o the
supplies of a merchant. WARES is commonly applied to utensils, as
_glassware_, _hardware_, etc.

GROSS commonly means coarse or bulky. In trade it is used with
reference to both money and goods. The _gross_ weight of a package
includes the weight of the case or wrappings. The larger sum in an
account or bill--that is, the sum of money before any allowance or
deductions are made--is the _gross_ amount of the bill. The word NET
is derived from a Latin word meaning neat, clean, unadulterated, and
indicates the amount of goods or money after all the deductions have
been made. To say that a price is _net_ is to indicate that no further
discount will be made.

The word FIRM relates to solidity, establishment, strength, and in a
business sense signifies two or more persons united in partnership for
the purpose of trading. The word HOUSE is very frequently used in the
same sense. In mercantile usage _house_ does not mean the building in
which the business is conducted, but the men who own the business,
including, perhaps, the building, stock, plant, and business
reputation. The name CONCERN is often used in a very similar way.

The name MARKET expresses a locality for the sale of goods, and in
commerce is often used to denote cities or even countries. We say that
Boston is a leather market, meaning that a large number of Boston
merchants buy and sell leather. In the same sense we call Chicago a
grain market, or New Orleans a cotton market. In its more restricted
sense the name _market_ signifies a building or place where meat or
produce is bought and sold. We say that the _market is flooded_ with a
particular article when dealers are carrying more of that article than
they can find sale for. There is _no market_ for any product when
there is no demand. The money market is _tight_ or _close_ when it is
difficult to borrow money from banks and money-lenders.

II. COMMERCIAL TERMS AND USAGES (_Continued_)

THE NATURAL RESOURCES of a country are mainly the mineral commodities
and agricultural produce that it yields. The lumber and fish produced
in a country are also among its natural resources. The positions and
industries of cities are usually fixed by natural conditions, but the
most powerful agent is the personal energy of enterprising and
persevering men, who, by superior education, or scientific knowledge,
or practical foresight, have often been able to found industrial
centres in situations which no geographical