The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-12-08
VIOLENT SLUMP IN
THE STOCK MARKET
Game Like Bolt From a Clear
sky
Is The SAME OLD STORY
Fact That Runaway Bull Markets Al
ways overrun Themselves Does
Not Lessen Surprise When
Fabric crumbles.
Is The SAME OLD STORY

New York, December 7.-Today's vio-
hent slump in the stock market came
on the sanguine speculative element like
b bolt from the blue sky. The fact that
runaway bull markets always overrun
themselves never avails to lessen the
surprise Of the Spectator when the airy
Fabric crumbEes.
The fabric could not, of course, be
Shown up to its diaphanous dimensions
bf there were not enthusiastic buyers
who continue to buy all stocks offered,
pnd to bid prices in unbounded conf
hence that the upward course will never
D. interrupted. Neither would 1t be in
Herrupted If spectators were able to go
On buying indefinitely But when the
Kline comes that distrust obtains an en-
France to their consciousness and they
attempt to sell their holdings. 1t develops
that the buoyant rise has been true to
hheir own buying, and there is nothing
left to sustain prices when they ceased
That is probably the true explanation
% the slump today which took on fairly
panicky proportions at times But the
erumbling of prices led to the usual in
bustrious efforts to assign cause in
Some new development in affairs that
might be an index of a decline in the
prosperous conditions of business and in
nustry.
There was no such news forthcoming
There was a report in the call loan rate
1ate in the day to the highest of the sea-
son, but this seemed to be as much an
effect as a cause fSS the fall in prices
at was not learned that there had been
any calling of looms or restriction of
credits to precipitate the break, but the
Expectation of further gold engagements
for exports were confirmed, and there
WAS remittances through the sub-treas-
Ary of a $1,000 900 to San Francisco, and
Differed $780, 900 to New Orleans. The draw
ang of the purse strings, and the in
creased action regarding collateral, has
hoppled over more tlan one bull mar
a1et in the full tide of its advance, but
There has been no premonitory symptom
in the present market of money strin-
Eency. Much more attention was paid
10 the flying rumors of the attitude to-
wards the market assumed by impor-
liant financial powers.
The sharp losses which were suffered,
gave spirit to some of the assertions that
combinations had been formed to raid
the market, and that some of the adver-
4ised attacks on special properties of the
1ast few days really represented deeply
1aid plot which had the backing OF great
capitalists. The easy manner in which
Amalgamated copper succumbed to sue
cessive attacks was the general cause for
Hhese assertions. Much importance was
ATTACHED by the hurt spectators to
dinner and conference of railroad captains
which took place here last night and
(which, they supposed, adopted alarming
conclusions over the prospect for the
railroads afforded by the Presidents rec
concentrations to allow the Interstate
commerce commission power to fix freight
rates.
The tumble in Amalgamated copper was
mrom 77D4 of last night to 6Ss4 near the
CLOSE of today. The drains In sugar, Ten
tnessee coal, Colorado fuel, Lackawanna,
and some other special stocks ran from
"A to 10 points, but aside from these 1t is
hardly worth while to detail the declines
(which range generally from to points.
kThe closing was weak and not far from
Hhe lowest under the influence of renewed
breaks in Amalgamated copper and
sugar The few points of strength in the
,morning session were swept into the
downward movement.
Bonds yielded in sympathy with stocks.
gTotal sales, par value, S7,820,000 United
States bonds were unchanged on call.