The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-12-31
Bradstreet's Review of
the Business Year

The following extracts are taken
from Bradstreet's Review OF the busi-
ness year for 1910, out today:
Nineteen hundred and ten was, on
the whole, disturbed and rather
disappointing period in American
trade, finance and industry. 1t was a
year of agitation, of attempts to work
out politico-economic problems, or de-
clines in quotations of securities, OF
imitation and, later, of nnsettlement
and finally OF weakness in many COM
modify prices, of Industrial unrest and
curtailment, of repression in consum-
tive demand, of numerous strikes, OF
political overturn approaching the
proportions of a landslide, and OF
changes in long established channels
of domestic and foreign trade. With
al, and in spite OF many drawbacks,
but probably because of the momen-
tum acquired in the previous year OF
tremendous activity, OF upbulldlng
and of recuperation, it was period
OF immense agricultural effort, crown
ed with notable success, in some IN
stances, as regards quantity, and OF
record outputs in many lines of man
ufacture. 1t witnessed the floating
of large new issues of securities, While
at the same time it saw a volume OF
financial liquidationn which in other
wears might have caused CONFUSION.
II witnessed a vast expansion of bank
ing transactions, record totals OF
loans and deposits and close to record
bank clearings, and yet fewer failures
than in either Of the two preceding
years, although the volume of failure
damage was above the normal, being
exceeded only in years of vital stress.
In assigning causes for the disturbed
conditions which pervaded the body
polite and economic throughout the
year, first place will probably have to
be accorded to prevailing high levels
of all prices, whether OF securities or
of commodities. The first invited at
ton before the year began, while the
height to which commodity prices rose
in the opening months of the year
constituted burden which gave rise
to bitter agitation and resulted Ill
timately in far-reaching effects, pri-
marty upon consumption, thence up
on output and finally upon profits. In
the latter respect there will probably
be little dissent from the statement
that an immense business was done
at a small, In some instances disap-
pearing, margin. Of this the general
II conceded small net results reported
obtained by business men and by
manufacturers and the lessened net
earnings announced by the railways
are striking present examples.
Declining prices of securities, high
prices of food, meat boycotts, demands
for higher wages by railway and in.
dustrial employees, talk of corporation
prosecutions, this in turn unsettling
confidence and preventing the floating
of new security issues for improve
ments, all made the earlier months
Of the year veritable winter of dis
content" Excessively large expendi-
lures for food naturally lessened mar.
gins of earnings available for purchas
es Of other necessities and increased
the pressure upon public officials to
embark upon prosecutions 10 which
the term frustrating became applied
Spring brought some relief in the mat
Ter of lowered prices, but weather and
crop uncertainties and manufacturing
curtailment, forced by high raw ma
terial costs, caused conservatism in
business. Continued governmental ac
tivity against certain corporations
and threats of injunction suits against
The railways, which were seeking te
recoup themselves for increased costs
of operation, due TO granting of high
er wages, by increasing rates, found
the stock market vulnerable, while
low crop conditions at the turn of the
year favored bearish movements and
induced liquidation. With larger ag
ricultural yields more certain oil
attainment in the late summer and
early autumn, more cheerful out
look prevailed, but the political over
turn in the fall, with the prospects Of
reopening of the tariff question
made for slightly less optimistic
views. Repression and conservatism
and small and frequent, rather thar
large or confident, buying kept trade
and industry within rather marrow
channels. considering the country'l
vastly enlarged producing capacity
and apparently good holiday trad,
did not disguise the fact that the ad
vent of an early winter had reduced
rnrr TO .O1 :.