davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
No Tipsters

1t is more or less of a tragedy that
most discussions of the stock market
in morning newspapers deal with what
took place in the last session rather
than what will happen in the next.
There would be tremendous news in a
LIST of infallible forecasts OF the future
selling prices of stocks, but up to the
present trustworthy device fog fore
telling the future without error has
not been duly patented. It is not the
function of the press to act as tip
ping service, especially when the tips
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

appraiser, represents the quintessence
o attractiveness. AS we talk to mem
ers Of the underworld, or whereabouts.
Of finance we are inclined to become
sympathetic toward them, since, after
all, they, too, have to make a living.
But at these moments of softening we
remember that each year, according to
the most conservative estimates, $780,
100000 of the savings of folk who
can i'll afford to lose are dissipated in
ventures which were highly recon-
mended by INSCRIPTIONS stock vendors
No one expects the city editor to
know about next months murders, &C
cidents and human interest stories.
IF he knows his city and is able to
cover the current news effectively he
rates high in his calling. On the other
hand, many individuals take it for
granted that the financial editor knows
precisely what every listed stock will
sell at each day for week ahead. Of
course, no one who holds this theory
regarding the clairvoyance of financial
editors has examined the records in
the surrogates courts of the estates of
those financial scribblers who have
gone beyond.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
by Merryle Stanley Rukeyser

that reliable index of prices shows
that quotations of commodities adj
vanced in July Ais per cent to 1857,
compared with 1000 In June, 6,458 in
May and 1929 in July. As the mark
slumps prices within Germany rise Re-
tailers and even restaurateurs move up
quotations on their wares inversely
with the fluctuations of the unit Of
currency. Americans touring in Ger
many are confronted with the spectacle
of observing the mark swing violently
while they are standing in line at
Teuton banks waiting for the slow ma
chinery involved in cashing a draft to
operate
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
Purchasers Take Advantage
OF the Excellent Chance
TO Compare Competing
Lines of Merchandise
Also Get Display Ideas
Merchants Greatest Com
mendation for Exposition
Is Time-Saving Element

American merchandise on their coun-
ters next year
THE great outstanding fact about
the first National Merchandise Fair Is
tina tbs success from every view
point" stated Ira NJ Younker, chair
man of the ways and means committee
OF the fair, yesterday. San expert
ment Of this kind must necessarily be
based upon some fundamentally sound
idea in order to be successful, and that
is exactly what this fair was based
upon The underlying motivating
thought back of it Is service"
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
Exhibitors Declare Chief
Benefit Is the Opportu-
nifty of Meeting Retailers
They Never Knew Before
New Accounts a Feature
Reports Vary on the Actual
business Done, but Some
Report 6 o o d Volume

ME- first week Of the First Ma
IL tional Merchandise Fair has
passed into history, and this
new medium of merchandising ap-
parently has proved its success
Staged primarily to bring the re-
taller of merchandise, and his source
OF supply into closer contact. it's Oh
lect seems to be in fair way of
accomplishment. Looked at purely
from the volume of business stand
point, reports concerning the success
OF the fair vary to some extent.
Many of the exhibitors declared
that their immediate business has
been stimulated greatly as a direct
result of the orders taken at the
exhibition booths in the Grand Cen
trail Palace and the list Regiment
Armory. A few, however, report
little or no business. The remaining
two weeks Of the fair may change
the pace of business considerably.
One of the outstanding features of
the fair, though, Is the little regard
that both buyers and sellers are Civ
ing to the actual purchasing and SELL
ing of merchandise. Almost without
exception, manufacturers and whole
salers declare that their chief benefit
derived from the exhibition has been
the opportunity to meet hundreds of
retailers they never knew before. On
the first day of the fair one exhibitor
sold an order to retailer of whom he
had never heard before in a town
that he, the exhibitor, did not know
existed. In telling of this transac-
ton the amount of the sale had es-
capped his memory for the moment.
What impressed him most was the
fact that he had new customer that
he could not have obtained through
the ordinary trade channels.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
assets and Funded Debt

