The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-01-24

more than it costs to send it from Min
neapolis to New York-tnat takes some
power. The power to expand trade makes
us criminals and we are defending law
suits today because We are charged with
the power to carry the trade on. You
must have some power somewhere. No
matter how you exercise it-you are
public criminal against the law OF the
| country"
The depth of Mr.. Hills personal feel
ing in this matter may be judged by his
remarks on the theory governing the re-
lations between the railroads and the
people, as follows;
Now, you have always been in the
habit. 1 think, of feeling that we were
at all times ready to do anything in our
power to help you, but when the exercise
of power in the carrying of your business
to new markets, to take the place Of
the market you are losing becomes a
crime and we lay ourselves open to fine
and Imprisonment, l have got to tell you
that We do not want either, and you
have got to see, If you want to- whether
your representatives are ready to stand
for or against your interest. As far as we
are concerned we are perfectly happy. As
l said before our dividends will not sur
fer whether we carry one barrel of flour
or one million barrels of flour. There is
very little in it.
But there is this in 1t: have always
held as a principle that in operating a
railroad our greatest prosperity came
from the greatest prosperity of the peo-
pie living on the line and unless we can
take the natural resources of the coun-
try (and your natural resources are con-
lined practically to what is raised on the
farm)-unless we can take the natural re-
sources of the country to some market
where they can be sold with profit to
the man who raises them, who creates
them. the time is not far distant when
we will stop creating them.
You can sell out or abandon your farm
We cannot abandon our railroad. We
might sell the shares but the railroad
must be there. Now am not an oriental
/ dreamer or a crank, but ] am ready at
all times to plead guilty to any intelligent
effort within my power that will result
in getting new markets for what we pro-
duce in this northwestern country; be-
cause every bushel you take out of the
market here, every bushel you send to a
new market, every bale of cotton you
end to new market, in fact everything
you send to a new market helps what
is left, the surplus saved Is that much
less, and 1t is not here to compete with
werp.
When the United States Steel sinking
fund bonds were listed this week in
London the action was followed by a
manipulative campaign in the bonds here
on which the price advanced sharply and
transactions amounted to between $1,000.
600 and $4,000, 900 par value per day. On
several days more than half the transact
tons in the bond market were In these
bonds. There was some good buying on
the advance also some good selling, but
manipulation so clouded the legitimate
transactions that it was impossible to
judge accurately the character of the
latter. At 70 these bonds yield 2-3 per
cent to the investor and therefore appear
very attractive in per cent money mar
ket. As a matter Of fact this bond is lit
tie or no better than a first preferred
stock 1t Is stipulated that the company
will only be obliged to pay one coupon
in two years to prevent foreclosure. 1t
is hardly conceivable, however, that the
steel trade would ever decline to point
necessitating the defauting of interest on
this bond. Along with the strength of the
strength of the sinking Sund bonds the
preferred stock has improved in value. 1t
may be observed that there has been a
distinct change in Wall street sentiment
towards the United States steel securi-
ties since the passing of the dividend on
the common stock. 1t is not improbable
that dividends on the preferred will be
reduced to a per cent basis unless busi-
ness pick up very rapidly during this
current quarter. But even on per cent
basis the stock yields a large return to
the investor at this price level and it
being aceumulative stock there would al
ways be a possibility of the other per
cent being made up Some of the most
conservative houses in the street are
urging their clients to buy the preferred
stocks as an investment and along with
ii an equal amount of the common stock.
The purchase of the preferred stock at
5S along with an equal amount of COM
mon stock at II would bring the total
of the investment up to 60 and so long
as steel preferred continues to pay per
cent the investment return on the outlay
would be more than 10 per cent. Mean
while the financial community Is uncer-
tain as to whether the improvement that
has occurred in the steel trade during
the past few weeks is merely a rally in
a bear situation or the beginning Of gen.
uine Improvement.
Last December 1t was rumored in Wall
street that the United States Steel cor
poration would adopt the old Carnegie
policy of doing business at any price. This
seemed to presage a general demoraliza-
ton in the trade and was a weeks SEN
sation. Officials of the United States Steel
corporation, however, vigorously denied
that they were doing any such thing.
Since then, however, there has been a re-
sumption of activity in all the properties
of the steel trust on a scale that seems
hardly to bewarranted by the slight inn
provement which has taken place in the
demand for steel products. This suggests
that the giant trust may possibly be pur-
suing In a quiet way the old Carnegie
policy. There are many reasons why the
officials might not care to avow such
a policy, but the suspicion is made strong
er by the fact that men trained in the
Carnegie school are now dominant in the
affairs of the corporation supported by
the Standard oil interests.
The Standad Oil company's method of
meeting competition, particular in string
ent times has been to do business at
any price, and the Standard oil interests
| in United States steel would naturally
| favor similar methods in the management
| of that concern. 1t Is too early yet to
| decide what the increase of activity in the
| United States steel mills really means, but
| the situation will bear close watching dur
| ing the next few weeks
| Money is piling up in Wall street very
| rapidly. Loans are be ngiespr---
rapidly. Loans are being pressed upon
brokers at per cent and under and
/ call money rules between and IL per
tt.t. - l.