The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-05-24
STOCK MARKET FEATURES
PRICES RALLY BRISKLK, THEN
 DROP OFF.

DROP OFF.
 Considerable Covering by shorts-some
 Investment Buying-The Disintegrat-
 ed Merchants Trust Co.-weather
 Crop Report Slightly UnfavorabIe.
 While there were evidences of shorts covering yesterday and continuation of investment buying, the market after a brisk rally slumped again to about the opening prices. ...- ....
 Bear selling was in evidence again.
 Just what the market is going to do is something that t.the little fellows" are not able to determine.
 It was said yesterday that there will be an announcement regarding the Equitable affairs of a satisfactory na- ture next week, which will be likely to improve Wall street sentiment on this phase of the general situation.
 Arbitrage firms dealt in less than 20,- 900 shares in this market sales slightly exceeding purchases and being scatter ing. #....... ...-*
 The good class of buying that began in the last hour Monday was carried over into yesterdays market, and even tually made it's impress on the market. There was no bidding for stocks, but they were taken as they were offered. This condition led, in the end, to short covering, to which the bulk of the ad- vance was due. zgJ ssy
 The early attack on prices was due to the expected announcement of the clos ing of the doors of the Merchants Trust company. Stocks, however, began to rise as soon as the news came out. The reason of this was that some specula- tors had on Monday early information of the banks impending failure.
 The late reaction in the share list was due in a great measure to a material subsistence of the morning buying for both the long and short accounts and a sudden shifting of position by London from a buyer to a seller, with the net result of sales on balance of about 10000 shares. .tf->. ,-..s.#
 Those who sought to interpret the probable course of the stock market by watching United States Steel shares were much {perplexed by the ease with WHICH Luty TStll OiI, dlISl UCiIS plO ops
 From the sharp recessions which oe- cured during the late trading it was apparent that there was more or less of an artificial character to the early rally. .'5
 So far as could be learned from the meagre details at hand, the suspension of the Merchants Trust company was another instance of reckless lending on inside enterprises, similar to those which brought the Produce Exchange Trust company to grief in the winter of 1899. The facts were such as to con- vince every one that the difficulties were of a special character, and that the case of the failed bank was an iso- lated case.
 There is doubtless left a somewhat uncomfortable doubt as to whether or not other small concerns than the Mer- chants Trust may not, like it, have been using the bloom times,'' and the altogether too liberal laws affecting them, to prepare for a similar reckon ing. ,...=.
 The Sugar, United States Leather and Chicago and Northwestern directors de- clared the regular dividends on their stocks.
 Perhaps the least favorable was the continued speculative rise in wheat and cotton To an extent, this rise was url- doubtedly based on the governments weekly crop bulletin, which reported the kind of weather, in the wheat and cotton belts, that delays agricultural growth, though it may not distinctly injure it.
 Further delay in corn planting is re- ported from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and much replanting is necessary in the first and last named states as we'll as in Iowa and Nebraska.
 Winter wheat generally continues promising, although complaints of rust and short straw from portions are re- ceived.
 More favorable weather conditions during the latter part of the week have caused spring wheat to improve rapid ly, and this crop is now making satis- factory progress, except on lowlands in North Dakota where slightly damaged by flooding and some scattered fields of the late-sown are thin in South Da- kota. Spring wheat is advancink satis- factorily in Oregon, and though heavy frosts caused some, damage in low val leys in Washington, the crop will re- cover, and is looking well.
 This advice was given by Dick Broth CTS & Co. to their customers yesterday: "In our opinion, the market is becom- ing heavily oversold, and while prices may go somewhat lower, we would not advise sales at this time. After the violent declines of the past few days the short side is dangerous. There should be sharp rally from any fur ther drives unless there are to be seri- ous developments unforeseen and unfa- yorable in a general way"
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