The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-01-15
COURSE OF THE NEW YORK STOCK
MARKET IRREGULAR AND
PERPLEXING.
SELLING BY PROFESSIONALS.
THE BREAK DUE FOR THE MOST
PART TO TECHNICAL CON-
OPTIONS.
STRENGTH IN SOME FEW ISSUES.
Net Losses of "A Point or Over Gen
eral All Through the Active
List.

NEW YORK, Jan. 1.-THE course of today's
stock market was decidedly irregular and
somewhat perplexing, SO far as a perception
of the general tone of speculation was con-
cerned. AS the day progressed the lack Of
sustaining power in the special stocks, which
has been the marked characteristic of the
| market for several days past, came to be
more and more felt. The disposition TO watch
closely for signs of a reaction became more
marked. and the final hour saw very gen.
eraI throwing power of holdings by profess
sional traders. There was no special news
to account for the break, and 1t was probably
due for the most part to technical conditions.
Stocks which have been recently prominent
for strength conspicuous in today s
break by reason of profit taking. The per-
sistent weakness of Sugar, a more or less
dominant factor by reason of the volume OF
trading in it, also helped to break the mar
ket Opening strength was due to the some
what feverish demand for local traction
stocks due to special causes and to the exc
cution of a large volume of buying orders for
London account Quotations came higher
from London before the opening, and probably
%, 900 shares of the internationals were bought
in this market for London account There
were also commission house orders, especially
for gilt-edged railroad stocks. The Wander
stocks were not lacking in continued strength.
There were also sharp. advances in New Jer-
sey Central and Peoples Gas. But the profit
taking invited by the advances in special
cases only served to increase the late weak
ness of stocks which had failed to benefit
from the early strength. AS a consequence
there was a very general break of about a
point, ranging up to over points in Manhat-
tan and over points in Third Avenue. Gov
| ering shorts served to retrieve part of the
decline, but net losses of point or over are
frequent all through the list.
Money tended to become somewhat easier
| today, without any actual change being made
| in the quoted rates for call loans. There was
a brisk demand however, for commercial pa
per- which drove the rates down to range
of to per cent for the choice grades. To-
morrow's statement will show a large in
crease in the cash holdings
The bond market active early in the
day, but became less active and reacted
slightly in the later dealings Union Pacific
and connecting line issues were strong. Sc
attic, Lake Shore & Eastern firsts, trust re-
ceipts, rose ~ per cent but lost part of
that. Other active issues showed gains To-
tai sales, M,26O 600. United States new tours
| regular were Is lower bid; ditto coupon and
the old tours regular a lower, and the Is IL
higher.
The total sales of stocks today were 457, 600
shares, including: Atchison pfd, 4,635; Can
ada Southern, 1890; c. & O., 3,15O; Burling-
ton 81 800; L. & NJ, $685. Manhattan, 40, 22O
Michigan Central, 1875; Hawaiian Com
mercial company, $780, Reading pfd, 4,170;
| Missouri Pacific, $3.50; New York Central,
"a 231; Northern Pacific 81 94O do pfd, 2O197;
Rock Island, 1910; St. Paul, 23,505 Union
Pacific, 1850: c. G: W, 11,05O; Peoples
Gas, 2S,7OO; Sugar, CLIO; Western Union,
1900.
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
of trade: