The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1921-01-21
BUSINESS m MONTANA hT BEGINNING OF
1921 AND REVIEW Of PAST Il MONTHS

Business over the state, while not
up to the standard during the greater
portion of 1920. showed signs OF
picking up in the last month and the
holiday trading season was charac-
terized by quite free buying. an in
dication that the poor business has
been due more to refusal to buy at
the high prices prevailing until the
last few weeks. rather than lack
of ability to buy. The increase of
business with the dropping of prices
indicates, according to merchants.
that the most sanguine hopes are JUS
titled for 1921.
prices to normal profit over the re-
placement value of their stocks, and
instead. holding goods at the price
which they paid for them is consid-
cred one of the chief reasons for the
slack retail trade. The consequent
small turnover has made the whole
sale trade quiet.
However, in almost every town in
the state. some retailer is seeing that
salvation lies in cleaning out his high
priced stock and replacing it with
goods purchased on the present lower
market, which he can sell at a profit.
When one retailer does it. the differ
ence in prices is so marked that
others are forced to make the same
sacrifices and cut the prices of their
goods to their present wholesale
price. plus a reasonable profit. and
take the loss.
Some Failures
The number of failures of busi-
ness firms indicates that many have
been spending their profits of the
last few years and can not take the
loss of writing down their inventor
les" said A. B. Thompson. manager
of the Bradstreet's Butte office. "A
great many of them. however, have
conserved their finances and are in
of goods bought on the inflated mar
ket, write off the loss and purchase
new goods on the present falling
markets"
Reports from all over the state in
dictate that Montana has not suffered
so severely as some eastern states. as
the depressed conditions due to poor
crops of the last three years has not
permitted such an orgy of extrava-
gance and the return to normal is
not creating such havoc as it is In
certain manufacturing communities.
The Reconstruction Pull
Judging from the reports from va
riOus sections of the state residents
of Montana have settled down to the
long pull of reconstruction and grad
ually decreasing prices over a period
of years until industrial conditions
reach a pre-war basis. A report from
the Bradstreet reporter in Miles City
indicative of the cattle country.
states that the total amount of stock
in the section is less on account Of
heavy shipments in the fall of 1919
and losses in the winter of 1920
but that the range is being slowly
re-stocked. The shortage in cattle is
the heaviest, indicating better prices
to the ranchers for their beeves.
There is some unemployment, due
chiefly to the fact that dry farmers
come to Miles City during the win
ter to work. The Milwaukee shops
employ several hundred men. with
payroll of about 100000 a month.
Collections have been fair and prices
appear to be lower. though buyers
appear to be waiting for prices to
drop still more.
A Cheerful Report
One OF the most cheerful reports
comes from the state capital NJ.
Max Goodsill, manager of the Hell
ena Commercial club. sums up the
business situation in Helena in this
way:
AN amazing record has been made
by Helena business houses during the
Christmas shopping season of 1920.
Talk of hard times throughout the
state has been so persistent that the
business men were skeptical at the
start of the season. On Christmas
eve, however, nearly every business
house in Helena had broken it's
Christmas sales record. both in vol
ume of cash received and in the
number of articles sold. There have
are looked for.
THE Helena banks have loaned
over $7,0OO,0OO to Montana banks
and clients to meet the present emer-
gency, but when 100000 city bonds
were placed on sale Dec. 20 they
took up the full issue in cash. The
banks paid par and a premium for
the bonds, outbidding six out-of-town
bond houses.
From Commercial Club
THE Helena Commercial club is
sued the following statement:
Although every merchant takes
losses on his stock in times of falling
prices. the situation in Helena is
hopeful. The Christmas trade was
so heavy that the business men are
decidedly optimistic.
of commerce, Y. NJ. C.. A., Liberia
C,,ltrro c1,h oy,d &c ho -