22 



The Florists^ Review 



July 22, 1920 



fl 



EMabllshed, 1897, by O. I^ GRANT. 



Publiabed every Tharaday by 

 Thk FiiOHisis' Publishing Ck)., 



620-660 Oaxton BnlldlnK, 



SOS Soatta Dearburn St., Ohlca^o. 



Tele., Wabash 8196. 



Registered cable addrem, 



Florrlew, Oblcago. 



Entered tm second class matter 

 Dec. 8, 1897, at the post-office at Ohl- 

 ouro. 111., onder the Act of Marob 

 8. 1879. 



Subscription price, $1.60 a year. 

 To Canada, $2.60; to Europe, fS.OO. 



Adyertlslng' rates quoted apoa 

 request. Only strictly trade ad- 

 Tertislnff accepted. 



!! 



Results bring advertising. 

 The Eeview brings results. 



More people are looking for jobs now 

 than were a month or two ago. 



Never has the trade ended a season 

 in such good shape financially as this 

 year. 



Summer is a good time to close your 

 store on Sunday — and then don't open it 

 again in the fall. 



Reports indicate a gradual resumption 

 of former efficiency by workers, though 

 per capita output is still far from normal. 



Favorable crop conditions, despite the 

 poor outlook earlier, brighten the busi- 

 ness prospect of the trade in the middle 

 west. 



Transportation difficulties are hinder- 

 ing production in the glass factories, 

 while the demand for their output in- 

 creases. 



Better fuel conditions are hoped for 

 as a result of the interstate commerce 

 commission's extending for thirty days 

 the priority order regarding the distribu- 

 tion of coal ears. Hope is all that has 

 been stimulated so far. 



The managing director of the Ameri- 

 can Wholesale Coal Association lifts a 

 lone voice to state his disbelief of a coal 

 shortage. He may possibly be right, but 

 the grower would prefer to see part of the 

 ■ nation's adequate supply in his storage 

 bins. 



A list of sixteen special prizes has been 

 sent out by Secretary C. W. Johnson to 

 be offered at the exhibition of the 

 Chrysanthemum Society of America at 

 Washington, D. C, November 10 to 14. 

 , The show, to be held in conjunction with 

 the Washington Florists' Club, will be 

 at the Old Masonic Temple, at Ninth 

 and F streets, N. W. 



Perhaps nothing speaks more plainly 

 of the steady increase in the telegraph 

 delivery of flowers than does the rapid in- 

 crease in the number of cards in the Pink 

 Part of The Review. There are several 

 new ones each week, four this issue, yearly 

 orders, and they all came without direct 

 Sfolicitation — because readers of the paper 

 recognize the Pink Part as a business 

 bringer. W. E. Trimble, Princeton, 111., 

 wrote: "You may for a time omit all 

 our ads except the one in the Pink Part; 

 that's the real ad and it must continue 

 indefinitely. ' ' 



There has been a notable increase, in 

 recent weeks, in the number of eastern 

 readers who are using classified ads in 

 The Review, not only to move surplus 

 stock but as a means of building up profit- 

 able, steady wholesale mail-order busi- 

 ness. 



MAY CONTINUE EXPRESS UNION. 



Florists who hoped for an improve- 

 ment in express service when the pres- 

 ent combination should be unscrambled 

 and the old companies continue sep- 

 arately see less chance for that occa- 

 sion. Approval of the interstate com- 

 merce commission was asked last week 

 by the American Railway Express Co. 

 of its continued operation as a con- 

 solidation of the Adams Express Co., 

 American Express Co., Wells Fargo & 

 Co. and the Southern Express Co. 

 George C Taylor, of New York, presi- 

 dent of the consolidated organization, 

 said $31,000,000 was needed for equip- 

 ment and additions''to existing facili- 

 ties. This sum could be obtained from 

 bankers, he said, if the consolidation 

 was continued, but it would be difficult 

 for the constituent companies to finance 

 themselves. The probable action of the 

 interstate commerce commission is not 

 predicted. 



TBANSPORTATION AND PRICES. 



The two overshadowing factors in 

 florists' calculations now are the trend 

 of prices and the transportation conges- 

 tion. Whether growers can obtain suffi- 

 cient coal for adequate flower produc- 

 tion depends largely upon the former. 

 Upon the latter rests predictions of a 

 successful year ahead for this trade. 

