Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-05-19
BULLS And BEARS
Special Dispatch to The Star.

SPcetaA DiSPu' cu " 1ne Stnf. 4
NEW YORK. May 1s.-No well-informed
man in the financial community regards the
elimination OF F. III. Hartman and repre-
sentatives of the Hartman interests from
the Northern Pacific board as an act Of
overt hostility AS matter of fact the
Union Pacific proxy was voted for the
board elected yesterday, the changes in the
directorate seem largely to have been
made for the purpose of avoiding conflict
with various state laws forbidding directors
OF one railroad to sit on the board of
competing system, and well authenticated
information Is to the eject that satisfac-
tory progress Is making in the process of
arriving at a permanent peace in the rail-
road situation in the northwest. Neverthe-
less, the fact remains that in the last few
months more Hartman and representatives
OF the Hartman interests have been drop
ped from three directorates-the Northern
Securities, the Kansas City Southern and
the Northern Pacific
A friend Of Mr.. Hartman said not long
ago:
II told one of Mr.. Harriman's intimates
some time since that he was trying to do
toe much; that he could not satisfactorily
take care Of all the irons that he had In
the fire even If he did not stir up enmtty
D.. the apparent boundlessness of his am
bitten"
The view is advanced in Wall street,
however, that Mr.. Hartman Is not part
Ing peacefully with anything that he Is
not willing to give up.
Compilations of railroad gross earnings
made by Wall street news agency show
the following results, compared with the
corresponding periods last year:
For the fourth week of April the gross
earnings of forty-two railroads aggregated
per cent. For the month of April the gross
earnings of sixty-four railroads aggregated
$50, 511. 796, increase Of 81 4S9, $3.50, or 8 IL
per cent. For the first week of May the
gross earnings of thirty-seven railroads ag-
aggregated $.S43, 1874. an increase of $685.
or $40 per cent. For the second week of
May the gross earnings of nine railroads
aggregated s2,s43,7s4. an increase of $685.
S66. or 904 per cent. The gross and net
returns of lightweight railroads for the
month of March were as follows: Gross
earnings, $115.GO3,011, increase So GAO. 90;
operating expenses, $79, 43O, 462. increase
$491S. 097; net earnings, $36. 112, 549, in
crease 81, 100, 1872.
The gross earnings increased 900 per
cent, operating expenses increased 600 per
cent and net earnings increased 1901 per
cent.
The Eastern Bar Iron Association held
meeting here yesterday and reaff1rmed
prevailing prices. The members took
favorable view Of the situation, but re-
ported softness in some sections, due to the
decline in scrap iron. and Improvement In
the market is expected by the middle OF
June The Nut and Bolt Association heid
meetings here on Tuesday and Wednesday
of this week, and also reaffirmed prices
The contract for the new Wabash work
around Pittsburg, which includes connec-
ton with the mills of the United States
Steel Corporation in the city, placing OF
tracks on the west side belt line grade and
the ST. Clair terminal road at Clarion, Pa,
has been let.
Lack of confidence" is diagnosed In some
quarters as the ailing from which Wall
street has been and is still suffering. It is
hardly necessary to enumerate all the
events incidents and factors that have con-
tributed to bring this about, but the fact
of public agitation from the securities
markets and sporadic manifestations OF
public hostility to business interests are
hardly open to adjustment.
Commenting on the fact that practical
steel and iron men are not respondent
about the trade outlook, although profess
sioual Wall street is excessively bearish on
the stocks of steel and iron concerns
man Of many years service In the steel
business says:
1T is my experience that there is no
such poor guides to Wall street as the
practical men. so called, whether they
represent manufacturing or raiiroadlng, ex-
cept perhaps, the so-called expert COM
mentators on trade conditions. AS L have
found them, the practical men are usu-
ally violently bullish at the top of the
trade conditions and extravagantly bearlsh
at the bottom. I recall an interview pub
lished with one of the eminent railroad
men of the country early In 1897. He was
pessimistic in the extreme about railroad
conditions and prospects. and, II my mem
ory is correct, throughout the next four
years he had no faith in the tremendous
boom that developed; neither was he able
to understand how 1t came about.