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About The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 17, 1894)
THE COURIER AfW The course of Nebraska politics has been watched with much greater inter est than UBual by eastern people. The New England capitalists, the managers of the great trust companies and saving banks, have a very justifiable fear of popu list Iegislation,and there is no doubt, had the independents carried the legislature in the late election, that most of the largo loan companies and banks would have ceased loaning in the state entirely. Some of them even re fused to renew commercial paper maturing -the first of November until after the result of the election was learned, stating that in event of fusion success they would want their loans paid and would place their money elsewhere. This was no mere bluff for campaign purposes, but was simply a matter of business with them. It seems to be the opinion of most loan agents here that the election of Judge Holcomb will do no particular harm in the east. With the legisla ture so largely republican the governor can do very little to injure the credit of the state evt.n were he so inclined. t Now that elections are over the business world is anxiously look ing for tho promised revival of business. It has come in some lines, but in othera it seems very slow in materializing. Tho stock mark et has shown a great deal of activity and considerable advance in prices; retail trade all over the country shows improvement also and there seems to be no doubt that in tho eastern states and in those sections blessed with good crops the improvement will continue and be permanent. But while there may be some improvement in retail business in Nebraska occasioned by the approach of cold weather, and the fact that people who were too "hard up' last year to buy anything but what they actually needed.must now buy tho necessar ies of life or go cold and hungry, wo can hardly expect a large trade until we get another crop. Think or it a moment tho business interests of Nebraska are do pendent directly or indirectly almost entirely upon the fanner. This year he lias nothing to sell except such stock as he has n-t sufficient fe'd to winter over. Most of the hay has bean sIJ already. There will be very little grain or 1io:ib sold until the crop of wheat and oats is harvested next summer- There is nothing to bring money into the state. Up to lat j ear an immense amount or money came into Nebraska annually for loans on farm and city property. This has ceaed to a great extent and especially western farm loans are al most impossible to place. t On the other hand, think far a moment of the vast sums of inter est money that must be Bent from this state to eastern mortgage and bond-holders, of the thousands of ..ollars which will be sent east to pay life insurance premiums alone, and which is not now coming back in the form of real estate loans. One can readily see why mon ey will not be 'easy in Nebraska the coming year. Tho people of this state, farmers and business men alike will need to practice the strictest economy in order to tide over this period of depression without serious failures or lossess. That tho business men of Lincoln appreciate this fact is shown by the general cutting down of running expenses, the gradual contraction of business to. ward the center of the city, the dividing up of stores so that where a merchant formerly occupied a whole room he now gets along with half of it and rents the other to-some other business,etc. We shall get along in this way until another crop is harvested and money begins to come jn instead of out then Nebraska will be "in it' with any state in the union. - t The average American citizen likes to bet on election, and he gen erally uses less judgment and more prejudice than in any other transaction ho goes into. For instance, he is a republican, and if clothed in his right mind and using his usual good business sense, and determined to risk some money ho might argue that as tho sugar trust, like the republican party, is interested in a protective tariff, the success of the G. O. P. would in all probability "boom" sugar stock. If then, instead of betting 8300 on Majors, he had quietly bought that amount of sugar trust stock on the stock exchange on a margin, he would to-day have nearly twenty times that amount of money to his credit as the result of republican snecess, instead of seeing some demo-pop enjoying his hard earned dollars. In the one instance he stood to lose 8500 with a slight chanco of winning it In tho other he could only lose $500 and might win many times that amount It was the largest odds ever offered. The same would have been true of almost any stock he might have bought. But our hind sight is always belter than our foresight. Tho moral is don't bet. T The most important transfer of real eotate the past week is tho sale of the Exposition building by Mr. J. J. Imhoff to ILrpolsheim er & Co. for 885,000 cash. This fine property undoubtedly cost Mr. ImLoff much more than ho received for it. It was built in boom times when everything was high, and the inside furnishings are as expensive and elegant as any thing of the kind in tho west. Tho total coast of the property must have been, at least Sl'iO.ODO. It is one of the institutions which imcoln people can show visitors, even from New York city, without being ashamed, and Mr. Imhoff may well have been proud of it. Although it did not bring what it cost, still in these times 835,000 in cash is equal to more than 8130.000 in the boom days of four and five years ago, and it is generally consid ered a very good sale. It emphasizes more than ever the staple sol id value of inside business proparty. No.v, when property of all kinds all over the country has depreciated in value from twenty-five to fifty per cent and suburban property and even what used to bo considered inside residence property will hardly sell at all, tho for tunate possessor of well located business proserty in Lincoln can turn it into about as many gold dollars as he ever could. Ilerpol sheimer fc Co. are to be congratulated upon owning one of the finest department stores in tho west. t Tho only recent failuroof consequence in Lincoln was that of the Van Dusen-Brydon Millinery Co., the details of which have been pretty thoroughly aired in tho daily papers. The question has been asked in connection with this and other recent failures, how can a firm, with almost no capital of it's own to start with, obtain s largo an amount of credit in the east, for goods. A firm, for example, wbicu failed not long ago. owed relatives, according to the chattel mortgage records, about $2000. This amount was apparently about all they put into the business and the relatives held first m rtgages to secure it. Then they bought goods, running up to fosir or Hvo thousand dollars from a dozen different firms in amounts ranging from 82X) to 81200. It the usual course in such cases is foil wed, and tho slock sold at sheriff's sale, tho fortunate holders ot tlu first two or thiee mortgages will get thou- money; tho rest ot the credit ors will have nothing but a little mora experience. There is some thing radically wrong with our credit system to admit of such abuses. It is not only one loss of this kind, but they are occuring all tho time, all over the country-and every wholesale houso has to take into consideration, in making prices, tho chances for such loss es. Of course tho firms that are good have to make up in increased prices for losses sustained by tho ia failures. This firm, with the t lowest ratiug given, in the mercantile agencies, obtained credit for goods from eastern houses for nearly ten thousand dollars, and this is happening every day. It would seem that closer and moro con fidential relations between the credit men of the different, whole sale houses throughout the country would lessen the liability of loss somewhat. Certainly some method should be found to prevent tho extension of almost unlimited credit to parties not worthy of it. It is mere speculation for a man to go into mercantile businesr almost without capital, buying his goods on time. If he makes it "go he is all right; if he don't somebody else loses the money. FREE STREET CAR FARE On the Western Normal and its transfer lines to all students, resi dents of Lincoln beginning Monday, Nov. 12th and continuing ten weeks. Thorough collegiate courses, splendid commercial, short hand, tel egraphy and music departments. Call at Western Normal and make arrangement". W. M. Cno;uf, President. Y I
