The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1914-09-10

almost nthingf because OF the war
and there should be small balance
CT trade in favor of this, country each
month for some time. I.
Preliminary reports indicate build
ing operations for July of about So
million dollars in $50 cities as COM
pared with miliionsItn the same
cities last year. Building operations
made gain last year IN both june
and July. '''' '-F 'r~t ~
Railroad ear1ihs havs continued to
make an unsatisfactory showing.
Final reports show gross earnings for
May to have declined 26 millions as
compared with last year and net earn
ings to have declined nearly IS mil
lions. Gross earnings for June fN
116 roads were 149 million dollars
compared with 1877 last year and net
earnings were only AZ millions COM
pared with As millions year ago.
Preliminary reports indicate that July
gross earnings fell about per cent
below July of the previous year. Gross
earnings of all roads so far reported
for the first seven months of the year
are per cent below the same period
of 1913. The. falling off In earnings
has taken place in all parts of the
country and nearly all roads. The
small freight rate advances permit
ted by the recent ruling Of the Inter-
state Commerce commission will not
be sufficient to change this situation
to any appreciable degree. The gen.
eral crop movement will help the
railroads, but the wheat and cotton
movement to seaboard will be slower
because of difficulties attending the
exporting of any commodity. During
the past FIVE years freight rates per
ton mile have decreased about 4 per
cent while the average daily wage OF
railroad employees has Increased
about IA per cent. This leaves an
item of something like $50 million
dollars to be Offset by more econom-
ical management. We are not prepar-
ed to believe that the management
of railroads generally has been so pro
figate that $50 million dollars can be
saved In year by better manage
ment. and this without, in any way
Gripping the service.
The number Of idle cars has contin-
ued to decrease and is now below the
200 thousand mark for the first time
since April.
During June, mill shipments Of west
ern pine were S6,00O,0O0 feet compar.
ed with 100000 in June last year.
The June lumber cut was 1904 mil
lion feet compared with 1,211 a year
ago. Total June shipments were 1902
million feet compared with 1864 a
year ago. The lumber exporting bus
mess is practically at standstill.
There seems to be no reason for any
advance in lumber prices. although
some advance are contemplated.
Manufactures stocks of cotton were
only 9O4 thousand bales on August
list compared with 95S on the same
day last year. During July 3O,677
thousand spindles were active COM
pared with 30,023 thousand a year
ago.
Pig iron production for July was
1858 thousand to be compared with
1918 the previous month and 1851
in July, 1918. July production re
corded the first increase for several
months over the previous month. Az
gust 1 saw 1873 furnaces in blast with
a daily capacity Of GA thousand tons.
Iron ore shipments on the Great
Lakes for the first half Of the year
we're only 1894 thousand tons com
pared with 1926 thousands for the
first half of 1918. Shipments for
this year are estimated at 81 million
tons TO compare with 40 million tons
last year.
The untitled tonnage of the steel
corporation at the last report was
4,l59 thousand tons compared, with
4,093 thousand tons the previous
month. The developments in Europe
will remove the foreign competition
and may cause heavy exports to the
Latin American countries. The steel
business generally should benefit ra-
Their than suffer from European con-