The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-22
THE LONG-PREDICTED SLUMP IN
STOCKS SHARPLY REDUCED
THE PRICE LEVEL.
THE NET LOSSES UNIVERSAL.
RANGE OF DECLINES IN ACTIVE
SHARES FROM TWO TO SEVEN
POINTS.
CALL MONEY RATES MARKED UP.
Rush to Liquidate, Helped Along by
the Manipulation of Powerful
Financial Interests.

NEW YORK, Sept. 21.-What has been ex-
pected and foretold and what the bull oper
ators, in the stock market, have yainly sought
to avert, came to pass today. The reaction
airy spirit took hold Of the market and a
heavy decline resulted in the level Of prices
throughout the whole list. The rate of the
decline in the different stocks will seem at
first glance out OF proportion, but more
careful scrutiny will reveal that the heaviest
losses are in those stocks that have under
gone the most marked advances. That the
movement of the market today is a natural
and inevitable development of the progress
towards improvement in business and indus
try which is going on in the country is OBJ
vious. sustained upward course of prices
is almost always unchecked, until it has ex-
ceeded the reasonable valuation. The convic
ton has been gathering strength for long
period that prices of stock were passing be-
yond this limit, and that reaction imin-
ent. Manipulation by powerful financial inter
ests is one thing that had deferred it. An
other thing has been the continued plethora
and cheapness of money inviting to continued
speculation.
In the natural and orderly course of things
it was to be expected that the expansion Of
business would absorb idle money and make
it more expensive. Bank statements for two
weeks past have reflected the certainty that
such rise in the price of money was ap-
preaching. The marking up of call loan
rates yesterday and their continuance at
high level today crystalliZed into certainty
the impression in many minds that prices of
stocks were excessively high and as a con-
sequence the demand to buy fell below the
offerings to sell. There was spasmodic and
Intellectual effort, shortly after the opening,
on the part of the bull contingent, to check
the decline, but it was apparently abandoned
and the market was left to itself until the
CHI
seemed to have come to pass at about
o'clock when the market became dull at
a decline ranging from points upward. The
cessation of heavy realizing offers encouraged
some renewed buying and rally extending
to over point in many shares ensued the
market sold off again before the close to the
lowest point Of the day.
There is reason to believe that the rise of
the call money rate not entirely free from
manipulation. There were evidences of con-
certed action in the marking up of the rates.
1t was noticeable that the sharp stiffening
of the money rate did not result in as great
a fall in the rate of exchange as might be
in our money market. There was an invita-
ton to manipulate the money market in the
report which given currency that one
of the heaviest bull operators was under some
pressure in, carrying a very heavy line OF
stocks. There disposition also to make
much of reports of an ultimatum from our
government to that of Spain on the Cuban
question. Some effect was produced on stocks
of transcontinental lines by Attorney General
McKenna's opinion against the validity of the
discriminating duties aginst foreign goods im-
ported through contiguous countries. That
there was heavy selling for short account also
was quite evident and standing orders to
sell stop-loss on decline were uncovered in
large numbers.
Such were the factors in the days mar
kets for stocks. The result is that net de-
clines are universal and in the active stocks
the range all the way from about points
to ~, the latter Sugar The local gas stocks
were conspicuous sufferers. Consolidated Gas
closed off 51s, Brooklyn Union 81. The meas
ure Of the liquidation is found in the enor-
nous total of the days sales which reached
$40 600 shares.
Dealings in railroad bonds were heavy, the
par value of the sales reaching So, 600.
United States As regular were lower and the
new were Il lower.
The total sales of stocks today were 910. 600
shares, including: Atchison, $500; Burlington,
81, 42O; c., c., C. & st. L., 4,500; L. & N,
%, $40; Manhattan, $4,000; Missouri Pacific,
12,25O; N Y. c., 1920 Northern Pa
cifc, 12.25O; do. pfd; SO. 725; Reading
80, 4SO; Rock Island, 40.32O; St. Paul, S1,320
ST. Paul & Omaha, 10 200: Union Pacific, 3d.
05O Wabash pfd $500: Spirits, 5000 Tobacco,
sc, 42O; Sugar 1920; Leather pfd, $500
The following were the fluctuations of the
leading railway and industrial shares fur
nished by c.. H. F. Smith & Co., members
New York stock exchange and Chicago board
81