The herald., 1897-12-11
JOHN HYDE
ON CHANGE
What Was Done Yesterday on Wall
Street

NEW YORK, Dec 10-Today's stock
market was renewal of the contest be-
tween the reactionists and the combined
interests. which have embarked on q bull
campaign The bears were encouraged by
the evident stress under which the bulls
labored yesterday In laboring to sustain
values at weak points and were prepared
for vigorous measures to break the mar
ket. Although they had the advantage at
the outset Of lower quotations from Lon
don. the earliest deals showed advances
Sugar leading. But that stock, together
with Manhattan, and the coalers, were
soon weakened by liberal offerings to real
ize, and the reaction soon attacked the
whole list.
| There were heavy dealings In Northern
Pacific preferred, which has been sharply
advanced recently on rumors of liberal
dividend to be declared today The action
on the dividend was timed for about the
hour of closing the market, and the street
was kept busy all day with contradictory
rumors on the subject. One of these had
1t that action on the dividend would be
postponed altogether and the resulting de-
cline In the stock uncovered stop loss
orders covering shorts In the final deal
ings. and the early information Of the de-
cislon of the directors to disburse the first
dividend of ] per cent caused rally of
nearly a point in the stock. but left net
AoSS VI Il bldTt OI u ITdCtlOU. Inc pears
made vigorous attacks on all of the stocks
Of the local corporations which have been
recently advanced-the transit companies
on talk that underground rapid transit
was about to fail an dthe gas companies
ON alleged insurances of political favor
itism These stocks all reacted from over
per cent and up to 8 per cent. The stocks
If transit companies recovered partly on
the postponement Of q decision on the un-
derprOlIn1 nl0n The r ~,
however, broke the market and precipita-
ted declines in all the rest Of the list. The
leading stocks lost l per cent or over and
some as much as 2 per cent. The covering
of shorts at the close and the rally in local
transit stocks reduced net losses in most
cases to fractions The stocks Of several
northern and southwestern railroads were
comparatively firm and show the smallest
losses. Union Pacific showed a tendency
to rally, though 1t weakened somewhat
later denial Of the story that the re-
organization had offered the government
the full amount of the principal of its
claim for settlement Of the Kansas Pa
cific controversy. Business through COM
mission houses showed a large falling off
today. and sales for London account con-
tinued on quite a large scale. The general
news of the day and statement Of rail-
road earnings which were favorable, were
disregarded and the course of the market
was due almost entirely to the contest be-
tween professional traders
The feature Of the bond market was the
decline of four points in the Kansas Pa
cifc consols. due to the apprehension that
the possible purchase of the property by
the government may debar the holders from
a share in the Union Pacific reorganiza-
tion plan. The demand for high-grade
bonds continued good and number of
gains from to per cent were shown.
The speculative bonds reacted somewhat
In sympathy with stocks. Total sales,
s3 10000.
hid and the kS IL hid