The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-12-25
FINANCE AND TRADE.
The Features of the Money and Stock
Markets.

Markets.
NEW YORK, Dec. 23-The first
transactions on the stock exchange to-
diva disclosed how much of yesterdays
weakness must be attributed to selling
for short account. The rush to cover
short contracts carried prices up with
out regard to fractions in the special
ties, which had been the market Of at
tack. Sugar, Metropolitan, Tobacco,
Brooklyn Rapid Transit and Peoples
Gas Jumped from So to points on
openIng sales. The same buoyant len
dency was shown in the international
list Of railroad stocks. London had
lifted these sharply before the opening
here, but they bounded above the Lon
don parity 10 level from ! to points
above last nights close here. The ur-
gency OF the demand from bears consul :
tuted a miniature panic. Their short
selling yesterday was based on an as
sumption that the periodical settlement
In the mines department OF the Lon
don stock exchange which began to-day
would disclose so weak a position there
that n panic would likely result on
the contrary, the earliest news from
London showed that the settlement IN
London was proceeding easily ana IN
an orderly manner. sentiment there be-
ing much encouraged by the shipments
Of gold from New York.
Rumors OF financial ENHANCEMENT and
forced liquidation pursued prominent
figure in the financial world all day yes
terday. To-day, on the contrary, 1t was
affirmed that $lO.0O0O0O In government
bonds had been placed as additional Sc
curIty for this man of wealth, and that
his difficulties were ended. The pro-
fessIonaI traders accepted the one ru-.
NOR with the same CTcdence as they had
the other, and put In lively two hours
trying to buy stocks to save them
selves, from loss.
Interpretations Of the bank statement
were decidedly confused, and the mar
ket ran of on realizing. 1t did not get
back to the top. but hardened again
materially, and closed strong. The cash
increase shown by the statement 0i
| 81. 732, 500 came MS surprise. In view OF
| The gold shipments and the drain To
| Boston. II is an evidence Of the hid
den resources brought out In such a
crisis as that OF the past week. The
Item OF loans can hardly be an accurate
| reflection OF the net result Of the dras-
tic contraction of the week. The small
ness OF the decrease, ES,O9i,GOO must be
due the average system Of compute
lions.
What happened in Wall street this
week had been long time brewing Tho
whole may be summed UP in the term
oyer.speculation. Amongst profession
| al SPECTATORS there Ia n process eX-
preEslvel, termed "pyramiding." Money
is borrowed with which to buy on a
margin. When the price of the pur-
chase rises the advance is rcckoned as
proIii. and Is invested In more pur.
chRses. The profits thus rG-invested
helm to advance the price, and the paper
proftR thus amount up to enormous
! proDortionR But the demand which
| has thus advanced the prices was a
| purely fictitious one The pyramid
! thus created Ia an Inverted one, and II
| topples over when an attempt Is mace
| 10 sell to rSalize. The capitalists do
not call their operations "pyrnmidinG,
| hut the pcrslEtent imitation In values OF
| aecurItics which went on for months
: had much the same eject. 1t has been
long evident that any large selling To
realize would deprcss the market, and
sornc very wealthy combinations have
| peraistently held their stocks. ana iE-
! norcd tho symptoms Of coming strln-
gency in the money market. with an
/ obstinate optimism regarded the re-
pleniahmcnt Of the money supply which
resulta have not justified. Cnpitalist0
and bankers who had underwrittcn thl
securities OF many OF the now Industrial
/ fluctuations found the market Ia
ken from them. and prices OF tho
securities in the open market dropping
hc,ow the underwriting prices. with
/ tbis burdonFomc load TO protect the
growing strIngcncy OF money throw nm
avalanche OF all classes Of securities on
| Tie market to obtain needed funds. II
was such realizing movement on q
large scale that II had long been sought