The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-08-29
0Osssr or wAEL STREET.


Tho speculative situation Is not what II wal
In December last. when the publlc's pyramlt
tunlbled over with a crash. The bear part
was then able TO break the market. Price,
had been rising with only slight Interrupt lor
ior months. and as prices advanced the public
pull account became more and more OK
| tended. Commission houses were loadeo
up with stocks like Union Pacific. Anal
gamated Copper and the Steel stocks, arc
the speculation for the rise had extended
all through the list. The market was ripe
for a considerable reaction, and the psyche
logical moment arrived when certain large
interests temporarily removed their support
from the market because Of widespread I'm.
easness a. to railway rate Legislation. The
bear party made the most OF II. But the
extent Of the reaction surprised no one more
than the leading bear. operators themselves
The market A. II declined disclosed an un.
expectediy large public account, and IL was
the unoovering OF stop orders In heavy vol.
ume that made the bear campaign 30 sue.
cessful In q successful bear campaign
the volume Of trading increases a. the market
declines. just as In q successful bull CAM
paisn the trading grows heavier as the mar
ket advances When q market gets dull
after extensive manipulative selling the pur-
pose OF which Is to dislodge stocks the natural
are not selling on the decline.
Some OF the critics OF the stock market
have great deal to say about manipulation
when prices are advancing. but they do not
discover any manipulation when prices de-
cline.
on the present advance. which begun
In June. there has been no distribution of
stocks commensurate with the extent of
the rise In prices. Those commission houses
which do not handle accounts for banking
interests or active professional operators
have complained steadily OF the lack OF
public interest In tho market The pub,lo's
extreme conservatism has been due In q
large measure to the conservatism Of the COM
mission houses. They have been In many
instances out Of sympathy with the bull
campaign and have given little encourage
ment to their customers. The public which
Ia not In personal touch with financial leaders
has taken only nominal interest in specu-
latton since the completion OF the heavy
liquidation In the spring The bear party
therefore. which has made several unsuccess-
full attempts In the past few weeks to break
the market. is deprived Of one of the chief
aids to bear campaign-the underlying
strata OF stop loss orders Of weakly mar
gined public accounts.
This Ia the second time recently that Read
ing has been attacked on the story OF strike
In the coal regions next spring. when the
agreement between the mine workers and the
mine owners expires. Five weeks ago, In
short week end bear raid on the market.
which was helped along by the fear OF some
large operators as TO the rust damage In the
wheat fields OF the Northwest. Reading broke
from los to par on story that there was to be
a coal strike next April. Those who sold
Reading on that decline were never able to
get their stock back except at loss. Since
then 1t has had an extreme advance of IS
points, Reading was 1.-THE weakest stock
in the market yesterday. John Mitchell's
Sunday talk about a renewal of the mine
workers demands In April giving the cue
for the selling. After advancing to l2lh
soon after, the opening, It declined very
rapidly to iisH. 1t regalned some OF its
loss In the recovery in the general market
at the end OF the first hour. but In the second
drive at the market 1t sold down to lisls,
q loss Of AZ from It's best price and 2 loss Of
~ from its top price Of last week. II was
only when the news from Portsmouth became
more peaceful In the afternoon that any
aggressive support was given to the stock.
1t showed a net decline Of * for the day.
Those who have been demanding a reaction
On which to buy stocks now want to know
what is the matter with the market.
The Atlantic Coast Line Company which
has increased Ats quarterly dividend rate from
? to az per cent is the holding company
which controls the Atlantic Coast Line Rail-
road Its outstanding capital stock 10 only
30 500. 900. The stock s not listed on the
exchange. 1t Ia quoted somewhere above
1875 The advance in the railroad stock
yesterday was due to buying by man. who
thought the increased dividend was on the
railroad stock.
While Reading led the decline in the market
In the drive In the morning. the interest
In the reaction was more in Amalgamsted
Copper, which is the stock used by the bear
party to affect sentiment. 1t opened OF
Il on moderate trading and sold down x
more. 1t then advanced easily from ssIs
TO SIN. The attack on it began at that price.
1t sold of easily. without any large volume
Of trading. to s5H. The attack. while 1t had
the appearance OF q raid. lacked ginger.
Much of the selling came from Boston.
The manner in which the market received
the report from Portsmouth that Japan had
waived the indemnity was peculiar. It was
fully ten minutes after the news reached the
foor before the market stirred. Some Of the
followers Of the, market who Watched the
ticker in brokers' Offices thought the market
was not going to take any notice OF the news.
Prices showed a tendency to sag, Then sud
ienly. when hope had about been given up
IN the commission houses, tho market. like a
ship that had been drifting with the tide.
suddenly caught the breeze. Reading. Union
Pacific. Amalsamated Copper. st. Paul and
he Steels. the stocks which had been the
targets OF the selling. began to move up
On active trading 1t was plain that traders
had sold stocks FOR the decline were
,urrying to get back their stocks. But the
'svoring wind was nuky. The market got into
| calm again In few minutes. when the rush
II the traders to cover was over. and began
% drift back. The commission house re-
,ponse to the news from Portsmouth was not
,pontaneous. Toward the close, the market
,tren gthened again. but most OF the stocks
which showed considerable losses early In the
lay failed to regain fully these losses. Union
Pacific was the notable exception. It closed
It Its closing price OF Saturday. The fact that
he stock sells ex dividend az per cent. to-day
probably had something to do with this.
The speculator who Is short OF the stock must
Jay the dividend.