The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1922-07-01
Morey, Industrial and Crop
Reports for Week Are
Encouraging.
CALL. FIGURES CLIMB HIGH
Rates Compare With Those for
Periods of Normal Bust
ness Activity.
BY r. L. BARNUM.

a money early and again late IN
the week climbed as high as 5h per
cent, owing to the ,rond of the
change in time money.
Money rates, as the Bank of Com
merce pointed out this week in its
review of the month just closed, are
now fairly comparaLia With those
periods prior to 1914, when business
was proceeding in orderly fashion,
free alike from undue speculative ac-
tivity and from depressing influ-
ences.
The lack of an elastic currency,
which formerly caused a sharp sea
sonal movement in rates, especially
at this time of the year, has been
eliminated by the Federal Reserve
system.
Bank Deposits Gain.
According to this same authority,
bank deposits are increasing, com.
mercial loans r at a low figure. and
the reserve facilities Of the Federal
Reserve system are so ample as to
be practically unlimited in relation
TO any business situation that can
arise from ordinary causes.
Industrial stability has been more
nearly attained in this country dur
ing the last thirty days, it was de-
clared, than at any time since the
beginning of the World War.
This weeks news included the official
report showing that despite the coal
strike there had been a further
weekly decrease of %. 900 cars in the
number of idle freight cars standing
on sidetracks throughout the coun
try, and that freight car loadlngs in
creased $4,000 cars for the week to
$50. 900, the largest figure reported
since last October. or at the peak OF
the period when the years crops are
being moved and exchanged for mer.
chandise.
Coal Production Increases
A weekly increase was reported
in the production OF coal and coke
from the output of non-union mines.
With the anthracite mines union
organized, soft coal mines are sCill
shut down tight.
Railway earnings published his
week for May were closely watched.
The results were spotty, as were ex
pected. Lackawanna, for example.
which serves the anthracite mines
closed since April /. reports for May
gross of 1876. 900, a decrease OF
s77S. 900, with the loss for the five
months 1892. 900. But as a contrast,
Norfolk & Western, which Is hauling
coal from the non-union soft coal
mines, reported for May gross Of S.
994. 900, an increase compared with
last year of 81. 541. 600. with the gain
for the five months 81. 1877, 900, or prac-
tically the same as Lackawanna's
loss.
Before President Harding called his
conference of operators and miners at
the White House today the best In
formed people in the steel trade pre-
dicted that the end of the coal strike
seemed nearer than at any time In
tbs past thirteen weeks.
This view was based largely on the
increase In production of coal at the
non-union mines and on rumors that
the Administration at Washington
was about to take a hand because a
serious situation for next winter was
threatened.
Wall Street also believed there
would be no serious trouble in the
railway situation, despite the notice
sent early in h week by the labor
leaders to the railway executives that
the strike would start today unless the
executives refused to carry out the or
ders of the Railroad Labor Board to
reduce wages.
Extra pay for overtime and the
farming out of shop and track work
were also sore spots for the men.
With confidence hat the Admins
tration would stand behind the Rail
road Labor Board the public was
more interested in railway shares this
week than in industrial stocks, the
buying in the rails being the best in
many weeks If not months.
Conditions Are Improved
Practically all of the reports for last
month called attention to the general
improved Industrial condition. The
National City Bank says hat it's in
vestigation shows that conditions
have so improved that the amount Of
unemployment during the past month
has been small.
1t was stated that while the iron and
steel industry has been operating at
above rs per CEN OF capacity, this
means practically fun employment for
available labor. 1t was pointed out
that agents from the North had been
recruiting negro labor from the South
ern iron centers.
In It's review. the Iron Age predicted
that the labor costs, which had been
increased partly because of the high
err cost of fuel, resulting from the coal
strike, would remain high because the
building trade, the railway car build
ers and manufacturers Of automobiles
were all bidding against each other
and the steel trade for labor.
One exception to the optimistic
opinions expressed in this weeks
monthly reviews by bankers came
from the Cleveland Federal Reserve
Bank. This authority stated that the
tone Of the replies just received from
correspondents was not as assuring
as those of thirty days ago. One cor
respondent was quoted as saying:
ut is possible that business has re-
sumed too quickly to squeeze out the
uneconomical methods of doing bust
ness and that while we are all anxious
to see business come back as quickly
as possible there may be such a thing
that it is coming back On a more UNI
sound basis than would be advisable
There Is nothing alarming In the