Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-14
NEWS AND GOSSIP
FROM WALL STREET
By w. q. NICHOLAS.

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Pennsylvania interests are now said to
hold In the neighborhood OF ~ per cent. of
the entire issue OF Erie stocks which are
pooled. according to popular report New
Haven and the Hill-MorGan party are be-
ieved to own at least ~ per cent of out
standing Erie stocks-possibly the amount
OF this latter holding has been under
estimated. Baltimore and Ohio and Lake
Shore own slightly less than a majority
OF Reading stock. but enough additional
stock to give absolute property control
to these two factions is held by friendly
private interests. so there is no chance
whatever OF any shifting of the manage
ment or policy of the great anthracite coal
road. 1t Will continue in the future as il
has been for the past several years-the
backbone of the anthracite coal trust.
There will be no Interruption to the Erie
Improvement scheme set in motion a year
and half ago. Not less than $4,000 900
will be spent on the physical betterment
or the road, large part of which will be
spent on the eastern end of the line Most
earnings, although S1o.o00OOO of converti-
BILE bonds were sold a while back. These
bonds are convertible into common stock
on the basis of 30 shares of the latter for
each $4,000 In bonds.
*. ~
Revelations with regard to the inside
doings of some OF the big bucket shop
systems have yielded fresh crop of in
teresting facts In relation thereto. Among
other things 1t has produced a revised es-
innate Of the volume of business trans
acted in these institutions throughout the
country This estimate is to the effect
that the aggregate buying and selling OF
stocks in bucket shops is very much larger
than on the New York Stock Exchange,
where sales run from 1.OO0.00O to 2.000.OO0
shares a day in lively seasons. Again the
cry goes up for their determination. and
a decision just handed down by the Su-
preme Court of the United States seems to
arm the legitimate exchanges with the
power to at least minimize the evil This
decision gives to the Chicago Board of
Trade. and by inference every other ex-
change, the right of control over its quo
tations, this finding being a reversal OF
former decisions on that point. Hereto
fore the courts have ruled that quotations
Of commodities or securities traded In on
the exchange were tinged with public in
terest and that the right OF restriction In
their distribution did not exist The
bucket shops however. Will not abandon
the field until actually driven from It.
For instance, case Is now on It's way
to the Supreme Court Involving the wand
ity of a purchase and sale under the condi-
tons commonly prevailing in bucket shops,
the issue being raised that one broker
can legally bring together a buyer and
seller. the transaction resulting in what
is usually termed an 'ofrest trade"
\
Gov. Higgins may find ii impossible to re-
sist the pressure upon him to include gas
legislation in his call for a special session of
the New York legislature. Consolidated Gas
and Peoples Gas are sure enough under
the harrow. The enactment of the Illinois
legislature confers upon the city council
and board of aldermen of Chicago the long
disputed right to fix the price of gas to con-
sumers in that city, and nothing short OF a
miracle will prevent the passage and en-
forcement of 75-cent gas ordinance for the
lakeside metropolis A similar reduction
seems to be ahead for New York. The
New York and Chicago situations differ,
however. in the important respect that the
fight against the western monopoly will
probably end In municipal ownership.
whereas that elimination is remote In re-
gard to the New York proposition.
There are many ways by which profess
SIGNALS test market-that is to say. to as
certain its real strength or weakness.
Jake" Field, the leading room trader or
scalper is probably one of the most expert
operators Of the. present day In that re-
spect. His speculative senses are attuned
to catch the slightest change and to care
fully measure the force Of every current
and wave of opinion. He had been bear
ing the market for two or three weeks but
finally reached the point where he deemed
it wise to take in sail and feel his ground
before entering upon new commitments on
the short side. The market had not acted
entirely to his satisfaction. and he thought
90 CT
der certain of the stocks he had been per-
hammering.
He decided to make a test, and accord
ingly secretly placed selling orders with
ABOUT thirty brokers. He then made a
noisy and ostentatious tour of the floor
buying right and left of everything in sight
When he had finished he made the discoy-
cry that every share of stock he had bought
mad come from his own brokers-in other
words. he had been buying his own stocks
He Immediately jumped to the conclusion
that the street was bare Of stocks, and that
1t would be a most excellent time for him
to SHIFT his position, which he did without
moments hesitation. He bought In his
short stocks and then turned bull for the
time being, loading up with 5000 to 10000
shares inside Of an hour The Incident
marked a turning point in the market and
was the beginning of very important re-
covery in prices. -,
Frank Platt Is said to be In with senator
Bracket in some of the litigation brought
by the Saratoga senator against the .Eouit-
able. II Is OF common gossip in the street
that Platt drew up the brief In the suit
against the Equitable directors in which
the issue Is raised of damages for money
alleged TO have been recently diverted from
the Golfers Of the society to the pockets of
the insiders. On the issue raised in this
particular suit the courts may order a full
accounting and incidentally settle the ques-
ton OF the real responsibility of the direc-
tors. Some lawyers hold that IL this latest
Bracket litigation is forced to finish the
actual responsibility will finally lodge not
with the entire directorate. but with the
members OF the executive and finance COM
mittees having the management of the
funds.
Since the subway on Manhattan Island
went into operation a sufficient time has
elapsed to demonstrate the value to the sur
face roads OF the short haul Before the
subway began business the surface lines had
To carry great nup,har of yasSar,o-. o.