Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-06-03
Financial News Letter
;peeial CORRESPONDENCE Of The STAR.


NEW YORK, June ., 1906.
One of the most noteworthy developments
of the hour is the changed attitude of the
rich and powerful personages and interests
In Wall street toward the public 1t is
no longer fashionable to wear rhinoceros
rides and assume indifference to attack
and criticism. The big fellows have be-
come sensitive to unfriendly notice as sore
boils. The unrest of the public mind has
become recognized fact, even- among the
naughty and exclusive members Of the
upper clawses, who had contracted the
chronic habit of regarding all popular dem
onstrations as vulgar agitations designed
chiefly to annoy them, bat as being other
wise unimportant
All this is changed Graft" revelations
have followed fast and followed faster
during the past two years until the popu-
lar awakening has assumed a complexion
most menacing to interests hitherto re-
garded as impregnably entrenched
insurance revelations long since gave
way 10 serial sensations of astounding
graft In other directions until it would
seem almost as though the whole business
world literally reeks with immortality and
rottenness. Much of TIE talk that is heard
Is gross exaggeration and susceptible to
explanation, but evidence is found on every
hdnd that the popular feeling has been
worked up to pitch which makes it i'm
possible to sanely discriminate Washing
ton, the political center of the nation is
even more deeply stirred than Wall street
EVERY congressman and Office holder aims
70 keep touch with sentiment in his par
ticuiaf locality. and from Washington
comes word THAI popular unrest has swollen
to tidal wave proportions. Politicians,
from United States senators down to road
supervisors are bowling to the storm They
have been trained to distinguish the differ
ence between Utilization and a ground
swell, and they are in agreement as to the
size OF the movement now in evidence.
Washington news is making Wall street
sit up and take notice.
That Wall street has its ear to the
ground Is shown in the very recent past
by the creation of a Standard Oil publicity
bureau: Consolidated Gas Company's aban-
dcl ment of its program to nulify by court
in)uncture the 80 cent gas law. nilly willy,
and then to proceed calmly with the eoilec-
ton of bills under the old 81 rate: the cut
ting in half of the telephone charges In
New York city; the beef trusts lightning
charge of front on meat inspection; Presi-
dent Cassatts rush home from Europe;
railroad willingness to accept any rate bili
Congress may frame.
Sugar will probably be benefited as
much by the free alcohol bill as the whis-
ky trust. Standard Oil money, by the way.
practically controls Sugar" Alcohol is one
OF the bt-products of sugar refining al
though 1t has not been exploited as such.
The sugar trust has not specialized that
portion of its business on account of the
high tax on spirits imposed by the govern
ment Under the new order of things 1t
Is a certainty that the big sugar company
will enter extensively upon the production
of alcohol, will be stimulated in many
directions. and the poor whisky trust.
Which has borne the expense of long and
a-duous campaigns against Congress for
legislation of the right Sort" will have
to divide the benefits with whoever may
care to enter the field in competition. 1t
will rot hn xnna S.xry l,r-rxf
sympathy on the whisky trust, for the in
si6ers have barrel of money in the stock
market on the strength of what Congress
would do. Shrewd advertisement of the
benefits that would accrue to the trust
after the passage of the free alcohol bill
has been the backbone of the bull move
ment in Whiskey stock and the price was
cleared $15,O00.000 to $20.000.000 on the
stock above so. a large part of it going
out at 60 or higher. Some of them were
that they bought back The smarter ones
were satisfied to let the public make what
ever 1t could above IS or whereabouts. al
though still retaining an interest, SO to be
in q position to take advantage OF what
ever developments might take place later
on. AS matters now stand the public has
the big end of the stock capitalization and
the whisky trust insiders have the money
~
The more the matter Is looked into the
greater become the difficulties in the way
OF the segregation of anthracite coal prop
critics In the corporate ownership separate
from the railroads composing the anthra-
cite coal trust In several Of the railroads,
notably in Reading, these properties are
included In the securities underlying bond
issues There Is apparently no way of de-
taching this asset from the others enumer-
ated in the bond. The Reading has q first
mortgage bond obligation of $135. 100000 (of
which SIC. 600 Is outstandinR1, q 4 per
cent per year gold. maturing in 1907. ninety
one years hence The sinking fund provision
calls for cents on every ton of coal mined
on the Reading property. There is appar-
entity no way of retiring these bonds except
at par, and then only at the option Of the
holders This situation appears to be a
to separate the anthracite properties from
their present railroad owners. The unrav-
cling of this puzzle will tax the ingenuity
Of the lawyers and may result IN endless