Evening star., 1932-09-02
MORRIS PLAN BANK
MEETING ARRANGED.
Delegates From 1903 Institu-
tions Are Due Here Sep
tember 20.

ISOLATION to beheld at the Shorenam
Hotel, September 20 to october l, with
delegates from the 108 institutions
throughout the country.
Bertram Chesterman, president Of the
Morris Plan Bank of Washington, Is
chairman of the General Committee in
charge of the convention, and Wallace
D. Mclean is chairman of the Program
Committee.
Business sessions daily have been
arranged for the three days, at which
time the problems of operation Of Nor
ris Plan Banks will be discussed. The
night sessions will be devoted to ad-
dresses by nationally prominent speak
ers. The night of october will be
given over to the customary banquet.
The program which has been arranged
for the women delegates and guests is
designed to prove entertaining.
Gas Bonds Active.
Washington Gas Light Co. bonds con-
tinued their activity on the local ex-
change today. Skies B sold at l0234,
and the IS A turned over at 993s, o
shade up from prior sale, and in large
volume.
b. g. o. Traffic Increase.
A small increase in traffic was reg
istered by the Baltimore g. Ohio Rail-
road during the second week of August.
Ioadings totaled 33033 cars, as COM
pared with 81 ,849 for the previous week.
Coal and grain traffic scored the best
gains. The movement of coal totaled
7,144 cars, as against 5,515, and Of
wheat, 1909, as against 1882.
Strength in Commodities.
Strength in commodity prices, grad
ually spreading throughout the range OF
basic products, remains the most i'm
portant and promising portent OF eco
nomic convalescence in the weeks rec
ord, according to the Business Week.
Second to it in significance has been
the steady recovery of bond prices dur
ing the past two months, which has at
least prepared the way for renewed
flow Of capital into new enterprise upon
which business expansion will depend.
The steep rise in stock prices in re-
cent weeks has left the market in in
creased need of prompt support from
more definite evidence OF increasing
business activity than is so lar forth
coming in the general indicator. Per-
haps for this reason security markets
generally are showing signs OF fatigue
after their continuous and rapid climb.
They have undoubtedly had funda-
mentally favorable developments in the
financial field to feed upon, but it has
been an abnormally lean season for
stimulating business news, and the clos
ing weeks of August have been specially
stagnaut
After Labor day the Fall seasonal
influences are expected to make them
selves felt this year with somewhat
more force than usual, but to reinforce
the favorable factors still in the fore
ground of the picture. more convincing
signs of member bank credit expansion
are called for, The administrations
banking and industrial committee
agencies, upon which such expansion
now principally depends are still in the
organization stage and it will take time
for their effective influence to appear
The Business Weeks weekly index of
business activity showed a preliminary
reading of 53.6 per cent for the week
ended August 81, against a revised
reading of 53.5 per cent for the preced-
ing week and Of II per cent for the
comparable week ended August 20, 1881.
Optimism in Business.
The striking feature of the trade re-
ports to Bradstreet's Weekly from SIS
leading cities continues to be the op-
timism displayed. This has in no way
abated. Its persistence is encouraging
and augurS well that the recent despair
that things could never be better has
permanently gone.
Better sentiment was an absolute
requisite to recovery" said Bradstreet's;
"we have undoubtedly made strides in
this direction.
The gain in prices of commodities
and securities, partly result of more
confidence and partly causing it, con-
tinues also a hopeful factor. Cotton
has been the leader in price advances,
thereby reviving considerably better
feeling in the South.
In actual business activity, textile
manufacturing and trading is still the
high light. Shoe factories also are in
creasing production. In wholesale
lines the greater number of inquiries,
together with seasonal advances in ac-
tivity, have helped to make better
sentiment. While dry goods and mems
clothing remain lower than a year ago
In volume, both have seen some quick
ening during the past week.
Retail sales are about over. Sum-
mer stocks have, according to the re-
ports, been well disposed of, leaving
ample room for Fall merchandise. At
present merchants are featuring goods
connected with the opening Of schools
and are meeting with good public re-
sponse. Other Fall goods are every
where displayed, but as yet no great
volume has been disposed Of. The sale
of hardware has been gaining slowly.
The basic industries do not as yet
show favorable signs. While this IS
discouraging, it must be remembered
that such industries as steel and build
ing cannot advance until confidence
has been established. Even then re-
covery of such lines, as well as any
pronounced general recovery, must be
slow. There are still many adjustments
necessary to real revival and the
process of making these will require
further patience.
steel operations continue their old
story of remaining at rock-bottom. The
chief hope at present here seems TO pc
in the Government financial projects
which are taking time to become or
gan:zed and set in operation. Building
also gives little evidence Of upturn. II
this industry would revive, it would, of
course, provide stimulus for many
others. Lumber. for instance, still suf-
fers from plain lack Of demand al
though it is steadily putting itself in
shape through curtailed production.
"AutOm0Dlle manufactures are CoH-
tinuing their cautious maneuvering.
The July production figures show a
more than seasonal drop from the pre-
ceding month and activity since then
has been proportionately low. The re-
port from Detroit indicates a cheerful
attitude on the part of producers, but
little concrete evidence of real upturn.
There are still signsfi however, that an
increased manufacturing schedule Will
be in order this fall.
Spring wheat harvest in the Ameri-
can Northwest is about completed, ex-
cepting late paintings of wheat and
small grains which suffered some from
DRY weather. Harvesting and threshing
of Spring wheat in the Canadian North
west made good progress and some sec
tions are about completed or will be by
the end of this week. Threshing re-
turns are irregular, indicating acreage
,viaIdS of a m 15 bushels and in some