New-York tribune., 1900-04-29
financial.
The Financial World.

| opened last Monday in a decidedly demoralized
| condition. The lowest prices Of the week We're
| then made, with very few exceptions The SELL
| ing was general and large. and commission
| houses had to throw over customers who could
not respond to margin calls Before the noon
hour II became evident that concerted effort
! was being made by bull interests to prevent
severe break; and the buying on this account
and also considerable covering Of shorts by
| large professional operators brought the market
| to a steady close that day. Not much done
on Tuesday. save that Sugar began to manifest
symptoms of bull restlessness. II was the next
day. Wednesday that this stock went upward
with a rush which impaired a sympathetic
strength TO the whole list. It's rapid rise. with
the enormous transactions in II. scared every
short seller in the market. and turned the traders
| from bears TO bulls by demonstrating that the
bull interests were once more on the aggressive
For the rest Of the week the market seemed to
be dominated BY Sugar. the list being weak or
strong according as this erratic stock went up
or down-and II did both with it's old-tims
rapidity.
The total common share capital OF Sugar is
3I5.OOO shares. Between Monday and Saturday
this amount about twice turned over. On
Wednesday the dealings aggregated 206,00
shares. The lowest price of the week was made
on Monday morning. at 101A: it just missed
ments on that day one trader twice sold the
stock at 1f9 and twice bought it back at 116,
and that in a comparatively short time. The
closing price Yesterday was under III There Is
only one question asked-"Is the Sugar war
settled?" Mr. Havemeyer SAYS no Other people
in the trade say no. The Street looks ar the
tape. and is doubtful. Now If it were any ether
stock than Sugar the Street would not be doubt
full 1t would ignore all official denials and say
| F-%
Sugar has so often gone through movements as
extreme as it has the past week, which We're
supposed TO mean something II turned out they
did not mean that the Street has become scary:
and it does not believe the tape in respect %
Sugar as it would believe 1t in respect 10 almost
any other stock
In the active discussion Of the affair-which
for the moment has sent the steel stocks bust
ness to the rear-it has come out that the
in the sugar trade believe the real sign OF the
sugar war being ended must be looked for in the
direction of the Doschers- When Doscher is
downed." they say. you assume sure that
the business is settled. for that is the Have
meyer is after It may be added, that some ot
these men think if Doscher is not already
downed, he is. from certain indications, about at
the end of his tether. His refinery, they assert.
has been run at a loss since the day it was
started and it appears that it has been the Gus
tom of independent rehneries 10 buy the Doscher
sugar which was offered at cut rates. put their
own brand on IL. and sell it in the market at
regular rates II paid them TO do this. rather
than refine at a loss. They could sell where
Doscher could not because their brands had the
trade If these men are right in their surntses.
it would seem that a good idea Of how far. or
how near. the sugar war was from settlement.
might be gained by inspection OF the books
of the Doscher establishment Now the Street
has no means of making such inspection; IT
dstrusts the tape: and therefore IL Is in extreme
doubt-and doubt with tendency TO belief.
must be the condition Of the average outsider
If. however. the sensational advance in Sugar
did not prove the trade war was settled Il GER
tainly proved powerful antidote to the dennor-
alization caused by the steel stocks The market
stiffened up in wonderful degree. The
granger stocks. the trunk lines, the coalers, and
the Pacifcs took life. and either stopped
going down made sharp advances. Even the
steel stocks for time exhibited a sluggish
sympathy with the general list. and stiffened up.
They did not hold, however. There was another
break yesterday, when it was given out that the
Carnegie Company might become a competitor
in certain departments with the Steel & Wire
Company Talk about Mr.. Gates resignation
need not be taken seriously. Even less attention
may be paid to the nOnSensical talk about Grim
inal proceedings any one knows who has
knowledge of the persons whose names are men
toned in connection with the affair The Street
has no special reason for liking Mr.. Gates. but
the common sense Of the business is that he
told the truth with a great roar and a shouting.
so as to frighten people out Of their wits; but
when he said that prices of iron and steel had
been put so high that it had checked COnsurnp-
tion, he told the truth The proof that he did IS
found in the trade reports. He did not demoral-
lie the iron and steel markets. but if any one
will read "Duns'' summary Of the metal mar
kets this week. he will find that every depart
ment of those markets records a lowering OF
prices. This would not have been possible, Il
the condition of the trade had not been ripe for
a decline. For general trade healthfulness- the
decline is good thing; for with the lowered
prices. the check to consumption viii be removed.
Only It jars people to have unpleasant truth
unexpectedly beloved at them with smashing
and banging ompaniment-particularly II the
bang comes on the pocket.
There is nothing in the railroad earnings as
reported to give us lower market. The reports
are uniformly good. The Atchson's March state
ment was immense. and the calculation that the
net earnings will equal this fiscal year per
cent the preferred stock looks like coming out
correct. The St. Paul company is putting It's
surplus into the road. and so the Burlington
seems TO be doing; and these stocks have been a
little heavy as the chances for extra dividends
are diminished by this OF the money The
rumors that the dividend on Northern Pacific
common will be raised to per cent continue per-
sistent, and the stock rather acts that way
Union Pacific is a purchase every time IL reacts
under so. The only thing against the general
market is the uncertain feeling engendered by
the approach of the nominating conventions and
the campaign to follow. That the nominees