The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-09-17
REVIEW Of Wall STREET
MARKET INDIFFERENT LAST
WEEK TO NEWS, FAVORABLE
OR UNFAVORAHLE
CONFIDENCE IN THE FUTURE
Some Good Judges show Their FaitI
Based on Sound Conditions of
General Business-CIeWs'
Financial Views

I ~ Clews in his weekly financial review
for the week says:
The stock market has been sfngularly
Indifferent to news of all sorts, favorable
or unfavrobale, and transactions have
been on an exceedingly limited sca.e. At
the moment the Chinese situation has no
effect whatever, although DEVELOPMENTS
in that quarter have been more assuring.
The New England elections and the aw
| full disaster in Texas had equally small
influence. In short, prices showed re-
markedly firm undertone, but no one Is
| likely to buy stocks for the rise with any
! freedom until the outcome of the cleo
ton is more certain than now appears.
Business men realize that sound money
| IS again the chief issue, and that impez
riaiism, trusts, etc, are all of secondary
Importance until this supreme question is
| permanently settled. In the face of such
a struggle, and remembering the feverish
suspense Of 1856, when the battle first be-
| gan, 1t is not surprising that valucs fe-
fuse to respond to the many favorable
| influences outside of politics. There IS
! still the possibility of a decline in the
| sound money vote, because the peril now
seems more remote, and many who were
| influenced to vote in 1896 solely on that
issue will imagine it safe to ignore that
now. From this cause and indifference.
| also, there Is decided danger of gain III
the free silver ranks, and, as the country
knows what TO expect in such an event.
| prudence dictates a waiting policy until
| the results can be ant;c pated with some
| degree of safety. Presidential elections
| invariably develop surprises; and, if these
should prove to be of the disagreeable
| sort, the effect would be disastrous to
any bull campaign. Two or three weeks
| hence the outlook may be more clear
monetary conditions are proving more
favorable than expected. The surplus
reserve stands at about So, 99609a, against
S2,450,e0O last year, and $7.070,Oe9 the year
| before. Bankers are lending with mere
! freedom and rates are easy, in spite of
increasing interior demands. Foreign ex-
change has also declined under increased
| offerings of commercial bills
Back of all the uncertainties which
are just now holding Wall street in check
| is the business situation. which, in all
essential respects, is quite satisfactory
! While prices and profits on manufactured
/ articles are lower than a year ago, there
is welcome abatement of that feverfsh
! activity in 1888, which, if long continued
would have surely prec.pitated a serious
tendant evils of shut-downs, reduced
wages, etc. That such calamity has
| been aVerted IS certainly good reason for
congrat ulation. In place of a suddsn col
t lapse we have had a gradual decline in
prices and moderate curtailment of pro
duction, SO conducted as to re-estab'ish
rather than destroy confidence Brad
streets price index figure touched its
! highest on Feb. 1, when it stood at
! 9S.1G7. Since then there has been con-
tInuous decline, though lately very Slow.
until on Sept 1 the figure was $685. a de-
cline of 6.526 points On Sept 1, 1899, the
index figure was S4.7S4. so that prices in
general are scarcely points higher than
a year ago. Should business revive, as
now seems likely it is st.ouable if
the downward movement will go any fur
ther, saving where prices in some few
instances are still comparatively high.
| Another very satisfactory indicat ton of
business conditions is the clearing house
returns from all parts of the country. ex
cept the financial centers. such as New
York, Boston, Philadelphia, ETC., where.
for reasons we'll known, the returns
| show decrease. For instance, during
the eight months ending Aug. 81, the cit
les included in the Middle West showed a
gain over last year amounting to Ga nor
| cent: the West proper, a gain of 1896;
the South gain of 10.5, and the Pacific
states a gain of III per cent These fig
ures very plainly demonstrate that the
late wave of depression has been mainly
confined to the EaSt-the section if NAV,
noted, which chiefly felt the effects of the
silver campaign four years ago 1t is
also evident that the agricultural Sec
tons of the country upon which our ma
uonal prosperity has always depended
have held their Improvement better than
the industrial or financial centers AFT the
East. which have suffered from high
prices and excessive production of both
commodities and securities Vast uuan-
titles OF industriais have been put upon
the stock market. to say nothing of the
railroad bonds and stocks which Europe
has sent back on every rise; so that the
wonder is the depression in the financial
markets has rot been much greater
Very evidently some good Judges of the
situation have confidence in the future
and this confidence is unuueStfonablv
based upon the sound condition of general
business.
The agricultural sections have every
reason to expect another season of good
times. There is an ample harvest of
wheat and corn, both likely to bring bet
ter pr ceS than year ago. High prices
for cotton also promise to more than
compensate for any shortage in yield of !
that staple; while the South through
development of its Industrial mineral and
other resources, is far more prosperous
today than at any time during it's history.
In addition the favorable progress of
our foreign trade there is Just one other
proof of general prosperity which cannot
be too strongly impressed; and that is the
steady growth of railroad earnings, which
continue to exhibit gratifying gains, even
when compared with the large results
of the last two or three years. AS we
have said in previous advices, some de-
creases in earnings need cause no sur
prise, and in view of heavy expenses no
further great Improvement in net results
need be expected, at least for the pres
emit; but the fact that declines of sign. fl
canoe are not yet in sight is convincing
testimony of the soundness and activity
of business.
The Improvement in the demand for
manufactured iron has already been suffi-
cfent to check the weakness in prices
and If continued VIII soon result in taxi
ing care of the present surplus output
of pig iron. The textile trades which,
next to iron, suffered from high prices
and overproduction, are also getting into
better form through the same natural
remedies, lower prices and curtafIed pro-
duetion. Buying Of cotton goods has dis
tinctly improved since the advance in cot
ton and the large Borden purchase of
print cloths. Other incidents could be
added showing the tendency of business;
but sufficient have eeen cited to prove
I that its course is toward Improvement.
and that it is being only slightly influ-
enced by election prospects The move
I ment of money to the South is under
way and the tide will soon set toward
the West for cFep-n1oving purposes, but
/ offerings Of funds are still more than
ample for requirements. As noted last
week, gold exports are among the pos
sibilfties though not among the present
,Ilcl0i