The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-10-11
FINANCIAL AND COMMERCIAL.
SATUB,b DAY. Oct. 10.

II was not over easy Tor even experienceu
persons In Wall Street last week TO distin-
guish at all times the substantial from the
ephemeral in the financial shuation; never
theless, at the close Of the week these run
damental facts stood out v Nh even greater
clearness than they did week ago. To
understand them right iU3 ia necessary to
consider what has been the, essential reason
for the decline in prices that has gone on
for a year. That reason was. simply. the
universal conviction forIIed early in the
year by those in Responsible control OF
banks, trust companies. Wall Street COM
mission houses and finar cial and business
institutions generally that the fall season
this wear was certain to lse accompanied by
severe money stringency and that it be-
hooved all interests 10 put themselves in
strong financial position. The consensus
was at the same time that the industrial
stock company flotaton business had been
carried too far and that, although general
call halt on further operations OF the
kind. The contraction of credit which
followed brought down prices of stocks
with a'vengeaLce and caused large losses
to speculators Yet. now that the dreaded
autumn season is fully upon u.s. the ex-
pected money ct rim Sency has not occurred,
and according to nj trustworthy indica-
tions ia not likely. The great money
Lending institutions, instead Of calling In
their loans. are devising ways OF safely ex-
tending them. The money market finds
itself in the CONDITION of a man who, having
gathered all his resources for threatened
exigeney, finds that the exigency does not
arise. What must these large institutions
do with the great sums of money which
they have CAT hered and now find idle on
their fsndsf They must in due course OF
events force these funds into investment
channels. The process will first concern
itself only with the highest grade OF Sc
curities ard the primary stages OF that
development have been clearly visible in
the last two weeks.
1t Is reasonable to expect, in the second
place, that the reimbursement Of the wages
of laboring men in many important lines
Of manufacturing and general business
will take place with much less friction
than has been popularity expected. Inc
true philosophy Of the matter was we'll
stated by prominent business man last
week when he said that when times were
booming and the demand for labor was
greater than the supply thereof laboring
men lost their heads and it was impossible
to deal with them, but that when it became
a plain question of shutting down shops
or reducing wages. laborers were usually
quite tractable. These workingmen or
their leaders are possessed Of some sense.
They must see, as every one else does. the
genuineness of the reasons for reduction
In wage scales, and if they do not see it
the truth will be demonstrated to them
In forcible fashion by throwing them out
OF employment The great Steel Corpora
tion, for instance, now calmly going ahead
and without any parleying shutting down
one plant after another in order to curtail
production, will probably not find it ex-
ceedingly difficult to start the plants in
operation again, when it chooses, upon
a different scale of compensation to the
men employed therein.
The investigation-or what practically
amounlsto an investig ation-into the cir.
cumstances attendin 6 the organization Of the
United States Shipbulding Company caused
q one days sensation during the week and
the attempt was made by bearish specu-
la.ors to show that a state Of affairs
very damaging to the market had been
disclosed In so far as the effort was to
besmirch the reputation of great banking
house, the matter was wholly without effect.
In so far as the necessity is emphasized
for the enactment in this country Of some
sort Of general corporation law similar to
that which has long existed in England
and in the Continental nations Of Europe,
imposing greater restrictions and re-
sponsibiities upon vendors and under
writer's Of new company shares than now
exist here, the developments will be pro-
ductive of good. Public attention is still
strongly turned to the condition Of the
iron and steel trade. Production and
consumption OF iron and steel products
are still going on at rate that would have
been esteemed very large two years ago,
and while the net earnings Of the United
States Steel Corporation will undoubtedly
be somewhat less in the present calendar
year than they were in the last, they will
be much greater than they we're in 1901.
The new uses to which steel is put, the
extent to which it has taken the place OF
wood in railroad construction buildings,
shops and bridges, and of its substitution
for other materials in a thousand different
ways, should modify In every thoughtful
mind pessimistic views as to the future OF
the steel manufacturing business. The
present Is clearly time when prospective
investors in securities like those Of the
United States Steel Corporation should
keep their heads cool, look at the facts of
the situation as they really are and not
be led away by the clamor and misrepre-
sensations Of the manipulators in Wall
Street, who are endeavoring to force prices
to level absurdly low. The rebound
from the present stock market depression,
when it comes, will first be witnessed.
naturally, in the railway shares. The
general and dominant feature of the mar
ket last week was the fact that the pres
sure applied to the general list of securities
only caused the prices of the industrial
stocks to recede. The railway issues held
firm.
The weakness of to-day IS market was due
in the first instance to sales of stocks for
the account of London. The fortnightly
settlements begin in the London market
on Monday and the impression prevails
that 1t is settlement that is likely to be
accompanied by some, although not ex-
ceeding, difficulty. The stocks sold by
London were chiefly the United States Steel
issues although to some extent railway
shares were liquidated. In the last hour.
rumors wholly unconfrrned prevailed of
financial trouble in Montreal and Pittsburg.
and the room trading element all sold