The sun., 1903-04-01
FINANCIAL AND ooMxEscrAL.
TUESDAY, March 81


tors who have been at work for lower price
manifested a rather keen desire to retir'
| their outstanding short contracts. and !
was probably the somewhat urgent buyinI
OF this character which was. In reality
the chief influence in causing the day
advance In prices. The trading element OF
the floor Of the Stock Exchange and NOR
experienced professional operators gen
orally. have. for some days past. beer
looking for a rally In prices and have beer
disposed to curtail their selling Of theil
neighbors stocks. They have realized
that active stocks have declined Sl4 share
In price within two months time on what is
in truth. sentimental rather than COM
pelling reason. The fundamental diff.
Guilty with the market has been the money
situation; but this difficulty has at no time
assumed the form Of actual money strin-
gency, and has only existed In the shape OF
general conviction that money rates
would hold at comparatively high rate
for an indefinite period Of time. and that in
the meantime there were more stocks offered
for sale in Wall Street than the market
could absorb, Entirely apart from these
considerations. II Is a matter Of common
sense that no market can go on continually
declining or advancing without suffering
reactions: and the present market has had
no reaction worth speaking Of for weeks.
There comes a time, too, In the history Of
every market movement, when the factors
which have produced it are. for the time
being at least. discounted. The market
becomes bought or sold to a standstill, as
the case may be, and counter movement
begins.
The published interview with the head
Of the country's leading banking house. in
which he reaffirned in the most positive
manner his belief in the prosperity Of the
country and his entire disaccord with the
pessimihtic spirit that has recently been
extant. undoubtedly had much TO do with
to-day's recovery In prices. London houses
bought stocks on fairly heavy scale. and
the tone Of all the foreign markets was i'm
proved. better inquiry for our bonds
by foreign investors has also been reported
in the last few days; the inquiry seems to be
however, for the most part, for bonds Of
undoubted character and security which,
by reason Of the recent fall In prices, net
their purchasers not much below ~ per
cent. interest. News OF q more cheerful
character came to-day from Montreal, a
quarter from which q good share Of the
recent liquidation in our market has pro-
ceeded. The strike of the textile workers
in Lowell and the possibilities Of an e1-
tension of the trouble between the struct-
ural steel workers in this city and their
employers were disregarded in the trading.
inasmuch as these matters seemed to be
no worse, at least. than they have been
Call money rose to-day as high as Is per
cent. but as II was understood to be merely
preliminary to the disbursement Of money
for dividends and interest tomorrow the
fact attracted no great attention. Pay
ments on account Of customs duties at the
continue large and the loss
by the banks to the Sub-Treasury on net
balance for the week amounts to S2,445, 900.
II seems probable. therefore, that the o,
900 900 disbursed by the Government for the
Philippines silver purchase will only serve
TO balance the transactions Of the Govern
ment with the banks for the week and will
not add anything to the local money supply.
The Sugar stocks were weak early in the
day on a reduction in the price Of sugar by
the Arbuckles. although later they became
strong with the rest OF the market. All
the Wabash issues fell OF sharply on the
news OF the new bond issue. Two rather
important statements OF gross and net
earnings for February appeared. the South
ern Railway showing an increase in groes
Of t40l .2o2 but an increase in net Of only
20, ,4a2. Union Pacifc's gross decreased
Ill4,s2e and it's net decreased S4is,474.
The reason Of 30 large falling on in South
srn Railways net was not explained. while
The Union Pacihc's very poor statement
was declared to exhibit the results upon
the system OF the machinists' strike. IL
Is probable, however. that both these state
ments. as that Of the Chicago, Milwaukee
and st. Paul's record for February. pub
ished yesterday, were very largely In
huenced by the higher prices paid for
fuel by the railroad companies and by
The enlarged cost OF conducting trans
portation generally. The matter suggests,
as regards Union Pacific, that
the recent heavy sales of railway stocks
hat have been made have not been of the
nature. exclusively. OF attacks upon values
made by operators hostile to the market.