Evening star., 1936-07-26
Business
Continued From First Page.)

| sharp upturn Of business" Also the
Federal Reserve System, in its monthly
report on business, Friday pointed to
the maintenance of production, en-
| ployment and trade in June at the
May level, although usually June is
marked by a seasonal decline.
Amid the signs of economic upturn
the Chamber of Commerce took occa-
sion to minimize the tumult, echoing
at both Republican and Democratic
National Conventions. over the Su-
preme Court decision holding The New
York minimum wage act unconstitu-
tional. 1t held that extremists, in
drafting the New York law, over
stepped legal boundaries of which the
court had warned previously. 1t sug-
gested that more light could be had
from another State enactment on tine
same subject, but omitting standards
to which the court had objected.
The invalidated New York act, the
chamber said, might also have been
found faulty in its penalty provisions.
It provided that an indictable offense
lay in violation of an administrative
order upon which there had been no
judicial proceeding, the chamber said.
LAS if this were not strange enough
doctrine 1t is further provided that
there is separate offenSe each week
there is a violation of the minimum
wage as to any employe. An employer
would apparently not have to main-
tain very extensive staff to run a
risk of penalties that might keep him
in Jail for 10 years"
The chambers report on business
conditions, appearing in its Washing
ton review, follows:
With the record practically made for
seven months, it is clear that the course
of 1886 may show this as the best year
in physical volume of business since
1929. Only extraneouS influences out
side the normal operations of business
processes can now prevent this result.
The course Of events carried employ
ment in manufacturing establishments
in June, 1886. to a point higher than
at any time since october, 1880. If the
second half of the present year has
usual relations to the first half, en-
ployment in manufacturing will be back
to the level of the Spring of 1880.
Increase in Construction.
Manufacturing has not been alone
in going forward In the first six
months of 1886 construction under
taken would seem to have aggregated
in value at least IS per cent more, for
the country as whole. than in the
corresponding part of 1885. The figures
published by the building trades unions
show that more of their members are
now employed than In the Spring of
1880.
Steadily growing activity appears in
other fields, too. For example. between
January and the beginning of Summer
this year, the number of persons en-
ployed in retail trade increased at least
$4,000, the number employed by rail-
roads increased at least $4,000, and the
number employed by power companies
at least 5000.
The movement of goods through the
channels of transportation has risen
proportionately. In the second quar-
ter of 1896 movement by railroad was
better than the forecast of the region
al shippers advisory boards, which in
advance concluded that railroad freight
in carloads would be up by 8 per cert
over the second quarter of 1885. Their
forecast for the third quarter is an
increase of 10.7 per cent. There is
every evidence that the traffic by high
ways has at least kept up with the
quickening of traffic by rail.
Foreign trade also has been grow
ing and making its additions to the
volume of business transacted within
the country. In the first six months
of the year the value of domestic
merchandise exported, at $1,134,0 ,000,-
600, was 13 per cent more than for the
first half of 1885, and 72 per cent over
the value in the first half of 1888. The
value of exports in the month of June,
1896, at $3.50, 900. 900, was per cent
over the value for June, 1885, and So
PSA SCAAe bFCA VAC NdAuC 4O1 OUklC, 1900.
Rise in Imports.
Imports Of goods for use In the
United States have been rising at an
even more rapid rate. At $1,151 ,000,-
600 in the first half of 1896, they were
II per cent higher than in June, 1885,
and 95 per cent higher than in June,
1888.
In the first six months of 1896 raw
cotton, as usual. provided the largest
item of exports. in quantity being
about 10 per cent more than in the
first half of 1895. The number OF
trucks and buSses was up by Is per
cent. American tobacco went abroad
in one-fourth larger quantity than In
the corresponding six months Of 1885.
The value of electric machinery and
apparatus, at $43,ooo.ooo. was higher
by IS per cent.
Sugar continues to have first place