Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-28
BULLS AND BEARS

BULLS ANU BEARS
NEW YORK. August 2S-Commission
houses generally are advising the purchase
of well-established stocks on any declines
that may occur.
Some. however. are saying that they don't
look for any improvement in the immedi-
ate future and they cannot encourage any
purchases at this time.
-
That should just about do for him." was
the pith and substance Of Wall streets COM
ment today on Lawson's appeal for mil
lions of dollars to be put In a discretionary
pool for him to handle. The general opin-
ion Is that Boston's great bear is about at
the end Of his resources when he asks the
public to entrust to him funds. with. as he
says. cheerful willingness to lose every
dollar subscribed.
1t was suggested this morning that the
big bucket hop proprietors might go into
this pool In despairing effort to wipe out
the millions of dollars of liability that
would undoubtedly accrue on their sheets
on the big rise since early in July, but the
prevailing opinion In well-informed quarters
in the financial community has been all
along that. although Lawson was in a way
dangerous man. IL given enough rope he
would hang himself. and his game has not
been interfered with. until lately at least
1t looked last Friday morning. when the
sharp drive in which Lawson was credited
with participating was made shortly after
the opening, as though very powerful in
terests gave out unlimited buying orders.
Lawson, according to street gossip, has
been heavily short of stocks for some time
and is thought to have been one OF the
bears squeezed In Reading.
~
Competent judges of the securities and
money markets think that a reaction in
stocks Is to be expected during the fall,
a wholly normal and usual occurrence fol-
lowing the August rise. but they do not
expect 1t to go far in face of the prosper
out outlook in agriculture, manufacturing
and general business and that many buy
ers are waiting for just such an oppor-
tunity as real reaction In the stock
market would afford.
Concerning that interesting project, the
Deepwater and Tidewater railroad, the
Manufacturers Record of Baltimore, says:
Wherever it may land. the total length
of the main line can hardly exceed 1000
miles. all told. But that short trunk line
will go through the heart of the best cox
ing and steam coal fields of West Virginia
"a field nowhere Surpassed in richness on
grade and provided with such equipment
as will enable It to haul coal to either lake
or tidewater at cheaper rate than is pos
sible by any existing line.
1T will be the first realization of an old
old dream for a railroad through the West
Virginia coal fields from the lakes to the
sea, and 1t will be along the possible route
left unoccupied. New York takes for con-
sumption and distribution. about 1900, 900
tons of Goals in a year. New England
which takes about 5,OO0,OO0 tons of smoke
less bituminous coal in year, Is the prin-
cipal market for the Goals delivered at
tidewater by the Chesapeake and Ohio and
the Norfolk and Western roads. The deep
water-tidewater system proposes to get into
New York and will make no fight for the
New England trade.
with the line to the lakes, the whole en-
terprise, including everything except rolling
stock and lake terminals, will cost some
| $50.OO0.OOO. And yet the companies doing
this enormous work are capitalized at only
$175.O0O and have paid every bill without
asking the public for one dollar. The great
chess game between Pennsylvania and
Gould would hardly seem to have been half
finished
THAT the -tidewater road will
be a Gould alley if 1t does not become a
part of his system Of roads, would by no
means seem to be an unreasonable as
sumption. If this Is true, 1t will strengthen
! in his hands one Of the best coal roads ever
constructed in the heart OF the Kanawa and
the New River Pocahontas coal field. but
by opening up the possibilities of connec-
items and extensions which will give him
everything he wants In the way Of access
to the Pittsburg Goals of West Virginia
| as well as lines from West Virginia into the
city OF Pittsburg and to the lakes"
Miller & Co. have put out a circular on
| the Erie showing among other things the
gross earnings and "other income" mile
of the four principal eastern trunk lines,
| with the percentage of increase in 1903. as
compared with 1897. Erie increase, 49, per
cent: Pennsylvania, AS per cent: New
York Central, 25.6 per cent; Baltimore and
Ohio 1871 per cent. The circular presents
| the following conclusions:
I'D. Erie is growing property of large
| possibilities and has demonstrated present
| earning power of nearly per cent on all
classes of stock.
"(2). The traffic is of an Increasingly
| stable character being miscellaneous trunk
| line traffic, including anthracite and btu
| minous coal and coming to embrace each
year larger and larger proportion OF local
business.
"C3). There are large possibilities of econ
omy to be realized in the near future by
| the construction of improved facilities and
| low-grade lines now under way, for which
| financial provision has already been made.
80. The present management IS strong
and aggressive, and fully awake as to the
possibilities of the property
90. At present figures the actual cap
italization per mile of the road is less than
that of the New York Central.
"(6). At no distant date Erie will prove
a second Reading"
Experts are coming to an agreement that
this country will have this year an export
able surplus of about 100000 900 bushels of
wheat.
Robert Goodbody 4 Co. say in their week.
ly market letter:
1--WE have often wondered why specula-
ton has not run to the stocks Of the Ma
tional railroad of Mexico.
THE reform Of the currency of Mexico
ought to have caused this speculation as
the National is the most important railroad
in the republic. The road is controlled by
the Mexican government and by Messrs
Speyer The latter advised many people to
buy the National stock long ago, and when