The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-01-15
GOSSIP or WALL STREET.

Union Pacific sold at 1907. On the follow
inR Thursday 1t sold at the extreme high
price OF 1873 Transactions during that week
reached the enormous total OF $50 500 shares.
There have been some violent movements
in Union Pacific on the adv from around
10 TO this level since the United States SUI
preme Courts decision in March of last year
declaring the Northern Securities Company
70 be an Illegal combination In restraint OF
trade. on one occasion a few months ago
the buying became 80 aggressive as TO suR-
gest the possibility OF competitive bidding for
control, a repetition Of the Northern Pacific
panic. &c. and the general market declined
uneasily while II continued. As compared
with an advance Of 23h points In that week
Of 1901. however. tho most notable OF recent
movements in the stock seem coherent and
applicable. Al iie< yesterday the stock sold
at the highest price that has been touched
since the movement that carried IL to 1888
In 1901.
Ina well known commission house yester-
day one OF the oldest clients looked up from
the ticker TO see which one Of his fellow trad
ers had given the order at that moment being
verbally repeated by the clerk receiving IL
He beheld an unfamiliar CONFERENCE.-The
that he had never seen before in the place.
All said the old client. "a new face in
pur gatory.-
The Hill following has been buling North
ern Secur tics from around par up 10 this
level. pred letting that II would sell AZ $50,
and now as the stock approaches that figure
mysteriou explanations OF It's advance are
demanded, and there Is heard. among other
things some talk Of It's being oornered. There
has been much speculation as to the extent
OF n technical short interest existing against
sales for foreign account. and there also
have been rumors OF competitive buying on
l.. NJ Ia tha atr,,t.i Loaf
explanation and go no further. said one OF
the original bull crowd yesterday. you Will
have 1t right. II is that Northern Securities
stock has been advancing on It's merits. II
has the value. We have expected II TO sell
at 100 / should net ~ surprised now TO
see It cell considerably higher. There is
very little OF the stock floating around.
should say that per cent was a high esti-
mate OF the floating supply. You may see.
therefore. that comparatively little good
buying advances il sharply. Those Of us
who think we know what there Is In the stock
have been buying II steadily all the way up
There has been no secret about 1t Pnr-
ticipation In this Northern Securities dis
tribution on any terms is going 10 be very
profitable. The advance in Northern Sc
cur tiles stock has been no greater proportion
ately than the advances that have taken
place in those stocks among the company's
assets which arc sometimes quoted In the
market, as, for example. Great Northern
preferred. which sold here this week at 25s.
1t was selling last March at 10. The assets
OF the Northern Securities Company other
than railroad stocks are beginning to be
found out. Large among these are its ore
properties You have seen some comment
recently upon their enormous value. Wall
Street wants everything TO be az mysterious
as possible. but IN sorry 10 say that there is
nothing mysterious in the advance OF North
ern Securities stock.
Some stocks on which thore has recently
been "a lot OF bull talk we're heavy ycster day.
notably Illinois Central. which declined
u, per cent. L. n which declined = per
cent and Pennsylva mia. which after a frac-
tional decline from Fridays nnal quotation.
closed unchanged.
II is apparent that control OF the market
for Amllgamated Copper. which for while
recently was uncertainty contested has
passed into the right hands The buy
ing OF the stock last week. observers
said. was OF particularly good character.
Inc most trustworthy Information ON the
stock is conservativcly bullish Specula-
tive sentiment. however is not 40 one-sided
as to be dangerous. az has been the case
recently-the FIRST one way and then another.
short Interest in Metropolitan street Railway.
Speculative sentiment has recently favored
the short side OF the stock and good many
traders have been selling it on a scale doWn.
The market value of an American stock.
said very shrewd commentator last week.
is based upon what it pays In dividends TO
the holder rather than upon its earnings.
Who're company has large earnings In re-
serve the mar ket value OF It's securities is con-
trolled absolutely by those who IRE able 10
dictate the dividend policy. The market |
value OF Union Pacific for example. IS con-
trolled by those who may say what the diyi- |
dends shall be. II control OF the Union Pacific
pro perty were in tho market should cay that
1t would look extremely attractive 10 any |
group of mon possessing the means to buy ii. |
They could AFFORD TO pay up to $50 or higher |
for 1t. and then. when In possession. they |
could with conse rvatsm, increase the divi- |
dend to. say.e per cent. and thereby establish |
the stock lie gtimately on n market bnsis Of |
$50 or higher ! do not say that control OF |
[ Mon Pacific ia in the market | merely call !
attention 10 a situation that might be created
II by any accident 1t were. For the reasons
| have given | should say that some people
would take very great pains 70 see that con-
troll did not get into the open market and b.
come A temptation. There Ia probably
limit, therefore, TO the amount OF stock that
would come upon tho market from quarters
where control Is TO be accounted for. Tho
floating supply. on the other hand must
be correspondingly limited. This rs never
been the situation before. think, with the
stock selling at this level. The stock has
never had so great a value before.
From the point OF view OF the speculative
observer. dealing in movements and fiSctua-
lions rather than In values, the most i'm
portant development in the market last week
was the turning OF Union Pacific to the bun
side. IL was generally expected In well in
formed speculative quarters that aggressive
leadership on tho bull side would be reas-
serted IL at all. in that group OF stocks 10
which Union Pacific belongs The inltia-
i've necessary TO start the market up again.
20 critical followers OF the market declared
goIld have TO be taken by the so-caled
anger interests in stock wherein general
speculative attention could be quickly
lroused This movement in Union Pacific
satisfies a bullish sentiment that had become
10 general a. to excite the distrust OF a scep-
ical professional element. An operator who
lad been saying for several weeks that such
initiative was the one thing needful 10 change
he whole appearance OF the market and
ilspel the existing apathy. commenting
ipon the market as it was closing yesterday.
aid. This ia the leadership that we have