Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1908-10-29
TRADE AND INDUSTRY.

The American Smelling and Refining
Company has issued its annual report for
the year ending April 80 last, which
shows a decrease in earnings, compared
with the previous year, of $3,S46, 77G.
President Daniel Guggenheim, in his re-
port to the stockholders, said that the de-
cline in business had not impaired the
company's surplus which amounts to $13,-
40S,219.
David Roberts, cousin of Gen. Lord
Roberts, "Bobs,' of British-Boer war
fame, who lives in Chicago, and Robert
III. Cummings, an elevator owner of Cliff
ton. ILL.,. closed out September corn on
the Chicago Board of Trade with a half
million profit, thereby tying double and
fancy sailor knots in the tails of the bear
element, led by such masters as J. Ogden
Armour and James ii. Patten. Their
holdings at one time were more than
100000 bushels.
Commercial failures in the month of
August, as compiled by r. G. Dun were
1,199 in number and S23,782, 378 in
amount of liabilities In the same month
last year there were $50 failures with
liabilities amounting to So, 197, 749. Re
garding the general situation, Dun's Re
view says that, despite the gradual i'm
provement in business and the pronounced
growth of confidence the aftermath of the
panic of last October is extending over
into the new year further than was at
first thought "Honey has become easy
and high-grade commercial paper can be
sold at low terms, but loans are still
scrutinized with care. Erratic fluctua-
tons in the prices of raw material, nota-
bly, in wheat cotton and hides, have com
plicated the situation. Improvements were
noteworthy in the lumber and building
class of industries over last August, the
greatest failures being in the manufac-
turing industries.
The Wisconsin (Bell) Telephone Com
pany has absorbed the Western Wiscon-
sin Telephone Company, which had LOO
subscribers and exchanges in Arcadia,
Galesville Trempealeau, Fountain City,
Blair, Ettrick, Whitehall and Indepen-
dence, Wis.
Frost and then warm sun rays de-
stroyed 10000 bushels of ripe tomatoes in
the fields on Muscatine island causing
a loss Of $4,000 in one day. The toma-
days and were being gathered by all the
help available. Thirty minutes after the
sun shone the crop was total loss.
Plans and surveys have been made by
the Westinghouse Electric and Manufac-
turing Company for a power plant on
French creek, east of Custer, S. D.. which
will develop 800 or more horsepower for
use in the various mines and ia ctories for
general lighting purposes.
At the annual meeting of the Wash
burn Crosby Milling Company held in
Minneapolis it was decided to build a
new -four mill of 5000 barrels daily ca
pacity at Buffalo, n. Y, the building to
cost 100000. This will bring the total
output of the Washburn-Crosby company
to the largest in the world. Work on
the mill will begin Immediately.
The expert figures of international
Harvester for May, June, July and Au-
gust are approximately equal to the ton
mage figures for the same months of the
company's high year of 1907. During
May and June of the current year the car
load shipments intended for export fell
below the same months of 1907, but the
figures for July and August are some
what ahead of the showing for the past
year.
The pearl button industry is at a stand
still in Muscatine, Ia, because 500 blank
cutters walked out of the automatic cut
ting and finishing plant, the third largest
sweet water pearl button factory in the
world. "A dispute over wages is the cause.