The times., 1899-10-16
STOCK MARKET GOSSIP.
A Generally Hopeful Feeling Re-
garsfinE the Immediate Outlook.

NEW YORK. Oct. 15.--Many careful OBJ
servers Of the technical stock market sit
uation believe it probable that the market
viii mprove from this time with a grad
ual OF quick recovery, as it may be. from
the professionalism OF the past month. but
q sure recovery nevertheless. X is the sup
position Of these people that the money
market viii be easier and that there will
be no more poor bank statements. With
the question OF tight money out Of the way.
they argue. there will be nothing to prevent
the general conditions Of great prosperity
from asserting themselves. Paradoxical as
it may seem, this prosperity, with its tre-
nendous demands on the circulating me-
dium, has been largely the cause of the poor
stock market. II has been the chief bear
argument. This is an unnatural condition.
and one that will not last, because il is
unnatural. Money may, and probably will.
demand fairly high rates, but the people
gho have been buying stocks during all
this weakness recently win not allow
fair rate to interfere with their plans.
The immediate market quite reasonably
may be expected to show Improvement
The November interest payments by the
Government viii be made, this week. and
they will give to New York large part
of the 81 000,e00 that is to be disbursed.
beginning viii also BE-, made on the pay
ments of interest due in later months and
some money at least will be taken out of
the Treasury's idle surplus by people will
ing to pay for the privilege This prospect
will probably induce heavy covering by the
large short interest, and such a movement
may at any time become a stampede The
bank statement yesterday was not a very
good one, but it is not believed to have
been as good as the actual condition OF
the banks.
Henry Clews, in reviewing the situation,
says III his weekly letter: THE outcome
providing it is confined to a war between
the Dutch Republic and Great Britain, is
easy to foresee 1t can but result in a
crushing defeat to President Kruger and
his seven associates, who are really the
Government of his little nation. In the
event of any European nations becoming
involved, which some anticipate, but is
not very likely, it of course becomes a
different matter Should France Germany
and Russia become involved by any pos
sbility the effect will be rot to put down
American securities, but to make them so
sought for by foreign investors as 20 ad-
vance them instead, for the reason that
this country is so far removed from the
contest and less likely to be involved
than any ether, thereby making invest
uieillS III lHlS country SAFER tnan any Otner
while the war lasts. The war can hardly
be very protracted affair; and for that
reason it is not probable that the inter-
ruption of the African gold supply will
precipitate any really acute financial re-
suits. And, in any event, we are having
large current increase in our home out
put, while the current Klondike supply is
variously estimated at from twenty to
thirty millions per annum. Were the
African output suspended for six months
the worlds supply would still about equal
that Of two or three years ago. So far
as this country is concerned the stock of
gold far exceeds all precedent, and we
could well afford 10 take securities instead
of cash in settlement of any creditor bal
ance in our foreign trade. There is every
probability of such a balance accruing
through the next few months; and that
factor viii protect us from attempts TO
compensate European deficiencies from our
resources of the metal"