The times., 1899-12-31
The Reading statement is as follows for
November

Net earn. all companies. 1,l9s,353 Dee 2S,."6
Fixed charges. s..-........ ,.2'%O nc i9'sto o'to
Surplus .-.-.....-....... i2H,575 lieH.. p3'ol-
Fiscal year 10 date
Railway company
Receipts ............... l-3t6,3is me i'5es'nl3
Ner earnings .-... 4. .475 pos Inc. 9Th
Coal and Iron Company
Receipts ...............I40s9 II 0s 9d2 Inc i,}2p,5''3
Net profits. ......... ...-. l,262,695 me 2''''o'
Reading Company
Net income 1929 Inc. li,623
Net earn an c5mpauies. 5s42, lsl me. o55,2s2
Fixed charges. ........... $4,000 Inc. ''229
Surplus ................. l-es2,lsi inc'- '''r''o
The same relatively poor showing Of net
ao-,irce for the month is shown here, a
decrease Of $50, ,O00 having been made. The
al gloss earnings continued on a
gratifying scale The harmony among the
coal lines. the better condition Of the an
thracite situation. and the immense gen.
eraI business Of the Reading make the out
look Tor the securities of the company fine.
Nearly double the 4 per cent dividend, 10
which the first preferred stock is entitled,
is being earned.
The November statement Of the Southern
Railway. like that of the Atchison, though
in a lesser degree shows a good Increase
in net as weH as in gross earnings:
For No.cmbeI-
Gross earning. - S05. .O7j Inc S282,l7
Net ear7lings. ........... 952, 80 Inc. 57,l21
Gross esrrings......... s152.7ss me. J. 4os, ,25G
Net earnings. .....-..... 4,lsl, 5s5 Inc. 65l,GiI
Careful investors both on this side and
in London have been buying Southern Rail-
way preferred and Louisville and Nash
vile for several days on the theory that
much higher prices are certain TO be
reached by them in the near future. Early
dividend announcements regarding both
these stocks are looked for Il is said
that the Louisville viii be put on -egu-
lar > per cent basis, and that a semi-annual
dividend Of , u per cent viii be an
nounced in January.
Talk OF the probability that the subsidy
bin viii soon be a law was accompanied
all the week by heavy buying Of Pacific
Mail. The great profits that would be de-
rived from a subsidy By this company, in
addition to its present earnings Of more
than per cent and its certain large in
crease Of business in the future make the
stock most attractive on semi-invest-
ment as well as wholly speculative basis.
People usually we'll informed regarding
the stock made the statement yesterday
that it viii sell at 80 on Tuesday.
1t is certain that the alliance OF the trunk
lines east OF the Mississippi viii soon he in
effective operation Ii will include not
only the three great systems, but all the
lesser lines with few exceptions as well.
The meaning OF this alliance in the matter
Of higher freight rates and hence greater
profits to the railways cannot be Overes-
timated The superb statements made by
the New York Central Baltimore and Ohio,
and Pennsylvania during the past five
months and the 30 less remarkable earn
ings Of the Chesapeake and Ohio, Big
-Four. Southern Railway and Norfolk and
Western viii be maintained during the
coming months despite the increased cost
Of materials. The buOyancy OF all the
securities OF these lines during the past
few days is given as an indication that
the plans Of The alliance are nearly if not
quite completed. il is understood that
within very few days an announcement
viii be made with regard TO the Balti-
more and Ohio hat will throw considerable
light on The subject,
A renewed activity in Leather common
stock attracted much attention yesterday.
1t advanced tC 16 the recent level having
been around j. Gossip in the street is to
the effect tnat il is to be pushed up again
in much the same fashion as two months
ago. There are other securities. however
with more merit TO put the statement in an
exceedingly mild form.
Among the securities that have showed
strength persistentIy during the past week
have been the steel and iron group. Fed
eral Steel common and preferred and Steel
and Wire common and preferred were all
buoyant yesterday following large ad-
yances during the earlier days of the week
Rumors that the common Wire is to be put
on an per cent basis early in the year
and the certainty that Federal Steel com
mon Will be made regular dividend payer
at per cent, are responsible for the ad-
vances. Further gains are to be expected
and were predicted yesterday by careful
brokers' and financial people generally
The smash in the Industrial list seems like
" to have been the end Of their troubles
such q decrease in price may have been
necessary, or it may not but in any event
the declines were so immense that the
people VINO bought any Of the good stocks
Of the group al the low level got them far
below their intrinsic value, beyond ques-
ton. Weak holders have been squeezed
out and strong people have bought up The
stocks The advance now should be
Eturdily maintained, but quite likely il viii
not be so pyrotechnic as the first booms
in some of The group were.
Tho trading in Brooklyn was large yes
teTday, but buyers and sellers We're very
evenly divided and the changes in quo
/ tatons were not great. Interests that have
! been buyers recently are authority for the