Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-22
BULLS AND BEARS

NEW YORK, December 22.--An inkling a.
to present speculative tendencies seems to
be afforded by the fact that in the first four
days of this week the average price OF ac-
tive industrials showed a daily decline.
while railroad stocks showed an average
decline on Monday only. Perhaps the chief
cause for these contrasted movements In
the stock market is the Discrimination that
has dev ,ped against in1ustrials offered In
collater-. for loans solely, however, because
such a ! ge percentage of Industrial stocks
was beir.s, offered.
The London stock exchange closes from
tonight until next Wednesday morning. The
local stock exchange closes on christmas
only. feeble effort was made few days
ago to start a moyemeat.<o close tomorrow.
but il died out. in view of the general un-
Outstanding that 1t has become the settied
policy OF the governing committee to keep
the exchange open on all days when the
banks are open. Tuesday is Boxing day
on the other side and a statutory holiday in
England and Ireland.
Only moderate credence is extended to the
revived story that the Standard Oil Com
pany of New Jersey. the corporation that is
the object of attack in all the light litera-
ture of the day, is to Increase its capital
stock to $60o, 100000. Why the round sum
cited should be the amount selected does
not appear, except that the Standard Oil
capitalization increased to that figure would
probably get an attractive market quota
tion somewhere around $50, based on its
present price.
obviously the company would hardly In
crease as capital for the purpose of raising
money, and such an imitation as that which
H.ean that present share holders would get,
huge stock dividend althougfrsthe subse-A
quent cash disbursements on the stock
m meaiu maze no greater net yield than a.
ment OF capitalization Wall street infers
that the owners of the Company might de-
sire to bring the dividend rate down in or
ders to eliminate one of the causes OF of
tense to the corporation reformers
That the net result is the same If AZ per
cent is paid on 500, coo as If Z per cent
Is paid on S600,O0O.0O0 seems hardly to be
appreciated by the octopus hunters, and it
Is fact that in the last year the Standard
OIL Company interests have shown them
selves unusually sensitive to attack, as wit
ness the unprecedented 1oQuacity of John
d. Rockefeller, Mr.. Dodd and others who
have delivered several defense statements.
I1oWeNeI, the itdOlflS TedSOH 10 WIFI
streets thinking for expanding the capital
stock of the company would be to prepare
the way for distribution of the stock. At
present the Broad street curb is the lead
ing market for it and selling at the prices
that obtain, Standard Oil is neither a trad
ing medium nor a security that commands
any extensive public following. On the the
DRY that the Standard Oil interests wanted
to distribute their stock, or, in other words
to unload, ii is doubtful if the investment
would look Immediately attractive to out
SiderS.
The splendid isolation of Standard OIL the
close way in which the stock has been held,
the very apparent reluctance to share the
good thing with those without the pale,
have constituted its chief recommendation
to investors who buy it from time to time
as they can afford to and IN such lots as
car be obtained.
These considerations, plus the mainte-
nance of good dividends and the company's
monopolized business and apparent pros
perity, have offset the fact that there is no
public accounting and that from time to
time legislative ana other public hostility
has been shown. But If the Standard Oil
Company were to changs 81 this, and to an
nounce a capital increase II would seem
rather likely that the following conclusions
would form themselves in tire suspicious
Wall street mind: That the Standard Oil in
forests preferred cash to the stock of their
own company, that perhaps the company
was not as prosperous as 1t appeared to
be: that perhaps In the best judgment OF
the investors the prospect was that sooner
or later legislation or judicial proceedings
detrimental to the companys interests
would be successfully attempted.
Probably the Wall street mind would go
astray in these conjectures, but 1t is al
most obvious that this Is the way in which
that mind would work to the temporary ex-
clusion of the hypothesis that the Standard
Oil interests. deeming the time ripe for
change of policy had decided to admit a
larger public to participation in the profits
of the business. if not to better knowl-
edge of its affairs.