Evening Star Newspaper, December 31, 1934, Page 14

B2 INDUSTRIAL BUSINESS TAKES IRREGULAR PATH Consumer Goods Continue Upgrade, but Other Industries Lag. (Continued From I’iggfl-l &) the cost of installation and further in- creases in the general income level will create an effective demand of substan- tial proportions for this type of equip- ment. Many of the old-line companies are jumping into ghe picture with their best efforts. There still appears to be & chance, however, for a small inde- pendent company to capture the mar- ket with some special improvement. Construction. In this connection, the building in- dustry comes to our attention. Resi- dential building has evidently com- pleted its long deflation, although the jmprovement that was registered in 1934 was not important. The Govern- ment is evidently determined to create activity in the building lines, even if it is necessary to furnish the cash to stimulate them. The year we are now entering will give the acid test of the Government building program. Many industrious minds have been set to work on the problems of re- ducing the cost of building increas- ing its efficiency, and making it pos- sible for the lower income groups to enjoy decent housing. The burden of slum clearance will probably fall on the Government, thus definitely establishing it as the duty of the Na- tion to provide adequate shelter, as well as food and clothing, to those who are not in a position to afford it for themselves. But there is still a tremendous de- mand for new housing, ineffective for the moment because of low incomes, Jow rents, and the high cost of build- ing. Prefabrication may be the so- lution; Government subsidies have been suggested, further industrial re- covery may prove to be the only real stimulant. The housing activity for 1935 will probably be greater in the renova- tion and repair lines than it was in 1934. Paints, wallpapers, roofing, plumbing and hardware should con- tinue in good demand as all the de- ferred wants of present home owners become effective. Likewise rugs, fur- nishings and textiles will probably be bought in better volume. The stay- at-home habit that has been the di- rect result of the depression has in- creased the consciousness of the aver- age home owner of the improvements that are needed. Railroads. No summary of general business would be complete without a discus- sion of the railroads and the utilities, neither of which have made much progress-since the bottom of the de- pression. The crying need of the rail- roads at the present time is more traffic, which can come only as the result of a pick-up in the heavy in- dustries. Numerous other burdens have assumed temporary importance D. C, MONDAY, DECEMBER WORLD PRESENTS MIXED PICTURE AT YEAR’S END A Survey oF AmMerican Dusiness @ 1929 (100 3 Low NEwSPAPER Aov. LINEAGE CONSTRUCTION SreeL Incor Prop. N - DePT. SToRE SALES S N\ NN NS N ResIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION Scare Swows BiLrions or § CHART COURTESY OF Tie MAGAZ.INE OF WALL STRee? U.S. Ravors ProbucTiON AND IMPORTS (Hl.uons or Pwnns) Camprider Assocrates Boston Cunsrioce Aspcutes Bostow GainFuL OccUPATIONS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE 8y Y or Workers IN Eacs OccupaTtion #ioce Assoctares. Boston % WAGES To Vawe or_Prooucts in the attitude of investors toward rail securities, namely the pension bill of the last Congress, which will prob- ably be revised in a more acceptable rm, and the increase of wage scales. major problem is traffic, and at picks up, the other troubles railroads will seem relatively Utilities. The utilities have continued their downward course, partly because of the increase in labor and material costs and partly because of the many enforced rate cuts. The troubles of the utilities are not yet at an end, although the end is probably in sight. Gross business of the utilities, con-| trary to the case with the railroads, has been very satisfactory, with power production at the present time not far from the highs of 1929. But the industry has not yet struck bed- rock, from which a secure foundation for renewed prosperity can be built. Equipment. ‘The outlook for equipment sales for railroads and utilities alike is good. The carriers have become conscious of the value of modern equipment as a cost-saver, and wherever it has been possible to do so, they have bought new, lighter, more powerful locomo- tives. The resumption of the upward trend of electricity sales will shortly call for an expansion of present generating facilities. Farm Machinery. Industry dependent on farm income stand in a good position for the com- ing months. With farm income ap- proximately 25 per cent better for the past growing year than for the year previous, makers of agricultural equipment have witnessed better col- lections, fertilizer sales have been higher, and the mail order houses have improved their earnings con- siderably. Farm products are almost universally bringing higher prices, and the spread between the prices that farmers receive for their. prod- ucts and the prices that they pay for finished goods has narrowed. In summary, the orospects for the LAF.C. News®) +—TraoE~15.22% 2 — e s Mise.