Too much stress has been laid at times
on the relation between the funded debt
OF corporation and its fixed assets
taken alone. The worth of property is reg
ulated by It's power to produce revenue.
Some of the big merchandising COM
panies, sues as Woolworth, Sears Roe
buck and the United Retail Stores,
carry relatively small item of prom
erty, but they have a business organi-
cation and other intangible assets which
come under the head of good will"
and are as Potent revenue producers as
we'll equipped and costly plant is in
the case of corporations that do not
come in actual contact with the con-
Stunning public. The bonds of many
industrial corporations are nothing but
an equity in earning power. Hence ths
Importance of following current in
come statements.
In reading these statements the in
vestor, whether his holdings be bonds
or sock, mus. not pass lightly over
the provision for depreciation and de-
pletion. The man who Endorses the
management because of its lenient at
titude toward depreciation reserves is
dcceiving himself Ever, time q dol
lars worth of goods goes out from
any kind of manufacturing plant, part
of the plant goes with 10. If net profits
are distributed without allowances for
depreciation, therefore, the investor is
unconsciously getting part of his cap
ital back piecemeal. Depreciation is
smething that can be regulated co n
nicety. depletion, however, is another
matter.
corporation exploiting the eoun-
trys natural resources Is depicting its
properties every time q ton of ore, a
barrel of oil or stick of lumber is re-
moved. In the case of subterraneau
products an estimate of depletion Is a
difficult matter, for there is no method
OF computing accurately when the end
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
Along the Highways OF Finance

WALL STREET has long been CEN
w ter of paradoxes and contradc-
tions. The rewards often go to those
who can read the ticker tape rather
than to the pure logicians. With the
mechanism of American railroads NAL
which will no doubt be reflected in cur
rent earnings, spectators diverted
most of thew enthusiasm at the mar
ketplace to the purchase of railroad
shares. The buying reflects a belief
that the strike will not permanently
retard the recent substantial improve
ment in the earning power of the roads.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
incorporating Income

| The investors interest in his own
railroad should go further than current
earnings. Unconsciously or otherwise,
he is asking what margin over interest
or dividend requirements these earn
! ings Indicate. A fairly accurate an
swer is found by taking a copy of the
! last annual income statement and ap-
plying to it the current years earnings
| to date Income derived from sources
other than operating properties IS
substantial item with some of the
larger systems, more substantial IN
some cases than net operating income
Take the Great Northern, for instance.
Without incorporating income this
system would not have been able TO
meet it's fixed charges last year Net
from railway operations was SlZ,ooo,-
900, and incorporating income reached
total of S31 ,731, 600. Erie showed a
nroft of only S2,133,000 from railroad
activities in 1921 and had fixed charges
of more than $4,000, 600 to meet. This
apparent shortage was adjusted by
drawing on coal properties for larger
dividends Many other instances OF the
value of sources of non operating IN
come could be cited, but these two nave
brought out the point.
Go on to the next item of important
statistical information-car loadlngs'
Figures can be misread, but they 40
not lie. Calamity howlers have been
outdoing themselves recently with
claims that the strike of railroad shop
men is crippl;ne transportation, ana
therefore industry as well. What DC
the figures say? A statement released
few days ago shows that. emitting
coal, which is being moved at least as
fast as it is mined, the railroads loaded
1888 900 cars in the week ended July 20,
an increase of $4,000, compared with
1920, when every available car and
locomotive was being used.
This is not exclusively subject for
the railroad security owner to study
1t is of interest to every one who owns
bond or a share of sock. Car load
ings reflect general business. To-
eether with the Idle car reports, which
are supplementary. car loading state
ments are a barometer of industrial
activity. Security owners who are in
clined to feel a bit shaky every time q
false alarm is sounded can often find
encouragement by keeping close
watch on the barometers.
Bank Ciearings
The bank statements and figures on
bank check clearings are worth while
watching as indicators of the business
trend. John Doe may say in the most
pessimi site tone possiote that business
ia poor, but that does not make it SO
from broad viewpoint. Bank clear
ings will tell to nicely how good or
bad business is. The figures for TWEEN
tv-two important American cities for
the week ended July % indicate an in
crease of 17.S per cent in bsuk lear
ingg, comparison being with the cor
responding week of 1921. This shows
the growth of business since the bot
tom was reached year ago. When
business is booming credit is inflated,
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

the bank statements reveal ng heavy
loans and discounts. Deaation of loans
continues long after business has
reached the trough of depression and
substantial revival in trade can be
carried out before there is a halt in
the decline of bank loans. The reason
is that corporations and individual
business men can expand their opera-
tions rather far and keep within tbs
bounds of their private capital In the
present situation business has made
remarkable strides toward recovery,
but not to the point where the defs-
ton of loans has ended
These barometers will help the in
weston in a general way What they
show, however, should be supplemented
by direct information on the particular
companies in which the investor is in
terested. rudimentary knowledge Of
the corporation balance sheet is an
essential part Of every investors equip
ment, and especially to the owner OF
stocks or junior bonds. The income
statement shows how well or poorly n
company is doing and, in the ease OF
some Of the most seasoned corpora
tlons, is not calculated to engender
confidence when considered by itself in
times of depression. The point that
should be brought out here is thas
aeUacn q study OF an income state
ment does not tell the whole story Ii
should be considered in conjunction
with the corporate balance sheet, which
shows the net results of operations
over u period of years and is q good
guide to the ability of company to-
weather storms pending the return oe
good business.
Balance sheets are issued once a
year. rarely oftener. They show ths
condition of corporation as of given
date. The desirable financial condition
after a period Of heavy price defiatioA
and small profits is found in a plenti~
full supply of cash or cash equivalents
matched by few pressing liabilities
and a minimum Of uncollected or un-
collectablc accounts, designated in the
balance sheet as accounts receivable.
1t is a highly desirable thing for a.
corporation to have a mass of Gus
toners accounts if the customers are
able to pay. But If they are unable
to pay and have no prospect Of doing
so in the near future, then the creditor
corporation-the one which sold the
goods-must either suspend payment Of
its own debts, borrow from the bank,
giving notes as security, or float an
issue of bonds or notes fog public con-
sumption.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

