The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1912-04-01
A BUSINESS REVIEW OF THE
PAST WEEK BY HENRY CLEWS

The stock market continues to re-
fleet present and prospective improve
ment in business circles. This is parti-
cularly true in regard to general bust
ness. Advices from the West are all
of more cheerful nature. Crop condi-
tons are exceptionally promising. al
though in some sections spring is late.
Merchants in all parts of the West are
stocking up more freely in anticipation
of larger business. Consumption of
staple commodities does not appear
have been curtailed by recent depres-
sion, partly owing to a severe winter,
and distributors find themselves alb
solutely obliged to replenish empty
shelves much more freely than expect
ed.
The iron trade is now showing a
very encouraging degree of activity.
Some plants are running at 90 per
cent of their capacity, and a few are
known to be running to the limit.
Prices, it is true, are often low, but
this stimulates demand, keeps a large
number of hands employed and results
in wider activity. Many orders are
now being given out for steel required
for structural purposes, and the rail-
roads are also entering the market
more freely for rails, locomotives, cars.
bridge material, etc. Rail orders since
January are reported at over 100000
tons compared with 100000 tons dur
ing the first quarter of 1911. Fully
10000 cars have been ordered during
the first quarter of the current year
compared with $4,000 ordered at the
same time last year, while 500 locomo-
tives have been ordered compared
with 7S6 year ago. There are indica-
tons that the railroads will soon be-
come even more liberal buyers, not
only on account of necessity, but from
the fact that conditions will be more
favorable to the financing of such
operations, not to speak of the fact
that the hardening tendency in the
steel trade will stimulate the early
placing of orders.
The activity in cotton goods also
continues, mainly because of the ex-
haustion of interior supplies, which is
confirmed by the large purchases of
jobbers. Some mills are now sold out
to the end of 1912. Prices are strong
and the trend is still upwards. The
only serious drawback in the cotton
industry is the fresh outbreak of labor
troubles, which may seriously embar-
rass manufacturers. In other textiles
the outlook is favorable, saving for the
uncertainties of the labor situation.
Now that winter is breaking up, con-
struction work is being resumed in all
parts of the country, and railroad traf-
fic is showing material improvement.
Some of the roads are already longest
ed with freight released from winter
blockades. AS a result current railroad
earnings will show much better COM
parsons than the returns of January
or February, which were extremely
discouraging. The increases reported
by Atchison. Erie, Southern Railway,
Southern Pacific, Union Pacific and
others this week, must be accepted as
fair indication of turn for the bet
ter in railroads, change much need
ed after the losses and bad business
of the last few months.
The only clouds in the business hori-
zon are the prospects of coal strike
and of difficulties with the engineers
of Eastern railroads. AS for the coal