The Washington herald., 1906-10-14
Prominent Issues All Show
Declining Tendency.
sPECULATORs TAKING PROFITS
Interviews with Republican Leaders
Another Cause to which Situation
ment Ia SatIsfaetOry-ViOIeR Break
in the sterling Exchange.


proportion 10 their ordinary speculative
activity The truth, however. so far as
dealings on the stock exchange at least
are concerned, that a very large quantity
Of these transactions at present. perhaps
as much as thrce-quaTters Of the total,
arc the result Of the habitual spectators
who are operating for the time being III
the market with the sole idea Of making
quick turns and Teaping small profits.
Nearly ali OF these spectators are pro-
foundly optimistic at heart regarding the
future OF values and they incline with
great unanimity 10 make purchases of
stocks upon any such recession in quota
tions as was witnessed, for instance at
the beginning OF the month. AS soon,
however. as the market advances a little
they seem 20 wish to convert their paper
profits into cash, standing ready. how
ever, to follow any upward movement
that seems TO have the backing Of the
larger financial interests. All this serves
TO keep the stock market and has kept
tt for two months now in a narrow range,
Alarmed by Politicians.
One pretext for the weakness Of the
market to-day was the appearance in
some OF the morning newspapers of in
teTvieWs with various Republican leaders
asserting that while all the chances IA
vored as strongly as ever the probability
Of the success OF their party in the State
election this fall, there was a danger Of
over-confdenee in this respect that might
lead TO such a lack Of effect on election
day as to place the prospective victory in
peril. But that these utterances were
purely academic from a Wall street point
of view was attested in the fact that the
betting odds against the Democratic can
didate for Governor in the curb market
showed a tendency. if anything. TO en-
large.
Prices Of securities have almost uni
fOrmly risen throughout the week. yester-
Gay ard to-day being the only occasions
upon which final quotations for stocks at
The end Of the day have not shown an
advance. and tO-day's decline was IN
QucStionably due more than anything else
10 realizing sales Of the kind that have
been described.
The day during business hours was al
most absolutely devoid of financial news
OF any Importance whatever. save that
afforded in the publication Of the weekly
bank statement. The showing made here
was in every way favorable. The cash
Held by the banks increased by IS 10000.
rejecting the known increase in the cash
holdings of the clearinghouse institutions
since last Saturday, and also repairing TO
some extent the under statement of the
reserves Of the banks given in last weeks
return.
Bank surplus Is Large.
Bank loans increased $13,Oe5,0o0. as it
was known they would by reason Of the
large shifting Of loans that has recently
taken place from Europe TO this side The
hank Surplus now stands at SIS. o.. 500 the
largest amount shown at this date az any
time since 1895. save in the three years
l%i, 1919, and 1871, when comparative in
activity oi business caused the money TO
accumulate ia places OF deposit
An incident OF the dag worthy of note,
luj which passed wholly Unregarded on
The stock exchange. was a further violent
break OF thirty points in sterling cx-
change. carrying the price o. stcr,ilg
down 70 level over 81 of "a cen. below
that touched at one time ycstcrdar. Tbs
indicates clearly enough that t'ie prossu...
10 remit money 10 Europe by our bankers
iu payment of maturing otyii=atfoD., is
Stacking very decid adly
Occurrences Of n financial nature during
The eeek have been almost uniformly Of
routine nature, or 30 least have been
such as not TO influence the security
market IN any unw0nted degree.
On Thursday, as was universally OK
pected, the Bank Of England raised its
miRimum rate of discount 10 lve Der
.rer
condition Of the bank, whose proportion
Of reserve % liabilities stood. on Thurs
day. as low as 551t per cent. While the
rain of money 10 this country from
England has been practically stopped
before tho bank raised IT'S rate 10 bor-
rowers. gold 20 the amount of so. 5l1. gl8
went out from England to Egypt and
other quarters in the six business dav6
previous 70 the time of compiling the
bank return.
Must BepIenish Resources.
K vas obviously required. both for the
conservation Of its own affairs and for
those OF the International financial COM
mumtv. that the banks $ resource be re-
picnished; and this move. it is said, viii
speedily take place
The Imperial. Of Germany, also raised
its discount rate this week % six Dor
cent although the course Of money rates
at The German capital is now considered
IS Of far less Importance than those
which any one Of the worlds great duan-
ciat ceuters.
The substantial fact about oar own
financial situation. speaking generally. is
that every indication promised that after
the drSt of the year money viii flow 10
New York in great abundance. and that
the period when particular stress was
likely 10 be shown in the local money
market has already passed
Time money Is thus freely obtainabIe
row Al varying quotations below the legal
rate. and the rate for call money is such
as can only he called nominal. i'm view
of the vast volume Of the country's gen
erai business Ia the early part of the
week the government report of crop con
ditions on October I appeared, making an
exhibit no less satisfactory, and in some
respects even more so, than that OF the
month preceding
\ wheat crop never exceeded but once
before. and then only slightly. in the
eountry's history. the largest corn crop
on record, and even an oats crop much
better than was thought probable In Au-
gust, is now absolutely assured. Whereas
nj one time predictions were common for
only half an average crop of oats. il is
manifest that the decrease from even last
years bumper harvest of this grain viii
bc comparatively small.
CURB QUOTATIONS.