The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-04-22
UPWARD TENDENCY
 OF STOCK PRICES
Looks Like Organized Support
 is Sustaining Prices
BONDS MOVED UPWARD
Speculative Operations Were Espee. l. ly Marked In the Gould Group, Lea By Wabash Preferred-Ex-
 change About to Move.

New York, April n.-There was quite a comprehensive upward movement or prices today, led by the Gould group and Baltimore and Ohio. As other parts or the list came into the movement ols- position became manifest to take pronts in the early leaders. which led to moo- crate reaction all through the list ana the closing was easy and dull. The move ment was attributed largely to pro- fessional operations. and commission houses continued to complain of the light volume of their orders
 It was plain. however, that a specu- iative party has been organized to ad- vance the market and they made their operations effective today The campaign seems based on general condition. They had the advantage today of the cheering influence upon sentiment, exercised by the modification of the decree against the Northern Securities company, so far as 1t referred to enjoining the payment of dividends. The Great Northern dividend came off that stock this morning, and the assembling of the Northern Pacific directors during the session of the stock exchange gave assurance that the divl- dend would also be promptly distributed. Speculative operations were especially marked in the Gould group, led by Wabash preferred. Special stress was laid upon the April report of the Kansas state board of agriculture, confirming the very favorable government report as to the condition of winter wheat. The advance in sugar was on account of the rise in the price of the refined product. South ern Pacific was lifted 2 points late in the day on an unconfrmed rumor that settlement had been effected between the Hartman and Keene interests. Some early heaviness in Amalgamated copper was accounted for by the illness of the president of the company, but the stock recovered. Colorado fuel was weak with out explanation. Reading Jagged in the advance on account of the opening or the interstate commerce hearing or charges of suppression of com etition by the coal combine but later this stock also became strong.
 An unusually large number of industrial stocks were advanced from l to ? points and beyond that for American steel foundry which gained 3 points; Sloss- Sheffield steel 4k, Westinghouse Elec- tric G. and the first preferred s. The professional contingent among the traders laid some stress upon tomorrow's entry into the new exchange quarters as proper and sentimental ground for ad- vancing prices. During the last hour of the market trading was considerably neg lected on account of diversions lndulged in by the brokers as an incident of the closing of business in their temporary quarters on the produce exchangef floor. An incident of the day was the resump- tion of the recording of transactions in order to be on the tape. During the boom period of two years ago, In the midst of which the stock exchange moved to the temporary quarters now being abandoned, it was found wholly impracticable to keep up with the record of the minor transactions and since that time only full share lots of 100 shares or some multiple of that have been printed on the tape until today. The resumption of odd share lots in the record must be regarded as a symptom of the relative dullness to which business in the stock market has fallen. Money continued to work easier with every prospect of additional relaxa- tion and the recent upward course of ex- change was also checked today
 Prices of bonds moved upwards in sym pathy with stocks and on a fairly well distributed demand. Total sales par value s. 10000
 United States bonds were all unchanged on the last call.