The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-07-25
Forced to the Wall by the Excited
Selling on 'Chnnge and Continued
slump I'm Prices.
FAILURE OF W. L. STOW & CO
FIRM THAT DEALT LARGELY IN
MEXICAN CENTRAL SHARES,
which Have Dropped from 81 is
Last Year to II Yesterday-keene
and Taylor cat Outs."

NEW YORK, July 2L-The announce
ment on the Stock Exchange late to-day
of the suspension of the firms of Talbot ].
Taylor & Co. and of W. L. Stow & Co. was
the sequel to a period of excited selling of
stocks and wide cuts in prices which has
not been equaled before or since the pres
ent movement to liquidate set in. There
Is nothing In either failure that can be
traced to business or industrial conditions
outside the exchange. the case lying close
20 a diagnosis of speculative collapse.
Both firms have been largely concerned In
speculative stock market pools. formed for
the purpose OF taking on line of stocks.
sustaining their price by supporting orders.
real or manipuIative. and seeking to real
lie profits by selling out to outsiders at
the high prices. Such operations have suf-
fered from increasing difficulties with the
growth in the stringency of money. the
Foiicitude of bankers over loans employed
In such projects and the jaded appetite of
the public for securities. The operations of
the firm of w. L. Stow & Co. were on
large scale in Mexican Central and the diff
ficulties which have accumulated upon
them are understood by the price of IL
forced selling to-day and the high level at
Sis last year
TAYLOR & CO.'S FAILURE.
The failure of Talbot ]. Taylor & Co. will
Inevitably be connected with the great mar
ket operations of James r. Keene by rea-
son of his family connection with and fire.
quent employment of the firm. Taylor is
son-in-Iaw Of Keene. Mr.. Keene's opera
tions I'm stocks are too numerous to detail.
and much mystery usually attached to them
necessarily from their nature. But the
market management of the United States
Steel stocks on behalf of the syndicate
and the conduct of a Southern Pacific pool,
are the operations with which his name is
most notably connected. The accumulation,
according TO common belief of 100000 shares
of Southern Pacific and the lifting of its
price above eighty, were based upon the
assumption that Southern Pacific bonds
were TO be issued for the roads work of
improvement and the net earnings applied
TO dividends. Talbot ]. Taylor & Co.. as
representatives OF the pool. felt themselves
powerful enough to challenge the Union
Pacific partys refusal to adopt this policy
and to carry the quarrel TO the courts. The
animosities and resentments engendered by
that quarrel are supposed to have added to
the weight of the firms difficulties and to
have aided in bringing 1t down.
kEENE WAS DISPLEASED.
great deal of interest was manifested
In Wall street to the cause of the sus-
pension Of II. j. Taylor & Co., and to what
extent IL at all. James r. Keene was in
volved in II. The general belief in the
street was that Mr.. keene had no connec-
tion, but that he refused to come to the re-
lief OF his son-in-law. There was no con-
firmation of this notion, but it is based on
the following story: Last summer Talbot
j. Taylor was reported to have had fall
ing out with his father-in-law, arising out
of reported purchases of Southern Pacific
by Mr. Taylor on his own account inde-
pendently OF the pool which Mr.. Keene was
cumming in that stock. According to the
story, Mr.. keene was angry when he dis
covered the fact. With the break In the
stock market last October, Southern Pacific
declined severely. and II was asserted in
some quarters that Mr.. Taylor was among
tne losers Since that time Mr.. keene has
not been much in the Office of T. j. Taylor
Co. but this was probably due to the
TACT that he was i'll at his hotel and could
not get downtown Tor number of months.
II was alleged that Mr.. Keene stopped Civ
Ing orders TO the firm of his son-in-law for
execution on the Stock Exchange. but that
ne was using the firm of Samuel Bah
COCK Tor the largest number OF his
transactions. But many doubted that
there was any truth In this story. because
xs xne Ve,srsn s,ra1 operator since his return to
tlnued TO make his headquarters I'm his old
I Sfics Immediately adjoining those of Tay-
1or q 20. aId connecting with them. Mr..
heene Is believed 10 be a man of great
wealth. and Wall street held TO the opin-
ion tnat III ne had suffered any losses in
the ueSihe he was Well able TO stand them
BLACK FRIDAY.
IL was veritabie BLACK Friday and
although the market rallied decidedly nj
the close ana the general situation i'm the
minds OF some much improved, a great
many persons having interests I'm the street
went nome IN anything but a cheerful
frame OF mino. IL wss freely predicted
that trouble more serious was ,r,-
pending. From trustworthy sources I, wos
learned that three or more commission,
houses had been Squeezed almost to tbs
bursting point. Contracts made ,oaa,
hold out till Monday. which may enable
embarrassed individuals to get their sec
ond wind" The best information is that
the insolvent firms had comparatively few
outstanding commitments and these il is
believed, were settled privately on the
floor. II Is said that prominent interna-
road interests In Mexico bought UheraiIv
to-day OF Mexican Central Report saws
that Taylor a Co sold privately to a Lar s.e
banking interest which IL some time oSo
sntagonized $1,000 shares OF Southern
Pacific
The Stow failure was announced shor,,y
before D. m and that of TAYLOR 4, 90
followed within less than ten minutes The
Stock Exchange was crowded as IL had
been all day. with brokers' many OF whom
I'm recent months had been more conspic-
uous by their absence from the board but
who were regular I'm their attendance this
week because of the gathering financial
storm The visitors gallery of the Stock
Exchange held an excited throng OF stran-
gers. The board room was the scene OF