Evening star., 1914-11-10
|BEHERMENT IS SEEN
| IN THE STEEL TRADt
May Be Indication of General Inn
provement in Business Conditions.
Export Orders Large.
First Foreign Branch of American
Bank Opens Today-Cotton Pool.
Earnings and Gossip.
BY I, A. FLEMING.

| Barometers are always useful instru-
ments. The greatest business barometer
is the steel trade. 1t is always the first
to indicate retrenchments and lessenins
activity and likewise the first to give in
dication of revival in industry and COM
| merce.
! For the first time since the war started
| the observations of the steel barometer
offer some cause for congratulatlon. II
precedent is followed general business Will
revive also. but this is an off year. and
signs may fail.
There is encouragement in the state
ment that there has been some revival IN
| the steel trade. Great mills have been cur
failing production and blowing out FUR
naces so long that the simple fact that
orders are coming in more freely is ac-
cepted as good sign.
Supplies OF all manufactured products
have been greatly reduced, so tnat mn
provement was considered as the next
move. Subway and elevated construction
| will take considerable steel the former
operations requiring about 2o.0oo tons OF
| steel. and elevated structures also manned
! in Grea ter New York will call for 10000
| tons.
! Russia and Sweden are in the market
| for 10000 tons of steel rails. ard this
| order may come to America. although 1t
| is problematic
Railroads are beg'nning TO make in
quiries for their rail requirements for
the balance of the year and 1913, and
small structural orders are increasing.
Export business is picking up. Some
lines engaged in the manufacture OF war
material and implements are enjoying /.
regular BOOM The export trade in steel
products is increasing.
| While no one looks for much of boom
until the war ends and the readJustments
have been made still, the orders filed
! in the steel trade.
Cotton Pool.
| All the national banks of Washing
ton, all but one trust company and
| many of the savings banks of the city
have notified the clearing house as
! sociation tina. they are prepared to
pay in their assessment to the cotton
pool. Some of the smaller savings
banks We're among the first to take
action approving the measure. The
cents So bankers are taking no seri-
Gus chances on q six-cent basis.
Emergency Currency.
I While the east and west are retiring
emergency currency very freely. the south
and southwest are putting out additional
amounts in caring for the cotton crop.
| Actual government figures do not give
the full amount Of retirement, for the
reason that the offices Of the Secre-
tary OF the Treasury and the con-
| troller OF the currency, who must ap-
| prove retirements, have been SO busy
| with federal reserve board duties that
their other work has accumulated.
At the maximum there was outStand-
| ing, S36,619.s90 of emergency cur
| rency, October 25.
! New York national banks have ten
dered over twenty millions for cancel
| lation within the last two weeks.
Starts Today.
| The first foreign branch of an Ameri-
can national bank started in business
today at Buenos Aires. when the
National City Bank of New York
opened it's branch there.
| Authority was granted by the Argen-
| tine government. John H. Allen,
| formerly of the bank of Hayti. is the
manager. Robert o. Bailey. late as
sistant secretary of the Treasury. and
care of the necessary proceedings
since August !.
A. V Edwards of the credit depart
ment of the National City Bank is en-
| route TO BuenOS aires TO 6StaDI1Sn a
credit system and credit bureau to
furnish credit information to exporters
Rate Decision.
| There are reports that a rate decision
may be expected within a few weeks
at the longest. Banking interests are
beginning to fear that the majority OF
the commission will repeat their de-
| cision Of July %, on the theory that
sufficient proof was not shown that
conditions have sufficiently changed
since that date to warrant the advance
1t will be 4 sore disappointment to
the security and investment world if
this theory should prove to be correct.
and might lead to the belief that con-
! gressional aid might be necessary.
Washington, Baltimore & Annapolis.
The Washington. Baltimore and An
napolis electric reports for six months
ended June 80, 1914. as follows:
| l914 1913 Changes
Gross earnings S39l. .0:5 S4O' .d01 Dee. S9.53f
| Net ~ 170.Sl5 l9$.32O Dec. -, 20.
Surp. after charges 23.59l 80, 425 Dec. :S.oo4
! Financial Notes.
! The Southern Pacific annual report
shows that it has earned rs per cent on
the stock, compared with 9.S5 per cent
earned for the previous year. Gross