The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-05-10
WALL-SIRffT CIRCLES
PIERPoNT MORGAN AND OTHER MAG
MATES START ON VACATIONS.
Former May Try to Restore Prestige
shadowed by Mercantile Ma
rine Venture.
FALL SESSION OF CONGRESS
MAY BE CALLED IN ORDER TO PASS
REFORM CURRENCY BILL.
Stock Market Indications Point to
steady Improvement Through
the Summer.
FALL SESSION OF CONGRESS
MAY BE CALLED IN ORDER TO PASS
REFORM CURRENCY BILL.
70 the Indianapolis Journal.


while abroad, to say and do things that
will create a more friendly foreign senti-
ment toward American securities. Wall
street has only the vaguest idea or what
should be said and done to this end. and 1t
retalizes, too, that the task is very oiiii-
cult one, but it has unlimited confidence in
the resourcefulness of Mr.. Morgan. NOT
only is Mr.. Morgan to the world at large
the personifcation of the present era OF
American finances, but he and the interests
he represents, more than any other COM
bination Of financiers, are anxious 10 over
come the extreme Indifference, not TO say
skepticism, with which foreign investors
have recently regarded American securl-
ties. The International Mercantile Marine
Company (shipping trusD, which Is MI.
Morgan's latest big creation. appears on
the surface to be an awkward hnanclai
failure Guarded comments have been APP
pearing in the financial press on the fact
that there is no market for the securities.
The prices quoted for them on the curD
market here are largely nominal ridicu-
lousy low as they are, and everybody In
Wall street knows that the underwriting
syndicate Is apprehensive as to the out
come of it's undertaking. There has been
talk of readjustment Of the whole scheme
and that Is probably what will happen.
The financial critic of the New York
Evening Post, who is more outspoken than
any other pretentious writer on stock mar
ket topics, pointed out the other day that
the only effect of the formation OF the
shipping trust upon ocean commerce so far
has been to increase the business and rev.
enue of the German boats, which Mr.. Nor
gan was unable to bring into his combina-
ton. 1t Is no secret that Mr.. Morgan paid
extrayagant prices for the vessels compos-
ing the International Mercantile Marine
fleet, and, apart from the apparent finan-
cial failure Of the scheme, monopoly OF
the TRANSPORTATION business such Mr..
Morgan sought to effect has not been real
ICED.
There is no denying the fact that the In
ternational Mercantile Marine venture has
hurt Mr.. Morgans international prestige,
and 1t would seem to be up to him to scale
down the original proportions of the
scheme so as to put it upon a workable
financial basis. The situation Is all the
more embarrassing because English finan-
cial critics predicted from the outset that
the combination would be financial fail
ure. They attacked 1t In unmeasured terms
and advised English investors to let the
shares alone. Whether the investors need
ed that advice or not Is an irrelevant
question; they certainly did let the shares
alone, and the critics are now able
to say, eve told you So" Mr.. Morgan
cannot be unconscious OF the, strain it has
put upon his prestige, and it is very certain
that he is anxious to recover the confidence
of the foreign financial public. A house
that has had as much as $100,000, 900 worth
| Of credit paper outstanding in Europe at
one time needs to conserve its prestige
with extreme care. There was time last
| autumn when the paper Of ]. Pierpont
| Morgan & Co. outstanding in Europe is
said to have amounted to more than $780,
100000 There was so much Of it that it
was not considered good banking to take
| any more, and for that reason it was dis
eliminated against. It was in this manner
| that there arose the legend one often
| hears narrated in Wall street at low breath
| that the paper Of ]. Pierpont Morgan & Co.
sold last autumn at discount.
The heavy losses already incurred by the
underwriting syndicates that undertook to
| float the securities of the International Mer-
camille Marine Company and the difficulties
of the Cramps in Philadelphia will be made
the basis for a renewal Of the agitation for
government ship subsidies. Signs of this
are already apparent. and 1t Is probable
| that the campaign will he well under way
before the new Congress meets. Its sue
cess is believed by impartial observers to be
very dubious. Any ship subsidies favoring
the grossly overcapitalized International
Mercantile Marine Company would be vio-
lently criticised by the public at large.
XXX
It Is Wall streets information that a spe-
cial session Of Congress will be convened In
October for the purpose of enacting cur
rency reform measure. It is not too much
| to say that financial interests here have
received assurances to that effect from high
political sources. They have also been given
| a pretty clear idea Of what the administra-
| ton proposes to introduce In the way Of a
| currency reform bill. and are well satisfied
with 1t as far as their information goes.
| 1t is expected to be even more comprehen-
| sive than the bill that failed during the
short session Of the last Congress. 1t is be-
lieyed that the elasticity" for which IL will
monetary stringency. which Wall street in
| recent years, has come to regard as an in
| evitable incident of the autumn. A fact
| which will illustrate how confident financial
| interests are of getting monetary relief in
/ the form Of legislation at a special session
| of Congress this year is that time loans run
ming we'll over the end of the year, l. e. for
nine-months periods may be held in Wall
street at the rate of 81 per cent, whereas al
| this time last year IL was impossible TO get
such accommodations. The significance of
| this would seem to be that banking inter
| ests are not apprehensive Of serious none
| tary stringency this coming autumn. The
Washington information to which aIlusion
has been made is not mere gossip. such as
| one hears around commission houses: il pre-
walls in the best OF banking circles and
| there is undoubtedly some strong basis for
| it. That class Of market interests called the
| the market. Their present Inactivity
| doubtless Is due to a belief that in the event
| of this relief being received at the hands of
| Congress stocks may be bulled uninterrupt.
| edly throughout the autumn. Otherwiz4
you probably would see these big people
making a bull market now with the idea
| of working off as many stocks as possible
| before the usual autumn monetary strin.
| gency would put an end to operations for
the advance.
| More than the usual number OF brokers
and traders are planning vacations In
Europe this year. and 1t is very likely tina,
| the list of absentees during the summer
will be a formidable one John w. Gates
| sailed this week on the Oceanic. j. Pier.
| pont Morgan was already gone James r
| Keene Is expected to go about the middle
| of the month. 1t has been thought that HI