indirect bearings on his own line. Ideas
on color harmony, on the nter-relat ton
of one fabric with another, the infiu-
cree eXerted by a new style in one
line of merchandise on the style trend
in another were impressed upon many
of the buyers, according to their state
ments to exhibitors and their fellow
buyers
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
Profit for All a Hopeless
Ideal i'm Cotton CROWNS
Highly Variable Factors in the Cost Of
Production Mean Some Must
Suffer Losses
By William Whistam

AVER since the great attempt at national was ads
III Orleans, sixteen Amer;car co+4ar
maintained as fundamental that the producer the
receive price which equals the cost OF production ps
blush this would
the OF production depends upon the bene6snc 80
the and degree of agricultural knowledge and ;ts
.atn by $50 900 farmers their families uhn 80
!. industry of cotton growing in the United States -
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
How the Investor Nav
Keep Tab ON Holdings
Barometers He Should Watch i'm Check
ing Up ON General Business and
Particular Securities
By Harold r. Bunce

Tow often do hear Of bankers
ment advisers admonhng the pur.
chaser to this effect This
suitable willing
on the aa of the issuing high
be put safe deposit forgotten
interest or dividends Any who in position
finger the pulse the public adonion
not often
that it is
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

petitor occupies the adjoining booth,
facilitating comparisons of design,
quality, etc. In many lines buyers were
seen making these direct comparisons
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
Cas, Keep in Touch

The property of American railroads
is represented by approximately $18,-
900 900 of stocks and bonds. Be-
cause of accounting rules and other re-
qulrements of tae Interstate Commerce
Commission the owners of these secur-
tiles have the facilities for keeping in
constant touch with earnings and other
pertinent developments. Industrial cor
porations whose stocks and bonds are
listed on the New York Stock Ex-
change, are required to furnish a state
ment of earnings and balance sheet
only once year. Many of them bring
out quarterly and semi-annual state
men-s of their own volltlon, but no
class of security owner has such con-
slant information as the railroad bond
and stock holder. The earnings of
every railroad are printed monthly in
the newspapers, usually from twenty
to thirty days after the end of any
given month. In addition to this a
general idea of traffic conditions is fur
nished in the weekly reports on car
loadings and the volume of idle cars.
The monthly statements are not only
easy to follow but furnish an interest
ing study. Security owners who use
the financial pages of the newspapers
merely to follow the prices of stocks
and bonds ar not getting the full
worth of their money. These pages In
the more thorough papers furnish a
wealth of information. The monthly
railroad statements show only the re
suits Of transportation operations, max
ing no reference to income derived
from incorporating sources or fixed
charges AS they appear in condensed
form in the newspapers these state
ments show gross operating revenue,
including freight, passenger, mail and
express income; balance after tax,
meaning ordinary taxes imposed by
municipalities in which the roads
property is located and not Federal
profits taxes; and third item entitled
met operating income" which means
the net result of operations after pay
ing to and receiving from other rail
roads the rents for facilities Jointly
used. The figures are always set down
in a column opposite the returns for
the same month of the previous year
so that any gain or loss in traffic and
iucOyoo noted
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13
A Carolina Estimate

