The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-03-01
FINANCIAL REVIEW.
Henry C!ews's Weekly Letter on the
Business Outlook.


of stocks know as''the industrials. "
The continued uncertainty as to
what may be the final status, in the
new tariff, of certain articles winch
these trusts control naturally gives
to this. group of stocks an active
speculative interest. This is espe.
cially so in respect to sugar, the
duty on which still remains unde-
cided. 1t seems to be reasonably
sure that the Senate will so strongly
favor some duty on the article that
the house may consent TO its reno
val from the free list; aud the best
informed opinion inclines to the
expectation that the duty on raw
will finally range around to one cent
per pound. The thing on which
Congress is likely to differ is the
duty on the refined article. The
eastern members of both houses
seem to preponderate in favor of a
small protective duty on this grade.
sufficient to prevent impOrtatlons;
and the south also is likely to favor
that course for obvious reasons of
interest. But the west, which
grows increasingly rampant against
any form Of protection, may be
expected to oppose any form or
degree of favor to the sugar trust.
The difficulty of the subcommittee
of the Senate finance committe in
reaching report is expected to
cover some possibility of a serious
isagreement. Senators are said to
find much more positive public
hostility to incorporating the in
come tax IN the Wilson bill than
they expected to encounter; and,
in some quarters 1t is deemed posi-
bic that the upper house may ven
ture on the experiment of returning
the bill to the house minus that
odious and unpopular clause. The
longer the measure remains IN the
Senate. the greater the danger of
miscarriage from this cause is likely
to become; for there can be no
question that the public hostility to
the tax, through the whole section
from Chicago to Baltimore and
Baltimore to Portlsnd, Me, is
most bitter and intense, and would
alone suffice to consign to oblivion
the party responsible for the out
rage Of adopting such q tax. 1t
remains 10 be seen what these
clouds on the horizon may betoken;
but Wall street has its eve upon
them as involving possibilities i'm
portant to speculation.
In the railroad list there is little
new to attract the attention of
either investment or speculation.
The scarcity Of freight is calculated
to encourage "cutting of rates."
and something Of that kind is now
and then attempted, but on so
small scale that it does not appre-
ciably affect general prices. As a
rule, quotations are steady and the
"bears" find little inducements to
attempt raids.
Information comes from Paris to
the effect that the bourse has in
contemplation arrangements for
putting on its regular call liberal
of American securi.
ties. Certain issues Of our govern
mant are now called on the bourse;
but the proposal to at once extend |
the list to a selection Of the bonds |
and stocks Of some of our best |
and at later period to
broaden the list so as to make it an
important feature of the Paris mar
ket. The distrust created by our
silver leanings is shown in dispo-
sition to exclude from the bourse
all those of our securities the inter-
est or dividends of which ave not
payable expressly in gold; but this
point does not seem to have been
finally determined. This move
ment appears to have arisen, on the
one hand, from marked scarcity
of transferable investments IN
France and consequently low rates
of interest, and, on the other hand,
from the impressions made upon
notable French capitalists on their
visit to the Worlds Far. So far
as may be inferred from the stand
ing of the promoters Of this move
ment and from the reception it has
met with on the bourse, it seems
likely that the plan will be put into
execution at an early day. If SOFT
is bearing upon both investment
and speculative interests at New
York cannot but be highly impor-
tant. For it is not alone a matter
of creating an early market for a
Paris supply of securities, but it
will widen the European market for
our investments, and help to estab-
lish much broader arbitrage inter-
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