Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-21
AND BEARS

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, December 2f.--Says bull
ish broker of rather cynical procliyitfes:
The stock market Is strong and capable
OF much higher prices because there to
probably not even a normal supply OF
green goods In the street to be exchanged
for the public's money. This Is his pleas
ant way OF saying that the manufacture
OF new securities has not amounted to
much in the last three years.
The market is not particularly sensitive
to incendiary runiors. 1t may be that the
old story OF Wolf. Wolff is to have an
other exemplihcation. but there is no
doubt that the street has become very deaf
to shouts of alarm In the last year after
having found from experience that there
was no dreadful cause for them. Hardly
day passes now that some one of the little
Lawsons advertfses some such screech az
Panic! stand from under." There are
plenty of these pyromaniacs. to change the
metaphor, who would like to commit arson
in the stock market. but either the market
Is fireproof or their particular brand or
punk Is not the right kind.
Il
OF course, the supply of stock exchange
seats is rigidly limited. while there are no
bounds to the possible demand. Naturally
therefore, the price Of the seats makes new
high records in each successive buli mar
ket or in the successive stages OF such
bull market as has been had Tor the iast
ten years. However, the price rarely noAu ..s
strong or continues to rise on the eye -,
any pronounced declining movements III
securities, and, to a degree, the quo.aliols
for seats is something of an intimation OF
the speculative prospects.
According to the Railroad Gazette 1ee'ooo
railroad cars exclusive Of those ouilt iof
street RAILWAYS or constructed by the rail-
roads in their own shops) have been built
in this country and Canada this year. 1885,
455 of them being for freight service. This
Is a record output, the nearest year being
1902 with 1874, SAT cars. Locomotives quit
this year are 5,491. against 5,152 IN l9oS: II
Is estimated that there is represented IN
this new equipment a total railroad expen-
diture of about $500. 100000. which Is about
10 per cent of the gross receipts OF the rail-
roads represented.
Wall street cannot help wondering why
the directors of the Peoples Gas Company
thought it necessary to announce now that
they had decided that the stock should go
~
pany's proposition to give the city of Chi
caeo 9O-cent gas. The next dividend on
the stock is not due to be paid until Feb
ruary
1t is pointed out that the announcement
of a policy is not identical with the fnau-
guration of that policy. although 1t would
be hard to find many men in the hnanciai
or speculative community who would be
willing to say that they expected the oil
rectors to change their minds before the
meeting to declare the next dividend and
to declare that distribution at the rate that
has obtained since 1897, when Peoples Gas
was made per cent stock. 1t is pre-
sumed, however, that the announcement OF
the proposed reduction In dividend rate was
thought to be expedient now in that 1t would
tend to facilitate settlement of the DIFF
ferences between the company and the city.
The Reading company has declared the
regular semi-annual dividend of per cent
on It's common stock. payable on February
1, to holders Of record on January Is. The
Lehigh Valley has declared the regular divi-
dends There was no expectation In Wall
street that disbursements would be increased
on the anthracite stocks at this time. when
such action might be made the basis for
demagogic efforts to stir up labor troubles.