The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1921-01-04

strike of early April. By that time,
however, public abstention from buy
ing had become marked at retail, and
early May saw big outburst Of ad-
vertising having for its aim the NOV
ing of slow-selling stocks.
Some Measures of Movement.
By and large, the past war was
one of liquidation in industrial Sc
curities and commodities, of attempt
ed readjustmnt Of all values from
swollen war and postwar level, and
of slaughter of prices Of commo-
dities at wholesale. The return Of
the expensively-and badly-run
railways to their owners was signal
lied by moderate rise in railway as
distinct from industrial shares, the
weakness of the latter and the grow
ing reaction in trade and industry,
however, finally involving the former,
as we'll as bonds of all kinds, in final
end of year depression. Not the least
imposing feature of this liquidation,
by the way, was its continuance, with
rather feeble rallies, over the period
from early November, 1919, to late
December, 1920, a period of IA
months. During the year the foreign
exchange markets were greatly ex-
cited, and while early low-record lev
els in British exchange We're not
quite reached later, rates of ex-
change on other countries in most IN
stances touched bottom twice at
widely separated periods.
Sales of s3ocks did not greatly
expand with the liquidation, and ag-
gregate sales were much below those
of 1919 while slightly less than those
of 1916. Bond sales broke all rec
ords, for which dealings in the war
crop of Liberty and Victory bonds,
that were hquidated freely by busl-
ness houses as a result Of higher
money rates and credit restriction,
were responsible. Municipal bond
sales were slightly below those OF
1919. New interpretations and new
domestic capital issues were OF rec
ord size. Federal revenues were IN
Ecreased heavily by taxes, and the
national debt showed a decrease de-
+ spite what were regarded as extrav-
tagaft' expenditures. Money IN CIR
culation increased in total volume
and in percapita allowance. Fer
eign trade broke all records, alike IN
exports and in imports, though ex-
ports never in any month reached
the food-swollen totals of June, 1919.
Imports reached from the high rec
ord June, 1926, total. The excess OF
exports over imports was pared down
from earlier records. Exports and
imports of gold exceeded those Tor
the preceding tWo years, but silver
exports were smaller despite the very
high prices ruling early as a result OF
Far Eastern buying. The bank clear
ings Of the country in II months
eaualed the record breaking annual
record of 1919, but this excess was
due largely to early months totals
i,dwarihg the corresponding $penods
1thesyear.before, besause the totals q
the last quarter of 1919 were never
thereafter equaled. 1t was frequent
/ lYisaid that, owing to our possession
and operation Of the federal reserve
banking system, the often predicted
panic had failed to- arrive-We were
at least spared this old time Anaerl-
can luxury-and this was true to the
extent that bank runs were rare, ex-
cept in the Ponzi troubles at Boston
and the small agricultural bank sus-
pensions in North Dakota and other
western states, but the volume OF
failure Liabilities as a whole practical
ly equaled those of he panic years
1907 and 1914, though the CONNER
cial failures were comparatively light,
exceeding only those Of 1919 during
the present century. AS to this, the
fat profits zof preceding years were
reported sufficient to cary many deal
ers through not very profitable cal
endar year, but the record addition
TO those in business in 19i9-2o may
contain some elements of future 'iq-
uidation.
Retreat of Commodity Prices.
Nineteen hundred and twenty was
an almost exact reverse Of 1919 IN
the movement of prices, although this