Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-03-11
SHORTS IN READING.
They Boom the Big ConIer to Get Out of a
Tight Plnce-Heaviest Transactions
Since the Oregon Trans
couffnenfnl Dpal.

continental Deal.
NEW YORK, March 10-There was little Of
the stock market to-day outside of dealings in
Reading, though few stocks in sympathy with
that stock showed marked strength at times.
The fear of the consequences of the compile
tion of the deal, however. kept the general list
in feverish and generally unsettled condition
throughout the day. and raid by the bears in
the last hour upon the easing off of the pres
sure upon the shorts in Reading resulted in
wiping out most of the early gains in the rest
of the list.
The shorts in Reading this morning found
themselves in tight place, and not since the
Oregon Transcontinental deal have there been
such heavy transactions in any one stock. nor
wide an interest taken in any deal. During the
forenoon, at least the corner in Reading ab-
sorbed the entire attention of the street. and
out of total of III, 900 shares listed stocks
traded in over $4,000 were in Reading, and for
the first hour over $4,000 shares Of that stock
were dealt in. For the day it furnished 256. 44G
shares out of 379,693. or about tw0thirds Of
the entire business in listed stocks. The record
for one stock Is certainly eclpsed by this.
A large crowd gathered in the stock before
the opening, and everyone was bidding with no
stock apparently for sale. The price rose from
3S15 to 40. when the bidding for cash lots began.
and, while sales regular way were made as
high as 4134 cash sales were run to 4234. and
the difference at times was even larger than
that The bidding for cash lots continued very
urgent up to noon. after which there was less
demand for 1t until P. M. but in the last hour
very little of the stock was sold that way.
Beyond the movements mentioned there was
little in to-day's market. and dullness and stag
nation wore feverish tone. Sugar was an ex-
ception, however, and while 1t ran off at first, a
material advance followed. most of which was
retained at the close. Louisville New Albany
and Chicago was conspicuous for one of its
sharp advances, and Union Pacific and Tennes-
see Coal were weak.
Railroad bonds were slightly more active, but
outside Of Reading IS, which. after opening up,
lost all of the improvement, there was little fea
ture to the trading. The sales reached 1924
000. The tone of the market was steady, but
there were few marked movements. There
were few losses, and Louisville, New Albany
and Chicago firsts declined to liz, and Peoria,
Decatur and Evansville seconds 3111 to 66
The Post says: OF course this heavy ma anipu-
lation of Reading has no reference whatever
TO the value or prospects of the property. or TO
the prospects of the general stock market 1t
is merely the endeavor of parties, who have
got loaded up with Reading, to get rid of it
without loss. To do this they must first put up
the price, and then try to sell out on each other
for the public will not buy it. The proof of the
artificial character of the price to-day was that
while the stock, of which there is $50 500 OOO
was selling at 40A. the third preference incomes
of which there are SIS, 500 900. that come ahead
Of the stock were selling at the same instant
at 36L.
But aside from the Reading manipulation
there was stronger feeling developed in the
general market to-day. As mentioned on Sat-
urday. Lackawanna is also quite largely over
sold, and the supply of stock in the street is
small because it has been absorbed for invest
ment. The granger stocks are all still oversold
to some extent and now that the latest and
most trustworthy information is that the Chi
cago roads are all likely to come into the new
Interstate Association, the prospects are that
there will have to bo a covering of shorts in
those before long. which will advance their
prices moro than the same thing has done in
Reading.
The monetary situation is the most serious
obstacle to an advance in the stock market and
while there may not be any very decided ad-
vance, all things considered the chances are
largely In favor of higher prices yet in March
than any in February.
The followlng table shows the prices OF active
stocks on the New YORK stock Exchange yester-
day. Corrected daily for THE DISPATCH BY
WHITNEY STEPHENSON, oldest Pittsburg mem
bers Of New Y ork Stock Exchange, 81 Fourth ave-