~2959 TovaL~5301% ToraL~4699% s ToTAL New LIFE INSURANCE 42 Unitep States Cos. ScaLe Swows MiLLions oF RECTED FOR SEASONAL VARIATION 1923~25~100 e ( - RAL RESERVE BOARD |~un) Camsrivce Associates Boston Canprivcs Associates » Boston kal L__JJan Fes M Aee Mav June Juy Aue Serr Ocr. Nov. Dec.| | [ [Jam Fes Max_ Aee Mav Jome Juv_Aus. Serr. Ocr. Mov. Dec. | | Moreover, recovery from the extreme 3 \FALL RAINS IMPROVE OUTLOOK IN SOUTHWEST | o mg nepat. i sonsoqunte vur Lumser Probucrion Seae Swows Luons oF Fr, “The current year has been marked in much of the territory served by the Santa Fe by the most severe general | drought in the history of this com- pany,” 8. T. Bledsoe, president the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Rail- way Co., points out. “Illinois, Mis- volume of traffic has shown only & small increase during the year. The most tangible feature in the pros- pects for the coming year is the quan- ,my of moisture which has been re- | ceived at intervals during recent months. This has saturated much of the surface of our territory, although there are still some districts where 1934. RIGHT TENDENCY TERMED A MASK Basic Left Principles Held Hidden in Making Re- form Palatable. (Continued From Page B-1.) background for the otherwise not too alarming picture presented above. On the whole, it seems probable that most of this roaring around is for the pur- pose of securing lower rates. As far as the Government at Washingtop is concerned, there will doubtless be con- siderable encouragement of small mu- nicipalities building their own power plants, especially when it is a case of utilizing Federally-owned sources. But as far as the big cities are concerned, new legislation and new appropria- tions from Congress would be needed, and it is most dubious if even Roose- velt magic can squeeze that through in this session. But the fact must be faced that the utilities are just where the rails were 30 years ago, and likely to have the same experience at the hands of the Government. Minimum Wage Agreements. Second on the list of basic principles is that which will be incorporated into new legislation, undoubtedly forth- coming in the coming ccngressional session, which will feature minimum wage agreements. The idea, not by any means a new one or one which de- rived its inspiration exclusively from F. D. R, that high minimum wages are a basic element in future pros- perity in this country, will probably be part and parcel of future industrial legislation. Even more certain is the fact that tremendous efforts on the | part of the administration will be directed this Winter toward getting the child labor amendment into the Constitution, although it seems un- likely that this will be accomplished in the year 1935. In any case, this piece of prospective legislation is not so important economically as it might once have been, due to the relatively small number of children employed. The third of the basic principles resulted in one of the most misunder- stood and most mishandled pieces of legislation that ever appeared on the statute books—namely, the famous, controversial, uproarious section 7a of the national industrial recovery act. It is obscure at this point just what course the Governnient will take on the question whcn legislation which will substitute for the national in- dustrial recovery act is eventually launched. Indeed, the big question is not so much what form the actual legislation will take as it is how it will be administered, how _interpreted, what labor itself will do about it. One thing is certain—that the Gov- ernment is not so disposed to aid organized labor as was once the case. To a large extent the intransigent attitude of the labor leaders them- selves has contributed in no small degree to the confusion which has arisen. That they now realize this, and are working more quietly, more co-operatively, than theyedid when they thought they had a mandate to organize the Nation, is one of the encouraging signs for the coming year. One thing is certain, and that is that the textile strike marked the high- water mark of labor power in the year 1934. It may well have been high tide for organized labor for longer than that. There are two more questions, them- selves closely allied, which constitute the rest of the principles which will be carried to the country in 1935— money and credit. Money Changers Threatened. ‘When the Roosevelt administration first took office there was much dis- cusssion of “driving the money chang- ers from the temples.” This some- what bibical allusion