Show THERE ARE I WO SDES This the Condition of Affairs in General Trade WAS BUT ONE LAST YEAR Different Sections of the Country and Lines of Business Return Different Reports but the Situation as a Whole is a Favorable One and Suffers Suf-fers Idcroly by Comparison with tho Enormous Activity of Some Tim Ago Aggregate of Business is Larger than a Year Ago i i New York April Brndstreets tomorrow to-morrow will say Evidences oC the fact that there are now two sides of ihe general trade situation where for a year past there was but one cuinu to sight each week Different KcuUons of the country and lines of business ie turn different reports but thai I the situ iillon as a whole Is a favorable one and suffers merely by comparison with the I enormous und almost feverish activity of some lime ago Is also evident Excluding Ex-cluding the great speculative centers the aggregate of business is undoubtedly undoubted-ly larger than a year ago and the business busi-ness done oven In several Industries re porllnR reduced activity would seem very large even to thonc bcarlshly Inclined In-clined had It not been for the enormous aggregate done some short time ago Crop prospects except In the wheat area or the Central West and In some Hooded aecllona of the South remain all thaI might be wished for Retail demand de-mand Is Improving and nothing of a definitely depressing character has yet developed I In tin abrupt readjustment of steel and wire prices the Iron amId steel Industries In-dustries received a notable shock but have stood tile ordeal very well con llrmlnB earlier advices of the substantial substan-tial I and non specimlatl ye basis for the immediate activity and greatly advanced ad-vanced prices of the past year The possibilities of a runtswcd export trade In pIg iron have constituted one of the foremost supports of that Industry Indus-try Last weeks reports of heavy sales of Souihern Iron for export arc amply continued and an enormously larger tonnage could he placed If freight vales and room were favorable Hardware Is In increased distribution at tile A est but rather oulet in KaKtcrn markets Among oilier muUrlals coppei Is linn whle tin Is rather weaker One of the I most favorably situated Industries Is that I of shoe Manufic turvrs ar j reported active Jobbers are busy and seasonable wenlher In inducing i induc-ing a mfooi distribution from retail handP I Paints oils and drugs are also In good distribution while I the strength of bituminous t coal I partly i owing I to the I strike but also to the Increased demand de-mand for this product Is sympalbell cally rellected In I the enlarged demand for the ytitim grades of anthracite which art expected lo bo advanced on May 1st In agricultural products the situation situa-tion is generally one of sustained I strength Someslight shading In wheat prices is largely the result of the Hal lerliif winter wheat crop prospects In Ihe auctions weht of the Mississippi Spring wheat Heeding Is reported almost completed in the North west much ahead of tho average The sharp advances In the prices of lumber last year and the unsettled position posi-tion of the labor situation In the building build-ing trades arc Jointly held responsible for the rather disappointing business reported this spring Hemlock lumber Is lower and while pine Is also weaker but Ihe hardwoods maintain much of their old strength Wheat Including flour shipments for the week aggregate 3jS36S3 bushels against US9S 151 last week I0S2303 In the corresponding week ot 1SD9 1110009 in 1SOS J135SV3 in 15 > 07 und 12C04D4 In 1SOG Failures for the week in the United Stales are Avell down to the minimum numbering only 182 an Increase of twentyone over last week but two less than In this week a year ago and comparing com-paring with 2j In this week of 1SOS IM I in 1807 und 251 In 1SDC t Canadian failures for the week number num-ber IS as ompared with 19 last week 27 in this week a year ago 22 In ISJS 21 In 1S07 and 2G in 1SOC |