New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-12-17
financial.
The Financial World.


market was n for bad time, were justified
The Street has had bad week OF course Il
has not been bad for operators who have stuck
steadily. and from conviction. to the bear side
It has been a harvest time for them. But thess
people are few The only person known to have
had really large commitments on the short
side. was Mr.. Keene; and he has had to stick II
out through many a day and week which must
have put his convictions 10 a severe test. Thu
vast majority of people who trade are bulls,
and commission house which IN unable 10 al.
wise It's customers to buy, or which urges them
to get out Of their stocks, Is not popular. The
conditions which have made IT certain that tbs
security markets of the world would tend down.
ward toward the close Of the year, have been
patent for some time. 1t was infaIlible sign
OF what coming when the value OF money
continued everywhere to rse-frst in Germany
which country had led the way in industrial
speculation; then in England, which had fol-
lowed; then here. which was the last to follow
in the path where the others had led. Had
there been no Transvaal war. decline Of IN.
hated values must have come: but the has
brought 1t with series Of crashes.
So reluctant, however, has been the average
business man to see what was before him, that
It has been the hardest work in the world to &c.
him to sell out; and tho market has been 50
repeatedly advanced by speculative operations
lately, in the face OF circumstances which did
not warrant It. that advice to sell seemed I'm.
timely-and 1t is always unpopular. The actiT-
ty of general business blinded people to the
fact that the rise Of prices had been In anticpa.
ton OF this very activity. and had largely dis
counted It, Another reason why the decline was
so persistently fought was that the big men Of
the speculative world were deeply commit.
ted in various enterprises, that they have
struggled desperately to hold up values; until
many Of them are now in the condition where
being tied UP with large amounts OF unstable
securities they have to sell, and are selling, the
stocks and bonds which have market, in order
to carry those which have not. This is. there
fore. essentially time OF trouble for rich men.
The man in business who is not extended, is all
right; for commercial conditions are sound.
Under the law of compensations, the fact that
strong men struggling against the decline
gives reasonable assurance that the market
will be held from time to time as far as money
and skill can do It; and that no wholesale
smashing is likely to occur The big men can
look out for themselves. While they are doing
this the small man can avail himself OF the op-
portunity to sell anything he finds announcement
to carry. The man who has sold before, and has
his money handy can be on the watch for bar
gains. The opportunity for the bargain hunter
is at hand.
The situation Is that imitation and expansion
have received staggering blow; hence II is no
time to buy new and unseasoned securities,
unless they are at such low prices as justify
all risks which the future has for them. On
the other hand, the securities Of sound proper
ties are sure purchases on days when the mar
ket looks at its worst. for they are brought to
forced sale through the exigencies OF holders
who have been hurt in other directions; and
the man who can buy outright at such times.
or on large margin, is certain to gather in SUBJ
stantial profits.
The short interest IN the market had been 70
largely covered during the declines earlier in the
week, that 1t really surprising how we'll the
market stood UP yesterday morning in the face
OF the semi panic which had already taken place
in London. Probably the bulk OF the buying
which sustained prices was also covering; but
after the bank statement came out, stocks were
sold again and the close was decidedly ragged
There are no better stocks on the list, intrinS-
cally, than the international stocks: which In
clude st. Paul Pennsylvania, Louisville. Atcha-
son and others; but 1t Is not difficult to see thai
with London throwing over everything, these
stocks are likely to decline until the DIVIDENDS
they pay bring their prices more IN consonance
with money conditions than they are now. But
they will not go down without frequent sharp
rallies. The drop that has taken place IN GER
tain high priced stocks which rich men have
held in bulk. and held up far and away beyond
any relation to the dividends they paid Is so far
probably only the beginning OF their decline. II
is unnecessary to enumerate these stocks. They
can be seen at a glance.
The big tumble that Sugar had through the
week was on the forced liquidation Of a pool OF
room traders; who knowing there was a fair
sized short interest in the stock. forced II up,
although It was tolerably obvious that insiders
were DESTROYS to get the stock down From lo0
up to 161, these traders were filled up with more
than they could digest. and when they could
take no more the decline proceeded with accel-
Grating force until 125 was reached BY this
time some OF them had been pretty well cleaned
out The pool in Tennessee Coal had TO face the
detection OF one of its principal members VINO
had to sell because he had too many irons IN the
fire. When he ran, not even the prestige OF tne
bank identified with the speculation IN the STOCK
could avert disastrous drop Metropolitan
stock has been dropping for like reason ana "
will be wonderful indeed II Consolidated 'as
stock does not go down to some level more ap-
proximate TO the per cent dividends II pays
The question of how much further London VIII
hurt this market. both by unloading OF seeurities
and drawing gold. is very uncertain Nothihs
but disaster can be expected for the briOsh
arms, after the astounding display OF 'ncompe.
tency in the commanders. The men are al
right; all the accounts of the fighting show tnAs
the rank and file are just as good men as ever
faced death: the trouble is with the commander~
They don't seem TO know anything but TO thr0"
their men at the enemy just where and how nv
has prepared TO meet them. But what one man
with brains can do is shown by the way Mare
king has held out Obviously the British hs"
yet 10 find their Grant. Sherman and Sheridan.
as the North had TO find them through years p"
bloody disaster. Doubtless the people over theN