nave received a communication
.8 =. b. Williams, dean of agricul-
H. the North Carolina State Col
Mrs Agriculture and Engineering,
a.il puts the 1922 cost of cotton pro
aStlon at ia cents per pound. This
,,aeiudes rent of land, man and horse
Moor for preparing ground. cultivat
,lng' harvesting and marketing or stor-
,ag the crop. The dean qualities this
sue ssts oy pointing out that "this rep
~ 'snss ehe minimum COST" and that
=, + many cases the cost is more than
~ ,s.I amount. Naturally, where the
:, .eius are small the cost is much high
- !, :. IN considering the price of cotton
ae farmer there should be added to
s.s amount percentage of profit the
Mer should receive. The yield an
~. re on On which this estimate is based
sao 1sS pounds. Last seasons WELD
r. sne entire South was 124 pounds.
y. ne spread between the estimate of
NJ NJ Sortn Carolina dean and that sup
asa 70 NE by W. B. Weary, chairman
10 lotion committee of the Texas De-
s'.nsnt Of Agriculture and farmer
sne famous black soil belt Of Texas
go great as 20 be astounding. Mr..
.ary says in part: "I am inclosing
si.s seeuuht OF production costs in 1919
a allowances made in several items
Issa .ne cost has been reduced in
~ 40, iou VIII note the cost as found
-; ts!s was IA cents a pound, and the
. ~ bring the 1922 crop down to
.,s ssss o. SO cents based upon the gov
,sra estimate of ISL pounds an
ms Is allowing the farmer, who
Il, Se1h manager and lsborer. $500 for
lre years work, against $1,000 for
I'm Y MS wages were reduced to
~ !, would make the cost so cents
~ 7 to nothing, 20 cents Mr..
a.. interestingly continues: ~ have
~ 2 pretty close record of the
ts,, o. producing cotton for the last
!, sy'1Ye years, and have found that
ss,s ~ Tue war the cost. counting all
with wages at 81 a day, had
~ geo 10 cents and the average sell
Price had been nine cents"
rss.a' the crop now being picked,
f.s ssoh and Cotton Oil News" of Dallas,
"A =, figuring very low and making
4, ssao~anee for farm management,
b, estimated this crop at 1920 cents
p9shd and at that low figure only
ss,.s;o S45 per man and plow." Dis
fs,,Ig with this estimate. George B.
,s,sl, Texas Commissioner of Agri-
IL. estimates this seasons crop for
ss,.ss te as costing 25.s cents, esti-
ss,. oased upon production Of not
tnan one-hfth of bale to the
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

acre. The Commissioner, In his latter
20 Texas daily. adds: II have on nv
desk now an editorial from a LEADING
Iexas paper stating that the farme re
can make good profit at 10 cents Nor
pound for cotton this year. and con-
Guides with the assertion: "The aver
age cost of producing cotton has never
neen less than 20 cents per pound and
IL shoild never be sold for less than
that nrice "' vial
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

~ 'S'NS" S-N"s ciSb IL may De Sa q
that so per cent of the investors who
are advised to watch their securities
get the mistaken idea that their OBJ
servations are to be confined to the
bond and stock markets, where NAV be
obtained .clew to the actual condition
of the borrowing or issuing corpora
ton. The opposite should hold true.
Earning power and other pertinent
factors bearing or securities should
furnish the clew to their true market
value
1t is not intended to convey the i'm
preston here that the average investor
can become an astute market prognos-
ticator simply by following certain
rules for judging security values. Nor
is it desirable that such knowledge
which is really the equipment of a
trader rather than an investor. be ac-
quired. But it is possible for the man
or woman possessing only a rudimen-
tary acquaintance with business to be-
come skillful enough to avoid making
III advised commitments. The subject
is fascinating to the degree that a
short sally into the field Of economics
and accounting might easily become a
pleasure rather than a burden and
thereby furnish an incentive for sys-
tematic investment. Let US proceed
with the assumption that only a small
percentage of the investment public is
satisfied with the relatively small re-
turn offered by the gilt-edged, sure
thing class of bonds The assumption
is warranted by facts.
New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1922-08-13

S-Asifcaily the COST TO any producef
rcysrned By land fertility, boil
s..si Infestatian and the depreda-
80, sss, ~ other insects, the use, cost
-. -, cornnosition of fertilizers, quantity
~ nr;ce of seed, amount of capital
s. Z. cost Of man and mule labor,
=. ys.s Of interest paid on advances,
-. - transportation of the crop and
...,iiss 70 and fro, foreign exchange,
~. ard rate Of deterioration of
.rs machinery and other equipment
- ,he prices watch must be paid for
- - food and clothing of the farm
community.
mnassible is the planters ideal, Of
.nst plus reasonable profit. That tt
!, ont az the question is further made
Soar in q report published by the De-
,.-tment Of Agriculture in 1920 (crop
q laIs1. which gave the cost based
wan estimates from S42 farms, repre-
ss..ine 10 districts in the cotton belt
~ WHICH il was disclosed that while
average cost was % cents a
end, and that while the bulk of the
,tten was produced ct ~ cents, the
range in cost on the s42 farms was
from 8 cents to s1.e7 Q pound. The
average price received for the cotton
grown on these plantations was 30
cents. 1t is therefore obvious that
while some obtained more than a rea-
sonable profit over the cost of produc-
tion, others suffered serious losses.
And unless time shall come when
the fiber fetehes price out of all rea-
son with relation to the costs on the
average farm, these discrepancies
must, in the very nature of things,
continue,
It is likewise unquestionable that
there are many cotton growers who
ought tc seek other occupations.