 T cannot speak from personal knowI- edge concerning any other line Of business, but the cotton mills through out the country which either shut down entirely or have been running on short time during the last twelve months, are now running on full tiue with full force of operatives. and before the season Is over anticipate that they will find some difficulty In sup plying the demands of the trade. There has already been a slight advance in prices. which are likely to be main tained even If they do not go higher. The retailers and jobbers are short of stock. and the suIplus that accumu- lated in the factories during the dull months is pretty well sold out; The retail business Is improving also, but the greatest demand seems to be for 0 that the same is true in the suk. woolen and dress goods trade, although am not personally familiar with them. It means, however, that the people are buying a cheaper class of goods than formerly, which Is perfectly natural, because millions have been out of em- ployment for several months. They have been compelled to economize and must pay up their grocery bills and their rent before they can have any money to spend for other things The relative demand is said to be better in the country than in the cities That ia also natural. because the farmers have had such splendid crops and are getting such high prices, while the working people in the cities have not been so fortunate. Millions were out of work Nobody realizes how many; hut the manufacturing industries are all resuming again, railway constFuc- tion and building has been active eV- erywhere; we have had good weather through the entire fall and outdoor Iabor has continued much longer than usual. But 1t must be suspended soon i'm the northern part of the country. for snow and ice are difdcult to con- tend with and thousands of laborers will be thrown out of employment. That fact must not be construed as a return of bad times, because 1t will be rewuIar suspension of outdoor work y- Tkha winter