 The two important business aspects are 

 treated in the latest Dun's Review as 

 follows : 



"Recent betterment of agricultural 

 prospects has not failed to affect busi- 

 ness sentiment favorably, but crop con- 

 siderations are not the governing factor 

 in the immediate situation, and the ad- 

 vance toward midsummer finds the lull 

 in commercial activities continuing. 

 While some of the present slowing down 

 is seasonal and is therefore not unex- 

 pected, yet the compelling reasons for 

 the existing quietness still appear in 

 price uncertainties and in railroad draw- 

 backs. The freight tie-up, from which 

 adequate relief is unfortunately slow in 

 developing, causes inconvenience and 

 concern to many interests, and not only 

 serves to prevent some transactions that 

 might otherwise be consummated, but 

 also tends to restrict outputs and to 

 further inflate some prices. Inability to 

 promptly obtain needed supplies of fuel 

 is embarrassing to dependent industries, 

 and the accumulation of product at 

 manufacturing plants threatens shut- 

 downs in various instances, the piling 

 up of materials at steel works having 

 reached burdensome proportions. 



"Important as the element of trans- 

 portation congestion is, however, the 

 price question remains the overshadow- 

 ing feature, and now has an increasing- 

 ly potent influence in shaping current 

 and future business operations. With 

 the conviction growing stronger among 

 buyers that the main price movement 

 will be downward until more normal 

 levels are established, hesitation in en- 

 tering upon forward commitments has 

 become practically general, and consid- 

 erable machinery is idle in textile mills 

 and elsewhere because of lack of orders. 



Not only are price declines this week 

 again in the majority, but openings of 

 new lines of some goods for advanc-r 

 seasons have been announced at appre- 

 ciable reductions in quotations, thus 

 demonstratipg the changed attitude ol' 

 sellers, and predictions of higher prices 

 to follow in certain quarters do not ob- 

 scure the fact that many markets arc 

 now yielding. Reflecting the price re- 

 adjustments and the shrinkage in vol- 

 ume of business, bank clearings at dif- 

 ferent points now disclose a narrowinj^ 

 of the margin of increase over last 

 year's figures, while the recent rise i?) 

 the commercial mortality has bpen such 

 as to compel attention." 



COAL MEN BLAME RAILROADS. 



Progress in obtaining coal for green- 

 house bins has been so small thus far 

 in July that it may be called none. 

 Traffic congestion is still blamed for the 

 shortage of fuel. The coal men have 

 raised their voices high in execration 

 of the railroads, contending that the 

 car supply is still far from what it 

 should be. Mine operators have stated 

 that enough coal can be mined to meet 

 the fuel requirements of the nation. 

 The car question is the sole stumbling 

 block, they say. The shortage has been 

 estimated at 250,000 open top cars. Only 

 a small fraction of this number is now 

 being constructed, and it will be some 

 time before they will be ready for use. 



There is even talk of a resumption of 

 government control over coal if condi- 

 tions are not remedied. It is rumored 

 that the president may appoint a fuel 

 administrator to deal with the situation 

 with war-time powers. Members of 

 Congress, who voted to deprive the 

 executive of the powers of war legisla- 

 tion, are urging such an appointment. 

 It is believed, however, that no action 

 will be taken at Washington until more 

 time has been given for the situation 

 to clear. 



What is said to be an up-to-the- 

 minute report on conditions in the coal 

 fields was submitted this week by the 

 committee of bituminous coal operators 

 to the conference of railway executives 

 and operators which has been meeting 

 in New York and discussing plans to 

 relieve the fuel shortage. The report 

 states: 



"The coal-producing districts of 

 Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, 

 eastern Kentucky and Ohio since April, 

 1920, have been able to ship only about 

 three per cent more coal than in 1919. 



"The market demand on this terri- 

 tory requires shipments of about 28,- 

 000,000 tons of bituminous coal per 

 month, but the shipments from the 

 mines supplying this territory for April. 

 May and June have averaged only about 

 23,000,000 tons per month, simply be- 

 cause not enough railway cars have 

 been available at the mines to make the 

 shipment required. 



"The situation requires an immediate 

 minimum increase of twenty-five per 

 cent in shipments from the mines of 

 the coal fields mentioned. Current ship- 

 ments from the mines must be increased 

 by a minimum of 5,000,000 tons monthly. 



"The mines in the fields under dis- 

 cussion have sufficient developed capac- 

 ity, with men and machinery entirely 

 adequate, to produce and ship more than 

 the total quantities required. Primary 

 limitation on shipments has been and is 

 a lack of railroad cars to move the 

 product from the mines." 



