The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-02-28
By THEODORE H. PRICE Editor, Commerce and Finance.

East is east, and west is west, and III their business outlook as we'll as the poets vision, it seems that the twain shall never meet.
 Not many months ago it was easy 10 escape the fog of pessimisni which hung over New York and New lsngT land by travelling west of the Ohio, where sunshine and invfgorating breezes were always to be found, and the contrast of the feeling was so marked that one of my friends was moved to refer to his return rom one of these trips as back to the land ot the rising sun and declining markets"
 Now, however. because tempera- mentally I prefer the company of cheerful and optimistic people, stay at home for the tone both of public reports and of my private information indicates that the breezes have shifted and that a clearer atmosphere is to be found in the east.
 James NJ. Hart of Hart, Schaffer x Marx stated the view succinctly and with unmistakable meaning when, to my request for business forecast, he responded: "A man can break his leg in a minute, but it takes him a long time to get over it.'
 The feeling that the business pendu- Hum has not yet swung upward, does not take adequate consideration of the fact, which has been and will be em- phasized in these articles, that the volume of goods changing hands at retail is larger, and at wholesale all most as large, as during the so-called s'prosperity'' which prevailed at this time last year. In the past fortnight l have talked with more than score of retailers from every section of the country and, though in some instances their receipts in dollars were less, without exception they said that their init sales showed an increase of 10 to 25 per cent.
 Even in Chicago. which now seems to be the center of depression, a mem her of a leading dry goods firm as- eures me that retail sales have been larger than in any corresponding period in history. He said: 'Our re- tailers have reduced prices. without regard to cost, to the point where they attract consumers and, as a result. consumers are supplying their wants and retailers are refilling their shelves, though neither are buying extrava- gantly for future needs. We believe that this trade will be maintained steadily, for there is relatively little unemployment in the city. The de- cline in the purchasing power has not been as great as the decline in prices, and despite the phenomenal buying, people are still saving, as shown by an increase of $24,000,00O in savings bank deposits in Chicago during De- cember and for the first half of Jan uary. We are satisfied with the pres ent and optimistic for the future.
 In Texas, where the decline in cot ton has exceeded decreases in other prices; impairing the purchasing pow CT, retail trade is also well maintained. I was told by I. S. Sanger of Sanger Bros. of Dallas, Fort Worth and Waco, who are among the leading wholesale and retail merchants of the state, that their sales are above last year in num- Der, and almost equal in dollars. He prefaced the conversation by saying that the bottom of depression is be- hind us, and concluded it by reiterat- ing the same statement. Our stocks are being steadily liauidated,' he said, though not as rapidly as we would like. Tn some lines, however, retailers who postponed their buying too long, are already begging for goods, which they have difficulty in finding. In our wholesale hosiery Department, for instance, we have sold more goods this month than at any time since the firm was founded. In many lines there has already been slight upturn in prices. We instruct our buyers to purchase conservatively, in order to keep spec ulation out of our business, but we believe that the turn for the better has definitely arrived
 MERCHANDISING
 In market service letter issued by the National Wholesale Dry Goods as- sociation last week, nearly all the re- ports have similar tone Many lines have been sold up into April and Hay. and are firm in price. .. Cloth print CTS report that business is impro ying last, and cloths are coming in freely. Wholesalers report that judging from orders sent in by travelling ,ales- men and by sales to retailers visiting wholesale houses, stocks seem to be we'll liquidated.. Many popular 1 lines in short supply. :. x. Confidence restored. ... Steady demand. Re newed buying"
 For the past four weeks. the num- Der of buyers in the New York whole sale markets, as shown by figures ob- fained from the Fairchild Service. has exceeded the total for the same weeks In 1920 by 15 to 20 per cent. The fig pres are:
 Week ending February 5, 1921, 1.7os buyers; week ending February 7, 1920. 1.705 buyers. Week ending February 12. 1921. 1898 buyers; week ending February IA. 1920, 1,542 Week ending February 19, 1921, 1,5SO buyers; week ending February 21, 1920, 1894 Week ending February 26, 1921, 1,157 buyers. week ending February 2s, 1920. 1.o33.
 The fluctuations of these figures coin eide closely with depressions in the busi- ness atmosphere. In the early part of ls2O they were considerably higher than the corresponding figures for 1919. but #epout the middle of May they dropped be- t low and did not rises above again until The middle of December, when the first siens of revived wholesale buying ap- peared. As business barometer, there Tore, the record of these figures indicates that they are reliable. Nor is there any doubt that the buyers are here on busi- ness. The credit clearing house weekly report of merchandising activities shows renewed activity in purchases and bank ciearings reported to Bradstreet are only 1l.7 per cent less than last year, 'h a>difference more than made up by the 9 per cent decline which, has occurred in prices.
 AUTOS IN DEMAND
 sm Observers throughout the countrys dis " cern steady improvement in many lines. The Journal of the American Bankers association has made nationwide sur yey which warrants it's conclusion that I've have turned the corner" The Cham Der of Commerce of the United States reports Convincing evidence that we are on the high road to recovery" In New England the shoe industry has taken a squirt and production is the heaviest in SIX months. The increase in activity which began in the motor industry a few weeks ago Is continuing, and Henry Ford states that his March orders tota, mora fhan T2 mn cars md <ha< sx --..,'.