The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-12-11


The banks now hold s6S59.525 in excess OF
the requirements of the % per cent. rule.
The Financier, in it's issue of Saturday,
says: The statement of the New York as
ISOLATED banks for the week ended Dec. 8
proved a surprise in the moderate amount
of cash losses for the week. 1t had been
figured that, as a result of the operations
with the subtreasury and the interior, at
least six millions had been taken from the
reserves. and that surplus holdings would
show heavy decline. Saturday the de-
crease, In excess reserve, as revealed by
the figures, only $1,677 Us. The actual
loss In cash holdings was s2,675, 300, which is
to be traced for the most part to one insti-
tuition Loans fell off $685., 800, and deposits
nearly four millions, the decrease in the
latter bringing the reserve requirements
down about Sl,0O0000. 1t will be seen that
the statement was affected entirely by the
loss of cash from the banks. Whether the
actual condition of affairs at the close of
the week is portrayed by this exhibit is
doubtful. The course Of the money market
from now until after the opening of the
new year promises to be cratic as prep
arations for dividend disbursements usual
~ create more or less confusion. But while
there was heavy outgo of money to the
South last week following a late demand
1t Is worth noting that exchange at impor-
tant interior points is rising steadily. This
Is usually the case at this season. but the
return flow of funds this way is as yet
very small. A maintained high rate for
money, however, must serve as an incen-
tive to attract whatever floating capital
there may be lying at different points
Whiie at the same time it guards against
the loss of specie to Europe, a contingency
that has not been as improbable within the
last few weeks as was supposed The
present demand for money, it is needless
TO say. is unprecedented. Within three
months, as treasury statistics show, over
forty millions have been added to general
circulation, with no effect on ruling rates
OF interest.
WALL STREET REVIEW
Saturdays short session of the New York
Stock Exchange was an animated one. due
In great part TO the continp I'd demoraliza-
ton among some of the Industrial stocks
The determined liquidation manifest in
sugar gave the tone to the market from
the opening and soon spread a contagion of
weakness all through the Industrial list
Opening sales of $500 shares ran the price
down from 146 to 14i1s, compared with 147ss
Friday night Inc stock fell to 1929 before
the appearance of the bank statement. the
the covering movement by the bears, which
followed the publication, rallied the price
TO above IA, together with the whole mar
ket. The heavy offerings of Sugar brought
out by this advance again decided the tone
of the whole market and broke prices
throughout the list. The last sale of Sugar
s %as at iSs1s; tne lowest at net decline of
SIS. American Tobacco kept the leader
close company. especially in the late break
1t sold at 103 and on the next and last sale
at 1O4. net loss of SIS. There were wide
breaches at other points in the list of sne
cialties, notably in Metropolitan Street-rail-
way, which fell an extreme 50. The steel
and iron stocks continued weak but were
not so Vulnerable as they had been recent
ly, and they held the late rally better than
other specialties. The railroad stocks were
relatively much firmer than the industrials
The extreme declines reached a point in
only a few of them. The late rally brought
prices of many railroads above Friday
night, and net gains were saved for a num-
Der OF them. Bears had commenced 70
cover before the appearance of the bank
statement, and their buying became rather
more urgent after the statement owing to
the unexpectedly small loss in cash The
general conviction that the return was nm
trustworthy as an index of the real condi-
ton of banks helped in the final Welding
or prices. The outgo TO the subtreasury
alone. which is matter of record. has
amounted to nearly 100000 since last re-
turn, whereas the statement indicates only
81. 675. 400 altogether. That there has been n
wholesale contract of loans all the week
has been palpable in the stock market. and
the actual new loans by the few banks
holding the surplus reserve can have offset
the contraction so far as to bring the latter
down to $695550 was skeptically regarded
by the speculative public. Under the belief
that the vagaries of the average system of
computation clouded the results in the
statement, the market closed with pressure
to sell in full force again.
The week has been given over to liuuida-
ton in the stock market and prices are
lower throughout the list. The belief in
difficulties ahead in the money market wa
the motive of the selling, and additional
conditions emphasized the weakness in the
Industrial list, so that losses in that de-
partment ranged up to 10 and 10 points
in some cases. In the railroads most of the
losses range from a fraction to 4. 1t is
probable that the money stringency and
loan contraction were the primary causes
of weakness In the industrials. as in rail-
roads, but several incidents helped to make
a poor market for them, and the forced
liquidation brought some violent declines
Mondays Supreme Court decision against
the iron pipe combination. in the so-called
Addyston case. was given cumulat tive effect
by the references in the Presidents mes
sage to the malign effect of some indus
monopoly of production, and in advancing
prices Friends OF the different Industrial
stocks have been diligent in urging that
the practices decided to be Illegal in the
iron pipe combination are not practiced by
their combinations, and that they have not
arbitrarily advanced prices. But their
trials combinations in forming practical
efforts have not availed in face of the con-
victioa that the coming political campaign
will bring clamor against the vast indus
trial combinations which have become on
eratiye in many lines. The Presidents ref
erence TO the prospective recommendations
OF the Industrial Commission. which Is
investigating this ubjeet, brought home
TO the speculative mind that some concrete
measure of restriction and regulation might
be forthcoming from this source. New
stages In the gas war In New York city.