The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-12-06
By THEODORE H. PRICE. (EditOr Commerce and Finance.D

1NOInlHdi.
 By THEODORE H. PRICE.
 tEditOr Commerce and Finance.)
 (Copyright, Theodore H. Price Publish
 fishing Corporation)
 New York, December Special J. Congress is assembling for the short session with an unenviable task on it's hands.
 It Is belief of democracies that re- lief from every abuse can be found in the vote, and many of those who think they are abused because they have in- evitably suffered in the process of re- adjustment will seek aid through leg isfative action. The law making power is football which is likely to be fought for and traded back and forth with unusual vigor, though without commensurate results.
 The customary proportion of laws will be passed by compromise between representatives of parts of the com mercial world; the remaining bills will be forgotten even by the congressman who perform their duty to their own constituents in introducing them.
 There may be doctors in Congress who can prescribe medicines for the relief of the distress of their patients, but some of their methods involve a transfusion of the blood of credit which would impoverish those from whom it is obtained. Such action is not justi- fled by the state of the disease. for there are multiplying indications that it has nearly run it's course and that though light relapses naturally are to be expected, business will soon- turn for the better and start definitely on the road to recovery.
 WALL STREET BRIGHTENS
 Even the atmosphere of Wall street brightened with the mid-week price rally. The narrowness of the market is interpreted by many as an indication that necessary liquidation is fast being completed and the passing of the spec ulative accounts of several large traders into the strong hands of bank CTS has removed one of the principal threats against buying. Yet public support is lacking and probably no sus- tained advance can be maintained until easier money and more active business smake 1t possible for bargain hunters to take advantage of the opportunities which the securities markets offer.
 Resistance to pressure toward lSwer prices was equally marked in the com modity markets. The grains held dsfirm early in the week and registered sharp advances later, and the cotton market has shown more trade buying and less selling pressure by its firmness throughout the week. Sugar failed to show its customary weekly decline and coffee has been firmer. Easing of the money supply, fndi- cated by the continuing improvement in the federal reserve ratio, follows the trickle of credit back from the grain region and the receipt of $14,000,000 of British treasury gold in the past fortnight, with more to come. The rate on commercial paper has been shaded steadily until virtually all now changes hands at 7A~ per cent instead of the per cent rate which has prevailed since July. New security issues are again appearing and being floated sue cessfully, and bankers have under consideration foreign and domestic financing totaling $150.000,000,' includ- ing the long proposed and much-op posed loan to Cuba. Brokers loans last week reached their lowest figure in several years
 MORE BUYERS COMING
 The brighter hues of this picture can be matched even in the more mottled panorama of the industrial world The east-bound Pullmans on the trunk lines leading into the eastern markets con tain more buyers. In the textile mar kets especially broader interest is shown, and in markets still called quiet fairly large quantities of goods ars moving. This disposal of stock. how ever, is not helping production and cur tailment is not decreasing.
 Reliable reports from Toledo and De- troit indicate much less unemployment than might have been expected as a result of the dullness in the automo- bile industry, the fact being that dis charged workers have been distributed among other industries and cities with surprising rapidity. In motors. as in f, ,-;r fnac f f,~ feeling gains ground that the worst of the duIlness and curtailment is ended
 The business turnover continues smaller than last year, bank clearings as reported to Bradstreets last week being II per cent less. The credit clear ing house reports less buying and greater indebtedness than in either 1919 or 1918. Sears. Roebuck's sales in No vember were 1872 per cent less than last year.
 With these indications of dullness have come stories of the success of in- dividual initiative in combating it. The deterioration of the art Of selling has played not little part in the stagna- tion which has accompanied the change from a sellers to a buyers market, and where the technique has been refur- bished the obstacles presented by pres ent trade uncertainty nave been quickly overcome. One of tho few textile mills As hich, is running It fnll capacity has xf difficulty in market;nx it's product fS@5ause it has produced A new and dis
 sEtve line winch aapea1s to the buyer
 Afs differences and the task of the
 f8snAn Is minisSized MEssy progress N department stores have found that intensified sales &and adSert'sing cam @ Ys1xrs brought them results far above 3sW Szs. the general level of pMiness led AMfu 10 expect. FromA Psychological rit Npuint 1t is tine ~ sci old goods s1 akw packages v'tiehS nasa no asso- ' xisaxson with prices sn sht buyers mind
 tJBLIC'S BUYING TOWER
 ha buying power cf q 4nerican rual5c is stilI large enpis ta support < kreat volume of trads-s 1ia so with utagndirg the decline its ilA pure asins ex wsr of the farmers asTrepre*ented by decreased crop values Wis;eh are es- tfsaat<l at 30tto 40 per cent and ss,00o. e3s ago Ito $S,000, 0O0 900 as kseHsparsd tc task year. Farmers and hAir efipleyes pbExHss perhaps half of sne Prrcnasine prkVa1 If the country; the deds ne sn the falanlnfng half allowing for tsemp lpy- aAA6 md wage decreases, es&A gc ' sn-
 tsnr that large numbers qf {.ala cd Ve kers are included, is psobaAtH less tk2n per cent This repr esen $ total 4clfhe of approximately 70 per cers s+hfch ;s almost exactly offest 4Y the feeilns of 21.2 per cent in whd esaIs srsces reported by Bradstreeta.
 November was a paradoxscal a0nth from tte economists's viewpciAtt An nrs fl <I, h 41l&1r