Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1904-12-14
cLEWs ON THE CRASH.

H'nil 'i'Nhi w HNN M''hlN N'''l
to The optic. speaks rs follows OF
the conditions ON the New York
stock exchange
Like "a bolt from The blue the
crash In Wall street came when
least expected and when all seemed
serene The truth Is. the market was
ripe for u break. For weeks and
months stocks continued To rise with
out interruption until speculation.
oyerstlmulated by increasingly favor
able outside conditions, carried the
market up 10 the point OF Collapse.
Sentiment everywhere was 80 over.
whclmingly bu!llsh that weak spots
were Ignored and a situation created
where only n shock Of some sort was
needed to force Wholesale liquidation.
This shock came In the form Of an
attack upon Amaigamated copper.
which promptly exposed the weaken.
cd condition Of the whole market.
Stocks. II was then seen. had passed
from strong into weak hands. The
big men who bought freely at the
low prices Of 1903 had disposed very
largely Of their holdings. and whom
the crash came there Was little or
no support from this quarter. Liqui'
-#I
dalton OF over.bought accounts be.
came imperative. and prices werS 90
high that no substantial buyers could
he found except at such heavy de.
clincs as exhausted weak margins
and frightened timid holders out OF
their senses. The decline was. OF
accompanied by tho usual
supply Of unsettling rumors and IN.
tensified by the trading element. who
always push a movement In either
direction to the utmost. One thing Is
clear: The financial atmosphere has
been much clarified by this unwel-
come squat. Values are now on a
more substantial basis. and weak
spots have been pretty thoroughly
eliminated. A period Of irregularity
may follow such a shock. but specula.
tion Is likely TO be carried on within
safer and narrower limits. and the
so-called boom" has received a time
ly and much needed check. Conserva.
tive bankers had for some time been
apprehensive Of excesses, and eau
ton has been repeatedly urged In
these adyices, so the break caused
no surprise to our renders.
As for the future. that depends
largely upon developments. At this
writing the crisis appears to be about
over. The trouble has been strictly
confined to technical conditions. the
stock market being simply over
bought. prices unreasonably high and
the speculative spirit reckless. In.
trinsic conditions. 1t should be noted.
This break Is not likely to have any
deterrent effect upon legitimate bus.
mess. IL II checks the rampant spirit
OF speculation that was RAPIDLY de-
~yeloping II VIII prove a blessing in
disguise. Our farmers will be none
the less prosperous because stocks
have broken several points. our a
ufacturers will produce and sell zone
the less, and there will be no fall In
wages or any decrease In the number
of hands employed In consequence,
There are just as many mouths to
feed and bodies TO shelter, and the
many activities OF our Industrial and
business life will 20 ~ about as usual.
A few schemes may he held IN aa@y-
nee. especially those wliich
deiuded public buying but in
the main the latest Wall street
VIII have little effect upon
general business The situation II
vastly different from the panic Of
1903. when our whole financial and
industrial fabric was weakened by
the mass Of indigestibie indastrials
thrown upon an o~vertaxed market.
1t Is true, a good many new issues
have recently been put out. and more
are To follow. but these are all Of the
better grade. likely 10 find a good
market abroad II not here. and the
weakness OF the market can In NO
sense be attributed to this feature. In