Evening star., 1922-01-29

normal, be approaching the dull sea-
son, both in merchandising and in
events Of interest generally, but look
ing over the weeks calendar there
is no indication yet of lifelessness ex-
cept in volume of securities changing
hands. Even the purchasing activity
in several large areas is reported to
have increased enough over the week
before to raise the whole country's
average fractionally (two-tenths of
per cent?. This activity developed
in the eastern. middle agricultural,
mountain and Pacific sections of the
country.
Export demand must also be look
ing up. as the Credit Mems Associa-
tion reports 20 per cent more in
quiries for information on foreign
houses in December than in November
and so per cent more than in October.
There appears to have developed a
certain amount of stabiliZation in
prices, but the levels are so far from
normal with high peaks on the one
side (for instance in rentals. which
the bureau of labor statistics shows
to be at their peak), and in food costs
Involving farm prosperity on the
readjustment is anywhere near COM
pletion. Rents are shown to be about
46 per cent above pre-war levels,
which is probably an underestimate.
Fuel is close to 81 per cent higher
than in 1914. Labor costs are still
far above adjustment levels, and high
rental is one of the obstacles to their
reduction. Indeed it may well be, as
]. H. Tregoe of the National Associa-
tion of Credit Men says, that a very
large share of the business slump and
it's failure to recover is due to con-
tinued high rents.
Obstacles Confronting. Building.
Speaking of the obstacles confront
ing the buildings trade. the Bache
Review says: There is, and has been
for a long time, a semi deadlock In
the buildings trade and, all in all,
5,500.0O0 laboring men, representing
nearly one-quarter of this class OF
population, are suffering more or less
from this deadlock. In discussing
this situation George II. Hinman re-
Gently said that $5,O00.000,000 worth
of work is waiting to be done alone
in the United States. Other construc-
ton that needs to be done, but cannot
even be started, would add several
billions more to the amount.
More than 100000 men want to
get at this work, and only half that
number are able to do so. The rest
are idle. More than 100000 men
are anxious to furnish the supplies
for construction industry, but they
can be only partly employed OF the
100000 men engaged in the build
ing and buildings material trade,
$500. 900 >are directly occupied with
construction work in ordinary times.
OF these, but $4,000 are organized IN
unions. Therefore. the non-union
men have a large majority, and also,
therefore, the bulk of the conStruc-
ton work ought to be and can be
placed in their hands. But the $780,
900 are organized; the 1.65O,0o0 are
is the open shop. but the open shop
means warfare, and nobody IS Or
ganiZed to conduct it.
Problems of High Transportation.
Discussing the problems of high
transportation, the same journal con-
tinues: Railroad stocks during part
of the week continued their rise,
which has been in almost a straight
line for several weeks
"One might lcok for something
favorable in actual conditions of the
roads to account for this, but 1t Is not
exhibited anywhere. The rise has
been due to investment in the better
railroad stocks, with dividends well
protected, and speculations, fortified
stocks carried the others along. 1t
is true that railroad car loadings in
creased for the first week in Janu-
airy, but this is explained as the usual
happening at this time of the year:
.aThe railroads Still are struggling
with the labor question, the latest
movement being Secretary Hoover's
conference for the labor heads and
roads executives, with results unan-
nounced.
That high transportation is work
ing great damage to farmers has been
a long time. but one of them, which
claims 1,750,OOO circulation mainly
among farmers, and published for
the last twenty-seven years, by a
western implement maker, is prov
ing to the farmers that so per cent
of the total railroad receipts for
transportation is paid to railroad Ia
Dor and that wages there must be
reduced materially. 1t says answer
ing the complaint Of a Nebraska
farmer:
What the Farmer Pays.
"'on October Is. 1921. the rate from
Culbertson. Neb., to Chicago. on corn,
was approximately 26 cents per
bushel. and we find that of the total
per cent is paid to labor. Sixty per
cent of 20 cents per bushel is 1875
cents per bushel, which is the pres
ent-day contribution made by the
farmer to transportation labor in
getting this corn to the market.
"'As corn, on October Is, 1921, was
only bringing 17.5 cents a bushel to
the farmer at Culbertson, Neb., you
will see that transportation labor was
receiving, for the mere act of moving
this corn from Culbertson, Neb., to
Chicago within cents a bushel of
the total receipts of the farmer for
his entire years work, which had TO
cover not only the use of his land.
but must pay his taxes, pay for the
labor of himself and family, his hired
man and incidental, farm expenses, as
we'll as the replacement of worn-out
equipment on farm. Manifestly the
division of proceeds is all out of pro-
portion and industrial depression. un-
employment, financial trouble and all
the ills that must follow result"
Columbia 'Graphophone Plans.
Early rehabilitation of the finances
of the Columbia Graphaphone Manu-
featuring Company is regarded as AL
most a certainty by local bankers. in
touch with the negotiations which
have been going on for several weeks
in New York looking to that end.
Rumors that a receivership seemed
inevitable have had the effect of de-
pressing the company's securities and
stocks to a low level, the common
selling Thursday at IL and the pre-
ferred at around 6, but Friday both
made substantial gains, and yester-