The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-02-28
BREAK IN PRICES
 IN STOCK MARKET
Whole List Fell Before Sharp
 Attack Late in Day
ACTIVE DEMAND BY SHORTS
Serious Inroads Upon the Bank Re- serves, Resulting From the Weeks Currency Movement, Were Re-
 sponsible for the Decline.

New York. February 27.-Prices yielded to a sharp attack late in the day ana were carried between one and two points below last night for the principal malAe' leaders. It was reported that the panAs were calling loans and presumably ior liouidation, but the active demand rom shorts to cover at the decline indicated that short selling had played a consider able part in the break The serious in- roads upon bank reserves resulting from the weeks currency movement was the cause of the decline. Previous to that the market had been neglected and slug gish with a sagglng tendency rather weak.
 The support of the Wabash issues, some early recoveries from yesterdays weak ness by St. Paul and an upward tendency by Amalgamated copper and few other stocks served as an obstacle to the early tendency to decline The leaders pro- fessed to be waiting upon the formal an- nouncement of the Rock Island and St. Louis and San Francisco project and upon definite information to indicate the fate of the Aldrich financial bill for this session. An attempt was made to connect the Wabash movement with the evidently far-reaching plan in the Southwestern railroad world working out through the medium of Rock Island, but the dealings in Wabash were by a few room traders, who dealt with each other on very large scale With the surplus reserves of the banks down to about $9,00O000 last week and with a loss for this week indicated in cash reserves within half a million of that amount, 1t would be seen that a serious condition confronts the New York money market unless some consd- erable offset to the reserve shrinkage has been effected by loan contraction. Until this afternoon there has been noth- ing to show that there was any liquida- ton going on in the stock market of inn partant character.
 But the action of the foreign exchange market and the reported offerings of loan bills give promise that foreign capi tai has been resorted to to take up some credits paid off to the New York banks. It is considered probable also that the lo- cal trust companies have taken over some loans of the accounts of the clear ing house banks. Preparations for the March settlementf increased the pressure today so that call loans were forced up to per cent before the close. Time money is very firmly held at 5 per cent for all pSIlOuS. neIe IS nothing to early cessation of the interior demand for currency nor of the sub-treasury require ments upon the money market.
 Payments of internal revenue at Interior points are being made to t'Sc New York sub-treasury by draft upon New York correspondents of interior DanXs.
 Corn exports for the week have fallen off 1,S70,51S busl>els from those of last week. The relaxation in the exchange market is clearly due, therefore, to the offerings of bankers loan bills. Discount hardened in London again today and Paris seems to be the available point for extension of further credits here if de- sired. It was of interest, therefore, that the French chamber has authorized the issue of $50,00oo0O short-term treasury bonds and a provisional credit for March expenses and deficits in provision budgets. The market closed irregular, with a rally on covering by shorts.
 The bond market weakened in sympa- thy with stocks. Totai sales, par value, sS,9oS'0OO United States bonds were all unchanged on the last call