to money prob- lems was promptly carried out, in that legislation was passed which was frankly in the interests of those whose debts exceeded their credits. It is idle to argue that in this coun- try most people are both debtor and creditor; this is largely true, yet at this time, no less truly than in 1933, the interests of the vast majority of the population are and were on one stde or the other. That the policy of the administration was clearly in favor of those who were under a burden of debt, and against those who stand to profit by the fall in prices while obli- | gations remained at the same levels as before, is evidenced by its whole course since that time. The “com- modity dollar” idea, quickly dropped, was merely one failure in a campaign Insurance Survey Reveals Heavier U. S. Bond Buying By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, December 31.—The ‘Wall Street Journal reports a survey of life insurance company investments has disclosed the heaviest purchases of United States Government securi- ties in the two weeks ended December 22 for any two-week period this year. Reports received for last week indi- cated 44 insurance companies bought more than $81,000,000 in Treasury obligations making purchases over a two-week period approximately $170,- 000,000. All classes of bonds bought in that period by the reporting com- panies totaled more than $200,000,000. Hence 85 per cent of their invest- ments went into Government securi- ties. ‘The purchases, which cut down the large cash holdings recently shown by insurance companies, represented sub- scriptions to the Treasury’s mid- month offerings and acquisitions in the open market. to elevate prices. The quasi-stabilized currency at present in use is just an- other attempt at the same objective. The emphasis on raising of prices, rather than on the sanctity of the debt principle, may be expected to continue. The allied subject of credit also offers an instance of change of tac- tics, rather than of principle. still certain that the present admin- istration regards the banks as things to be used in the interest of busi- ness, rather than vice versa. To at- tain their objective, econbmically crude, strong-arm methods were used in the early part-of the administra- tion. Having found that terror among the bankers was no substitute for the desired initiative, a policy of placat- ing, explaining and a kind of ghastly geniality has been in vogue for the past few months. The latest will-o'- the-wisp is the central bank idea. The President, fortunately, laughed at | it. It appears altogether unlikely to appear factually, in any case not in 1935. What does appear likely is a unified spending agency on the part of Government and close correlation of the activities of this agency with Federal Reserve Board policy. The latter, in turn, will probably be ag- gressive, but along accepted economic lines, not those of ballyhoo and a blackjack. It is | RETAILERS HAIL BIG GAINS HERE Business Best in Several Years—Further Rise Is Predicted. (Continued From Page B-1.) and find that we have reached a high plane of business, far above the low levels we have trod for some years.” Another business man put it this way: “I had the best business year in 1934 that I experienced since the stock market crash. It was a long, hard pull to get out of the depths of the depression, but now I belicve we are almost out. So much so, in fact, that we'll be surprised next year when we look around and see what has happened. We are liable to be out of the rut before we know it—just like a boy learning to ride a bicycle, At first he cannot keep his balance. Then, all of a sudden he knows how to ride. It seems to be that way with business. My business was slow until the Fall months of this year. Then there was a noticeable pick-up. Now, the average for the 12 months is greater than for the past 5 years.” “A steady, regular income is the thing that keeps Washington out in front,” one business man stated. “Merchants are able to gauge rather well just what course to take. They know, at the outset, what to buy and when to buy. The money was here to spend, and the people spent it. They reached their highest spending power in this last year, compared to years since the depressioon set in. I can see daylight now, and so can most of my competitors.” For reasons of their own, many business men refused to express their opinions in the public prints, though they admitted privately they had done geod business, satisfactory business, or excellent business in the year. They preferred to wait, many of them, until recovery is complete, expressing the view that what took place in 1934, is merely the forerunner of better days ahead. SRR O China’s ministry of finance is con- | templating issuing regulations for spe- cial punishment of silver smugglers. Looking After Your Financial Health! * Mpst men and