The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-25

The earnings on the capital stock equaled
s.54 per cent, against 5.3i per cent in 1898.
This statement accounts for the general
belief a few weeks ago that the stock
would be given a higher dividend rate in
the future The failure OF the directors TO
make the increase Is not so easy TO explain
These figures and the statements OF the
other anthracite coalers recently pub
lished. With the current fine business of all
the lines. is an all-suficient explanation
| of the buoysncy of Reading first preferred
and the others of the group. The same
general reasons apply with the soft coalers.
| Harmony In the rate situation. big de-
mand for bitumirsus coal, the prospect OF
| large experts. the scheduled increase in
rates on April !. with the weekly fine state
meuts OF gross earnings, are bullish argU-
ments well nigh unanswerable. Reading
first advanced to so yesterday. ct which
price with she dividend recently taken off,
| II is higher than at any time since the
| December break At the same time the
friends of the company argue that tie
! stock should sell now, as 3 per cent div
| idepd payer at higher level than IL did
| last year, with no dividend. The top price
| last year Was SIS l-2, and for several months
| II ranged above 81. Norfolk and Western
common was the feature OF the soft coal
| group. IL sold as high as 81 H.
The extent to which the earnings state
ments all over The country are improving
is shown very forcibly in the record COM
piled by the Financial Chronicle for the
week Reports of gross earnings for the
second week of February have been re
ceived from sixty-one railways. OF this
! number ifty-nine show Increases for the
week. ard only two decreases. The total
earnings for the period we're 1914 1875.
1 I'D no 10
creases only 1886. 30 that the balance OF
increase for the entire sixty-one lines was
81 S77l42 This increase is a trifle over 30
| ner cent. compared with the record for the
same weet. last year. A total Of sixty nine
| lines for The first week Of tie month shoS
gross earnings Of ss,SiS, I6s, an increase OF
S1.1l6.s15, or 1915 per cent
Sugar has been quiet all the week, and
there have been absolutely no new deNel-
! opments in the affairs OF the company eN-
cent that there is talk o, renewed cutting
of rates The stock has held its own re-
marlsahly well in the face of heavy de-
clines In othe~ volatile securities, and
friends of the company argue optimisticblly
from this that the insiders are not SELL
ing it,
The meeting of the Leather company
will take place next Wednesday. and the
new plan for the reorganization OF the
capital stock of the company will be taken
up al that time. The prospect Of this
does not Ill the street with enthusiasm re-
garding the stock, and II was one of The
dullest yesterday. Its decline during the
week was one OF the largest on the list,
from le and q fraction &c below 13
The St Paul earnings statement for the
third week OF FebruarE is, as usual an
excellent one. The grass earnings were
STA ssl, an increase of $40. 1888. or more
than IA per cent The srsngers have de-
clined only fractionally during the week.
with the exception OF Burlington, which
went of more than two points. Reports
. from officers Of the lines are most hopeful