The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-05-11
BANKER CLEws' VIEWS.
The Financial Outlook as Seen From
Wall street.

The Financial Outlook as Seen From
wall street.
New York. May 9.-The attitude of Wall
street is simply that Of waiting for some
thing to turn up The Old conditions have
been watched and weighed until they have
become stale and un.nfluential. They do
not excite distrust, but simply lack slim
ulatve force. Though spectators are
wearied of dullnessf and postponement,
they do not venture to sell The "bears"
are cautious, and certain leading oper-
ators usually found on that side of the
market are said TO be prophesying a
higher range Of values Stocks certainly
are not, as a rule. distrusted; they are
regarded as considerably below their in
trinsic value. Yet there is an indefinable
something that prevents operating upon
these convictions.
That something appears to be that, in
the general situation, there is a blending
of conditions that are distinctly hopeful
with others that are disturbing. 1t seems
to be a broad rule of the national condi-
ton that while the raw material Of pros
perity is ready TO hand and waiting utili-
cation, the mechanism for converting 1t
into wealth Is deranged and distrusted.
We have really no seriously unsound con-
dltions of trade to contend with. Having
undergone three years Of widespread liq-
uidation, credit, though suspected in some
quarters should be in a generally safe and
solvent condition. There IS no initiation
OF NaiueS III any department OF either
trade or finance.
In a few branches of industry, there may
have been brief oversupply Of goods, but
production and Importation have been and
are now being very sharply con-
tracted, and the country IS fast
moving towards a state of under.
merchandise. Certainly, too, there Is no
where any imitation of prices. All the rise
that occurred in the hopeful squirt of 1895
has since been lost, and the current level
en f.N al dc Isl
as at any time within the last thirty
years. and on many important lines of
goods 1t is lower In certain important
branches of production, there is a very
large reduction from the volume of pre-
ViOus years. Since the crisis of 1890, our
construction of railroad has averaged only
$500 miles per year. whereas for the fiVe
next previous years the average new mile
age was 6,000 miles; the OUTLAWS on rolling
stock have also been similarly reduced,
and yet, within this period, there has been
ton. Can 1t be said that there is no great
increase of railroad cons truction and
equipment impending? There has been a
like check upon shipbuilding, and upon
the construction of dwellings,. We have
nowhere any blooms" no speculation in
any kind of commodities or enterprises. In
the homes OF the people there has been
for three years q sharp curtailment of out
lays on articles OF comfort and luxury The
postponement Of domestic repairs and re-
placements mas been general; and in our
factories and workshops there has been a
reduction of OUTLAWS on repairs or reno
vations of plant. Three years of such de-
ferments has accumulated a vast amount
of necessary replenishment which needs tc
be undertaken.
The country is suffering from this Ions
period of enforced conservatism and most.
ponement of necessary wants, and can.
not much longer defer supplying them
Such a condition of affairs has ALWAYS
proved to be the occasion for a revival
of business sometimes steady. at other
times sudden; and there is no apparent