The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-09-01
GROWTH OF VOLUME DENOTES STRENGTH Stock Market Activity Does Not
 Last Entire Day CONFIDENCE IN MONEY Encouraging Reports of Railroad Earn ines and Cheerful Outlook Imparts
 a Stronger FeeIing-st. Paul
 Leads List on Advance.
CONFIDENCE IN MONEY

New York, August 31.-There wss con- siderable growth of volume in stocks to- day. and show of strength which was quite imposing, but neither the activity nor the strength lasted the day.
 The aggregate transactions rose to the half-milion share mark, but the largest part of this was done in the two hours before noon During the active period of the market, advances over Saturday of to 2 points had become quite numerous, but the last prices of the day showed very few gains in excess of a point The demonstration of strength was due large ly to concerted action by professional traders Uncovered bears became discour- aged by the dull resistance of last weeks market to any attack, and the bullish traders became correspondingly encour- aged and helped to drive the bears to cover. Professional sentiment was more cheerful on account of improved factors in the general outlook, but there was nothing to show that any considerable outside demand for stocks played part in the days movement.
 There is no doubt that confidence over the money situation has been greatly in- creased since the intimation of the readi- ness on the part of the secretary of the treasury to deposit $40. 100000 of the gov ernment money now in the treasury in depository banks. This is felt to be an effectual safeguard against a threat or violent stringency in money, and lenders are decidedly less exacting in their con- nfad f.1fa ar Q only slightly lower but the stringent con- dit:ons which have attached to the mak- ing of loans for sometime past are re- faxed These conditions were prohibitiYe except to favorite borrowers on the part of some of the banks. The limits of the available supply have been considerably extended and with the present surplus reserve held by the banks confidence is pretty firmly established in the ability of the money market to meet requirements on 1t.
 Encouraging reports of >railroad traffic today last weeks cheerful tone over the general trade situation on the part of mercantile agencies, and the belief that A quiet absorption of securities by invest ors both foreign and domestic, has been going on had to do with the stronger feelA ing in the stock list This morning mdch was made of the transfer of the holdings of the underwriting syndicate TOT metrO- politan securities to other dominant in- terests in the property tending to consol- idate the control Very free differences were drawn by the traders from this transaction of a coming consolidation of all the traction and lighting interests in Greater New York and in outlying terri tories A considerable stimulation to the speculation was the result but heavy real izing in Amalgamated Copper and the in- ference drawn from that of the attitude towards the market of the controlling in- terest checked the advance with the result that the market became almost stagnant in the latter stages but closed heavy Some buying for London account which was large in Erie, helped the early ad- vance. Reading hung back on account of the utterances attributed to the executive head of the system pointing to an accu- mutation of steam sizes of anthracite and a possible curtailment of the production in consequence. St. Paul was the leader i. in the railroad list and enjoyed an ex- treme advance of two points. The strength in the corn market and reports of unreasonable temperature had their in fluence on the reaction in stocks owing to the importance now attached to the out come of the corn crop
 The bond market was frmer total sales par value $1. 335, ,000. United States bonds were all unchanged on the last call