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Show 3Ji UB 00lrNTB'Y AT LARGE. fUL The year 190S began with a very pH severe financial depression throughout qB tto United States. It closes with that :!K depression lifted, and remarkable gains toSf " bank clearances as compared with -H corresponding weeks of the year be- fore. The conditions aro almost pre-agHl pre-agHl cisely reversed; for wuereas in the open- iMjflft iu weeks of the year and for many months thereafter tho comparison of jiojl weekly clearances with those of tho WI WeClt before 8,1wcd tremendous shrink- $mtL oes constantly, the year closes with Rood many weeks showing exactly the uH contrary enormous gains in the weekly iqtU reports of bank clearances as compared ,tfflf with, those of the corresponding week ttjH the year before, and there is au abund- r'aijB n,1,i0 oi' ready money everywhere. The rHl R0,tl Produclion of the country is ro- ported at upward of $90,000,000, bo-.SpSlPV bo-.SpSlPV ran of about $6,000,000 as com-kmtf com-kmtf ParerAitli tlie gold production of tho ( country in 3907. Ljj0 j 'J1 he great public event of the year J ; was the Presidential election, resulting .M '. iQ the election of Mr. Taft and a Re- publican Congress. .The prospect of a n&M more stable and conservative admin- 'u3 istralion of governmental affairs under L&Mp.-L. him lias had a very steadying effect . " U,,on ullsiucss ail(1 liis tended to foster p j i feeling of confidence in the inimodi-3C" inimodi-3C" . j V ate business future and in tho upbuild-10v upbuild-10v j. iutf of our industrial establishments. ' J i 0u the Fourtl1 of July last a new star - U i T,as added to the Hag for tho admission of Oklahoma as a State. Tho American !3"l!l0vv consists of forty-six stars on T the blue field, with tho stripes as be-Tho be-Tho spectacular labor undertaking prosecuted by the United States during tlie year has been tho work on tho const con-st ruction of the Isthmian canal. Various Vari-ous laud slides have emphasized what was known hitherto of the uncertainty of tho earth deep in that region, and tho demonstrated insecurity of the foundations for the Gaum dam and lock have revived in emphasized degree the opinion that a lock canal at that place on (lie Isthmus is impracticable; and the advocates of a soa level canal are urging that form of construction with greater vigor than over. President-elect Taft is about to go to the fccene. and it is expected that when he returns something- definite will be given out by him on this proposition. Great work bas been done by way of excavation during tho year, and it has been demonstrated thai the excavation, nctforiling to tho plans adopted, will be completed sonic time before it will be jpoFtiblc to construct tho dam and pro-iiat- rn'71osed locks. "Swf? The journey of the battleship fleet J'8inltf aiound the world baa been a spectacular a-TUl c veil t. of the year, although the .-journey ollfolffw has not yet been completed. Tho ar--fo-iil! rival of tho ficct at tho southern end 'C""$$l of SI0SS l'n,lal is expected at any $'lipW I lime, and from thence homeward its "0? kf" T1'0-1'088 1)0 reported almost daily. XCCP " 'j'ho foreign relations of the country iiriouV';: have been veiy cordial during tho year, ii'iy J ; (ilT v,'ini VcnL'zl,eltl :n"1 tho iGW'-l lruakiii off of diplomacy boing tho ; ini only adverse incident. These negotia- is vy "k tions, however, havo been resumed irith tho new government of Venezuela, and a favorablo outcomo is expected of the differences between tho two countries. The recent treaty between this country and Japan assures the status quo in the Pacific, and also tho integrity of the Chinese Empire. This treaty has been received with cordial approval by the leading nations of the world. A movement that will ultimately assume as-sume considerable importance when tho gallery play features of it have been eliminated, . bas been undertaken during dur-ing the year in the way of conserving tho county's natural resources. This should, and no doubt will in time, take on a forestry feature which will re-storo re-storo to a largo extent the forests of all different woods in regions not available for agriculture, but which havo in the past borne abundant forests. for-ests. The new forests will bo planted upon those regions, first quick-growing trees, then those of slower growth, and finally those of tho slowcsst growth and of the best timber. These will no doubt all be planted simultaneously, and as the quicker growths are cut out, room will be afforded for the better growth of the heavier timber. And then when the forests aro well grown they can be preserved with the better variety of trees which can be best developed in the different regions and preserved in permanent form, as the forests aro cared for and perpetuated in Europe This move, however, takes on at present a sort of oppressive restriction in this Western country which is at times extremely ex-tremely meddlesomo and offensive. This conservation will also in timo no doubt include the impounding of the flood waters on tho head streams of the Ohio, preventing the tremendous floods in that river and releasing those impounded im-pounded waters in tho dry season so that a good stage of navigation can be kopt up iho year around. The same will doubtless be done on tho headwaters head-waters of tbo Mississippi and its tributaries, tribu-taries, and tbo Missouri and its tributaries, tribu-taries, so that tho early spring and the Juno floods will be decreased and water will be stored abundantly to secure a good stage of water the 3'car around for purposes of navigation. The United States Department of Agriculture has conducted schools for the farmers in different sections of tho country throughout the year. Tho original orig-inal form of these schools took on tho instruction of the Southern farmers in tho raising of cotton. Tho effect lias been to largely increase tho yield per acre, and tho introduction of an early-uiaturiug cotton which is picked and out of t the way before tbo appearance appear-ance of the boll weevil. Latterly schools for the Tmprovemont of corn culture have also been conducted under tbo auspices aus-pices of the department, with tbo result re-sult that the yield of corn per acre is very largely increased and tho quality of corn decidedly improved. On tho whole, the year has been fairly good to this country. Tho year goes out with evcr3' indication of increasing advancement, and it is fully expected that tlie present year will rcinstato tho people of the United States in tho enjoyment en-joyment of their old-timo prosperity. |