COMMERCE (INTERNAL) OF THE UNITED STATES. 



121 



ciation of over 9 millions ; preferred stock of 

 the same, $2,525,400 at par, declined from 

 116 to 102, the 14 points representing a third 

 of a million ; Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, 

 capital $24,999,800, declined 12|, or from 90f 

 to 78J, depreciation near a million and a half ; 

 Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati, capital stock 

 $1,491,800, fell 54f , from 93| to 39, nominal loss 

 over 8 millions; Columbus, Chicago & Indian- 

 apolis, capital $13,938,972, sank from 41 to 4f, 

 a decline of 36f , standing for over 5 millions loss 

 of capital ; Delaware, Lackawanna & Western, 

 with a nominal capital of $26,200,000, quoted 

 in 1873 at 101 and at the end of 1877 at 51|-, 

 declined 50, representing 13 millions and over ; 

 Erie Railroad, capital $78,000,000, quotations 

 in 1873 67, in 1877 (December) 10, shrinkage 

 56f, making 44J million dollars ; Hannibal & St. 

 Joseph common stock, capitalized at $9,1 68,700, 

 fell 38, from 50 to 12, depreciation of market 

 value near 3 millions ; preferred stock of the 

 same road, $5,083,024, declined 53, or over 2 

 millions, range of quotations from 7l to 28 ; 

 Illinois Central, capital stock $29,000,000, de- 

 cline in prices 52, from 126^ to 74, deprecia- 

 tion of market value 15 millions; Lake Shore 

 & Michigan Southern, capital stock $49,466,- 

 500, quoted at the first date at 97 and at the 

 final date at 64|-, or 32 less, depreciated nearly 

 16 millions; Milwaukee & St. Paul, capital 

 $15,399,261, fell from 54| to 37i, decline 17, 

 representing 1 J million ; Morris & Essex, capi- 

 tal $15,000,000, quoted in the beginning at 92 

 and finally at 78, decline 13, or 2 millions; 

 Pacific Mail, capital nominally $20,000,000, fall 

 of price 52, or from 75 to 23, showing a de- 

 preciation of nearly 10 millions ; Ohio & Mis- 

 sissippi, capital $20,000,000, fell in the stock- 

 room quotations from 49f to 10J, a range of 

 39|, showing a depreciation of nearly 8 mil- 

 lions ; Panama Railroad, capital $7,000,000, 

 decline from 130 to 125, shrinkage $350,000; 

 Toledo, Wabash & Western, with an original 

 capital of $16,000,000, fell off 60J, from 75| to 

 15, a depreciation of almost 10 millions; West- 

 ern Union Telegraph, capital stock $33,787,475, 

 declined from 85| to 74, 6f less, shrinkage 

 about 2J millions. These twenty companies 

 represent a total par capital of $482,304,368. 

 The shrinkage in the market value' of their 

 stocks during the period mentioned amounted 

 in the aggregate to $174,630,976. A compari- 

 son of the prices of the stocks of forty-five 

 railroads, being all the principal railroad stocks 

 dealt in on the New York Exchange, at their 

 highest rates before the panic of 1873, and at 

 their lowest rates after the crash, with the 

 prices in September, 1878, shows a deprecia- 

 tion of 37 per cent, as the immediate sequel of 

 the panic, which was diminished to 31 per cent, 

 by September 20, 1878; the prices, reduced to 

 gold values, sank in 1873 23 per cent, below 

 their highest range, and stood in September, 

 1878, only about 20 per cent, below that range. 

 The currency value of these 45 stocks was, at 

 the date of highest prices before the panic, 



$666,236,787 ; at the date of lowest prices in 

 1873, $420,060,673; and on September 20,1878, 

 $461,060,673. 



In 1876, 54 railroads, with a length of rail 

 of 3,846 miles and an aggregate invested capital 

 of $217,848,000, were sold under foreclosure; 

 in 1877, 30 roads with a mileage of 3,875 miles, 

 and a total capital of $198,984,400. The fore- 

 closures for the two years therefore embraced 

 84 roads and 7,721 miles of rail, with $416,- 

 832,400 of capital stock. Proceedings were 

 instituted in 1876 against 30 more railroads, 

 with 5,591 miles of rail and $397,894,000 capi- 

 tal, and in 1877 against 44 additional roads with 

 a length of 5,409 miles and a total capital of 

 $320,681,930 ; and 16 roads besides, 2,388 miles 

 in aggregate length, having a capital of $255,- 

 755,400, were ordered by the courts to be sold 

 out for the mortgages in 1877. The total of all 

 the roads foreclosed or in difficulties for these 

 two years was therefore 174, with a total mile- 

 age of 21,109 miles, and a total invested capi- 

 tal of $1,391,163,730. The bonds of roads 

 foreclosed or reorganized previous to January 

 1, 1876, amounted to $159,373,300. Of this 

 total capital of insolvent railroads, amounting 

 therefore to $1,550,587,030, embracing more 

 than one third of all the railroad property of 

 the United States, probably fully one half, or 

 over $750,000,000, may be considered wiped 

 out. The loss of capital in the railroad busi- 

 ness is revealed by the fact that on $1,311,333,- 

 503 of the $2,248,358,375 total railroad stocks 

 of the United States no dividends were paid in 

 1876, and on $642,604,841 of the total railroad 

 bonds, $2,220,293,560, no interest was paid. 

 The interest and dividends together paid in that 

 year gave an average return of only 3*66 per 

 cent, upon the capital invested. Whether, how- 

 ever, taking the share capital and debentures 

 together, the average rate of profit for a period 

 of years has been less on railroad capital, con- 

 sidering only the amounts actually invested, 

 than on other classes of property, must, in the 

 absence of exact information, be considered an 

 open question. 



The total grain crop of 1878 was consider- 

 ably greater than in 1877. The wheat crop 

 of 1878 was estimated at about 400 million 

 bushels. The States of Illinois, Iowa, Min- 

 nesota, Nebraska, Dakota, and Kansas pro- 

 duced, it is estimated, 45 million bushels of 

 wheat more in 1878 than in the preceding 

 year. The average prices, however, are 25 or 

 30 cents less for the bushel than in 1877, and 

 the total proceeds will be therefore considera- 

 bly less than in that year. The maize crop in 

 the single State of Illinois in 1877 was 260 mil- 

 lion bushels, and in Iowa 156 million bushels, 

 yielding in the two States respectively $75,- 

 000,000 and $39,000,000. In 1878 their crop 

 was 10 per cent, larger, but prices from one 

 fourth to one third less. 



The grain produced in Europe altogether is 

 estimated to aggregate 5,000 million bushels ; 

 of this Russia produces about one third or over 



