The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1921-01-08
THE BUSINESS YEAR
End of the Boom. High Costs
Check All Buying
(Bradstreet's Revitw }.

OF the biggest, though certainly not
one or the best. years I'm trade, manu-
| facturc and industry. Some new high
records were set up In financial lines
and in industrial output, though it
will hardly be claimed that the year
was as profitable i'm all lines as were
some others when outputs were small
Ter and prices were lower but when
final margins were larger. Closing, as
IL does. with wholesale trade stagnant,
retail trade below that of recent years,
manufacturing output restricted. un-
employment, including reduced work
ing time In industry. rarely, if ever.
equaled, collections backward and de-
preston widespread, the stamp Of sue
cess rs to the past il missing and the
outlook as to the future far less IA
vorable than prospects at its outset
led the business world generally to
expect Indeed, the general feeling
is to regard 1T as Il year whose results
might best be soon forgotten were it
not for the useful lessons that costly
| experience has taught, not only to
this country but 20 the entire world.
The fact Is that the year just closed
was the true heir OF 1919, and as
such 1t reaped to the full the results
OF the bad seed sown in 1919, this
referring to the extravaganza in buy
ing for which the latter year was
jpreeminently noted, the piling up Of
unreasonable demands by labor, and
the increasing of costs beyond the
ability OF people to pay who had
| already been taxed 70 the apparent
limit TO carry on confessedly sue
! ccssful but Immensely expensive war.
The waste of that and earlier years,
most Of II navoidable-because war
Is and always has been wasteful of
life and property-finally demanded
reckoning. and its payment bids
fair to be n heritage for some years
In this respect, while this country
has not had to pay the price I'm dead
that other countries nearer the scene
Of active hostilities have had to shoul-
der. the effects Of the conflict, the
waste OF liquid capital involved, the
lowering Of moral tone that followed
the exaltation OF the war itself, the
extravangance engendered, the heart
bIrnings involved. the straits to
which the ordinary man and woman.
debarred from profiting by the con-
flict. were reduced, should act as
guideposts for centuries to come and
set the seal Of civilizations disap-
prevail and condemnation on those
who would lightheartedly talk Of the
war as solver of problems, or who,
with the terrible examples visible on
every hand. should oppose any rea-
sofmble means OF rendering future
conflicts impossible.
a Glance at the Past
Whatever the causes-whether the
overlooking OF trade and industry with
excessive costs--overproducti Ger.
tainly did not affect all lines--the en-
haustion OF mobile supplies of money,
as shown by the marking up of loans
early I'm the year and their mainte-
nance until the late months, or the
attenuation Of credit to a degree
where a halt had to be called on the
raising of prices of comodities to a
point where further buying became
impossible-the year 1920 will prob
ably be memorable for what is now
freely termed the buyers strike
or the revolt of the buyer" 1t
would be difficult to fix the date at
which this doing without" movement
first became noticeable as a market
factor. Necessity buying only was
urged early In our war as a national
duty; later IT became an apparent
necessity with large part of the
public. Lost sight OF for time in
1919 when the strain OF war was
lifted 1t was again actively preached
by public men when the snowstorrn
or strikes struck the country in the
late summer OF that year and was
powerfully enhanced by the countless
exhibitions OF extravaganza to which
easily extorted wage advances gave
rise.
Signs OF public impatience with the
steadily mounting cost OF living grow
as the year 1919 waned, but were ap-
parently lost sight OF in the holiday
buying orgy at the close of that yetr.
The momentum acquired In 1919 was
sufncient to carry trade generally at
very high volume throughout the first
nth OF last year, but severe wealth
er the tie-up OF traffic and the acute
| congestion OF transportation noted
carrier In the year, but eliminating
In the winter and spring Of 1890,
slowed down trade generally in the
second MONTH, and the index num-
bers on February l and March / =,
marking nearly fiat line on publish
ed charts was visible sign that whole
sale prices were about at their peak.
Iaighter weather In the spring
months and the approach and pass
ing of Easter gave "A temporary fillup
to trade. while prices were driven
upward temporarily by the switch
mems strike of early Apcil BY that
time. however public abstention from
buying had become marked at retail
and early May saw big outburst
OF advertising having for it's aim the
moving of slow-selling stocks.
Some Measures of Movement.
ny and large. the past year was one
or liquidation in industrial securities