women know more about looking aker their health than they do about looking after their money. A man does not become ill —or remain healthy — without reason . . . neither does he get into financial trouble —or become successful — without cause. And just as it is a good plan to watch your physical condition, so it is well to have your financial health looked after occasionally. A sid man must get well before he can build a reserve of health; and the man in financial difficulties must get out of them before he can get shead financially. The simplest way is through Morris Plan. Come in and let us show you how easily this may be done — our experience is based on dealing with the financial ills of thousands of men and women. MORRIS PLAN BANK Under Supervision U. S. Treasury 1408 H Street N. W. The following former partners of HARRIMAN & CO. ° \Washington, D. C. Messrs., HENRy W. Buir, Error BUFFINTON, OLIVER HARRIMAN, GEORGE F. BRENNAN, WILLIAM G. JONES, JR, Frary K. HEATH, CamperiL WER, !souri and Western parts of Kanses,|this is not the case, and the under- Oklahoma and Texas represent the |ground reservoirs have not yet been areas affected relatively most seriously. replenished.” average industry for 1935 would prob- ably appear to show only a very con- servative advance. JANUARY MATURITIES TO TOTAL $85,140,900 Special Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, December 31.—Corpo- rate bond maturities during January will total $85,140,900, according to the Standard Statistics Co. of New York. ‘The number of bonds and notes mak- ing up the total is 231, of which 17 amount to $1,000,000 or more, as fol- lows: and the following former partners of CLARK, CHILDS & KEECH Messks, FRANK B, Krecm, Guerer W. Krrcn, W. CHANNING BURBANK, WiILLIAM M. ERe, GEorGE A. GaRRETT, Lucrus P. Oroway, JR., GEORGE RUSSHON, AUSTIN F. BARRY, SArgpy, e, C N Ro4y 504, oF sunpay Y Egh HOW MANY DAYS o in a Lifetime? ™ NOAY Foip, . W© n O 4y RO HUksp,, ES0ay N SATURDAY 3 0 oAY VEONESDAY quesot oo together with MR, FRANCIS A. WEISMAN, associated with CraRk, Cmips & KExcH, and & former partner of CLARK, CHILDS & COMPANY, as a general partner, and HarrisoN K. BIRD, as a special partner, QUITS M'CRORY BOARD. BUY YARN FOR REICH. NEW YORK, December 31 (#).— German buyers are purchasing Stuart Hedden has resigned as a di- | practically all available cotton yarn rector of McCrory Stores Corp. in Belgium. WEDNESDAY SUNDAY announce the formation of a new partnership under the name of ‘m..tsv'” lrEqiu'table Co-Operative Bldg. Assn ASSETS $6,492,976.24 55th YEAR COMPLE’ WALTER 3. PRATE e Beeretary Subscriptions for the 108th Issue of Stock Being Received Belhelenem Steel Corp. Gold 4igs $1.173,000 . 3.072.000 3.900.000 1.500,000 11000,000 3.000.000 HARRIMAN & KEECH Members: New York Stock Ezchange New York Curb Ezchange and principal commodity ezchanges 11 BROADWAY NEW YORK Deg Motied & Fori” ."Co. Ist 4s o . Organized 1879 Jome s No JOHN JOY EDSON, President Kesner Rity.. Tr. & J. ner Coll. 6% Nts......... Nashville Terminal Co IF we could answer- that question as it applies to ourselves, estate problems would be few and simple. But since we cannot, thoughtfulness for our families says: “Better make a will now. Get it off your mind. You'll feel easier about it. Name an executor you can count on—experienced, endur- ing, financially stable, trustworthy.” We believe our trust department will meet the most exacting tests you can apply to it. Pick-Barth Hoiding Corp. b5 Rio de Jan. Tramway Lt. Pwr. 0. _1st Siemens & Healske g Wickwire Spencer et 10.856.000 Winnipeg Elec. Ry. | Ref. §. F. 58 .. 3.244.000 [} Woodiawn ~Towe: il 1st 6las. ... ... 1,263.000 || ' Do You Desire a Loan on Real Estate or to Take Up First Mortgage? i "THOSE desiring money to purchase & home, | refinance present indebtedness or improve property should consult us. Applications will Tecelve prompt and courteous attention. 8. P 7s... 3147 Steei Conv. BRANCH OFFICES NEw YoRK—SAvoy PrLaza HoTeL...Horsi BriTmoRe...Murray Hri Horsi 'WASHINGTON, D. C. PROVIDENCE, R. I. WILMINGTON, DEL. PaTERSON, N. J. AxRoN, OHIO SrAMrORD, CoNN, January 2— Morgantown & 3 R. Co. 5s. 1.500.000 Baliimgrs & Ohio R. R. Ef altimory o R. Q. AL 5 . Chic. Mil R. 65, Pacific Co Jan: 1.186.700 .. 1.095,000 Steel” Corp. Ser. " to “J" 5s 1.667.500 | December maturities amounted to || $39.938.800 and the 116 issues and | portions of issues falling due in Feb- | ruary total $72,481,350. LINEN TRADE MOUNTS. Czechoslovakia's linen trade is in- creasing steadily. Our Trust Officer will be gald to discuss the matter with you by appointment to suit your con- venience. HAMILTON NATIONAL BANK - B. C. Graham, President al The Washington office of Harriman & Keech will be at P 1! treet N.W. Loans Repayable Monthly 815 Fifteenth Sf National { 3248 No Brokerage . . . No Commissions Telephones: National { 1600 915 F St. N.W.