The Mathews journal. (Mathews C.H. [Court House]) 1903-1937, 1912-07-11

have occupied the minds OF All
business men 20 n more or less
degree during these latter days
of juno. and business shows some
falling on as n ucSult- IL was
10 Dc expected that during the
two or three weeks just preceding
the Republican convention ana
the time intervening between the
two conventions business would
suffer somewhat, and this slight
depression viii naturally continue
for a short period after the DEM
OCratiC convention.
business reports are not, how
ever. disCOuraging and the gen
CraI situation il pretty clearly
shown ia the following para
graphs Of This letter:
The gross earnings of forty
eight principal railroads for the
month OF May show gain OF
moro than fOur million dollars, or
nearly per cent. over May OF
last year. and the SuOsS earnings
OF these same roads for the first
tive months OF 1912 show a gain of
tNVCnty-OnC and Oue-half millions,
or per cent. over earnings for
the same period OF 1911. These
figures cover only ninety thousand
"a. .s eel. >i.> ..ro-s-t o. E0y YEAS
made by the Canadian mileage.
The mileage within the United
States showed a gain of only 81
per cent. in gross earnings. The
showing in gross earnings for the
railroads to date for the year is
really encouraging. but net earn
ingS remain unsatisfactory.
The number OF idle cars on
June 9Th was eighty-siN thousand,
against one hundred and sixteen
thousand ut the last report two
weeks previously. These figures
indicate that the possibility of a
car shortage in agricultural dis
trictS referred to in this report last
month has now become n prOba-
bility, and within a few weeks all
disable cars may be in service. The
great decrease in idle cars shown
arc made up of coal cars and
box cars.
Building operations for May
were about the same as for March
or April of this year. but ex-
cccded the May activities of any
previous year. Building opera
tiOnS for the year TO date exceed
those of any previous year.
The present condition of all
crops is satisfactory and continues
90 improve. Our combined au-
thOritieS estimate the winter
wheat crop ut three hundred and
fifty million bushels. and the
spring wheat crop at three hy.1-
dcrd million bushels, judging ONLY
from present conditions. There
Is every urason To. Expect an i'm
provement in the spring wheat
Sltu''t,oh. IIc oats crop is cSti-
mated ~ from eleven hundred TO
WE'VE hundred million bushels,
MiHSh would be new record.
ESstimatcs on the corn crop are
Close TO three billion bushels.
7 The cotton crop condition is
placed at eighty points, less than
Onc-haIf point below last year at
this date. with an acreage of two
and OnC-half or three millions
less than last year. Although the
Governments final figures on the
cotton crop for 1911 were four
teen million. eight hundred and
cighty-fivc thousand bales, il is
now clearly proved that the crop
was sixteen million, two hundred
thousand bales. fifteen million
bales having already been alb
SOrbed from that crop.
Big business is good. and there
seems to be increasing confidence
all along the line. There is con-
siderable pcssimism among the
smaller merchants, but those
closest to the real business situa-
ton state positively that cXpan-
sion must continue.
The poorest business conditions
are along the Gulf Coast. All
other sections show improvement
over last year.