The age-herald., 1899-06-07
BUSINESS SMALL
 IN STOCK MARKET Notable Hardening of Values in
 Railroad Securities. TRADING WAS APATHETIC Bonds Proved Dull and Generally Firm With Very Few Yielding Spots
 The Total Sales At Par
 Value, $2,21o,ooo
TRADING WAS APATHETIC

New York, June 6.-Business was on Tar too small a scale on the stock exchange today to warrant any very well defined con- clusion as to the general temper of specu- lation or a just reflection of business and financial conditions But there was very notable hardening of the values in railroad securities, which was followed up as the day progressed by a rise in prices which embraced pretty much every railroad tock dealt in.
 This strength started in Louisville, which was very confidently bought for London account. The bidding up of the price in this stock in the course of the executing of buying orders imparted strength to the whole group, Southern Railway preferred, and Norfolk and Western preferred being the first to respond, and the grangers, Pa cifics, Southw estern and even some of the trunk lines following this line. .'Pennsyl- vania and Pittsburg, and c. c. c. & St. L. rose from lk to 5A. the latter stock, how ever, losing all but 11s of the advance.
 The motive assigned by the buyers was the possibility that more liberal policy to- ward stockholders and less insistence upon reinv of resources in equipment ight follow the change in administrator made necessary by President Thompson's death.
 But the trading for the most part was profoundly apathetic and there were mln- utes at times when no tape came from the ticker. The attention of the professional traders was also centered on Sugar, and utterly cratic movements of this stock dls- closed the entire uncertainty regarding to- morrow's dividend action. Advocates Of the regular dividend and of a reduction seemed equally confident and equally numerous, so that the stock dipped to below last nights level and rebounded far above 1t.
 The extreme range was 4% points and the close was at a net gain of 1A and within F point of the top. An incident of trading today were some large orders on the one hand that tomorrows Sugar dividend dec laration would be at the regular rate and offers on the other hand to sell the dividend on large amounts of stock for less than the regular rate.
 The same distrustful attitude is main tained towards the iron and steel stocks notwi thstanding the semi-oflicial intima- tion as to the rate of coming dividend declarations and informal assurances that current earnings are far in excess Of the proposed dividend disbursement.
 Even the preferred stocks of industrials, however regular they may have been had som influence on the general situation. The induStrials se0m to be the most impor- fant group Tn tAe present Qull Ildrhet anu heaviness in the market. A further small shipment of gold today was as wholly without influence in the stock market as well as in the foreign exchange market, as those that have preceded it from the same institution.
 The conviction is general that the over flow is the result of special conditions and no longer an exchange situation.
 The bond market was dull and generally firm, though there were a few yielding spots. Total sales par value $2,210,000. U. S. old As registered and the 5s advanced 1sc in the bid price.
 Total sales of stocks today were 292,65S shares, including: American Steel and Wire, 25, 300; American Sugar, 45, 800; Ameri- can Tobacco 5000; Atchison, preferred, 20,70O; Brooklyn Transit, 21,2OO Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, 11,O0O; Federal Steel, 13,000; Louisville and Nashville, 150, 400; Norfolk and Western, 3;10O; Peoples Gas, 1900; Southern Railway, 5000; South ern Railway, preferred, $500; Tennessee Coal and Iron S200 Western Union, 2,50O.
 Money on call steady at 2@2k per cent. last loan per cent. Prime mercantile pa- per, BOA per cent. Sterling exchange firm with actual business in bankers bills at $4S6 for demand and s4S52Q4S6 for sixty days; posted rates, $4.S6hG4S7 and s4S6 commercial bills, s4S5A4S51a; silver certif- cates, 61@62c; bar silver, 60Ac. Mexican dollars, 4SAc
 Government bonds strong.
 State bonds inactive.
 Railroad bonds irregular.