The Washington herald., 1906-12-12
WALL STREET NOTES
Call Loan Rates Inexplica-
BILE Drop to 8 Per Cent.
MONEY is NOW EASY TO GET
st. Paul Stocks Strong In the Face
of Moeted Investigation of Harri-
Opening, but Receivers and Follows
the Lead of Its Sister Road.

New Kork. Dec 1i.-Almost Immediately
after the opening of the money market
the rate on call loans dropped to per
cent, and renewals were made at that
figure The decline was as satisfactory
to the street as il was inexplicable, for
nobody expected that before n single dol
lar of the relief planned by Secretary
Shaw became available the rate would
/ drop to little more than normal figures
Brokers talked about the game" that
had been played by them without any
clear idea of whas the game was, or, in
deed. feeling at all sure that they them
selves were not as borrowers as much TO
blame for the high rates of last week as
were the lenders. Bad play on the one
side may have been as much of a factor
as sharp play on The other
| Perhaps the most plausible explanation
of the drop in call money may be found
in the fact that the lenders wishing to get
good terms for money on time put up the
rates on CALL SO as to force brokers into
taking thirty, sixty, or ninety-day loans
on terms on the highest basis known in
Wall street in many years.
When it became known that Secretary
Shaw had decided to render substantial
relief, the prospects for inducing brokers
70 take time loans were so much reduced
that bankers found il OF little use To keep
up the call rate and began to lend more
freely.
There is a goods deal Of similarity be
tween the action of the mocey market on
the promise of relief from the Treasury
and its action four years ago on the for
nation of the S5O.0000O0 pool by leading
bankss Al that time rates went down, al
though a single dollar of new money was
not brought into the street, and the pool
was never called upon TO make a single
loan in accordance with the intention Of
its organization.
The very fact that influential interests
on that occasion stood ready to combat
efforts of other bankers 10 make rates un-
duly high proved 10 be all that was need
ed. The prospect Of relief through the
measures proposed by the Treasury are
producing substantially the same results
in favor Of borrowers now.
The same money that was in the street
to be lent on call at 3 per cent on Mon
day, was there at a lower rate to-day.
There has not been time when funds
could not be had If the bid for them was
only made high enough, and bid will
now be accepted that would have been
spurned d couple Of days ago. The money
was here then. but good part OF Il was
kept under lock and key, bankers making
more by lending a part at high rates
than all at low rates. Now they find IL
better 70 lend all
How long" the traders ask. will the
S32,00oo00 Of Treasury relief last il an
outburst Of activity occurs in the
market" The question only shows that
this class Of operators is still seeking for
an insight into the impenetrable mys-
teries OF the banking situation.
Half an hour after the traders had
sold St Paul they began 10 realize that
some strong interest had taken their
stock. That there was accumulation was
the only possible inference from the
heavy buying by a widely known house
which generally executes part of the
orders OF Union Pacific interests
This class of buying al once led to a
revival Of the old stories about accum-
ulation of St Paul for control. the as
seTtOn being made that the Hartman
interests did not attach sufficient i'm
pOTtanCe 10 the proposed investigation
OF their present aggregation of roads to
induce them to abandon the plan enter
tained for bringing ST. Paul into action
with their other lines
In the first hour St Paul and Union
o..
same level, but the former nOtwlthstand-
ing its disadvantages from the dividend
standpoint made vigorous upward
movement. and ii is probable that to it
was due a good deal Of the strength
shown by Union Pacific later in the day.
Talk on Reading ran the whole gamut
Of recent rumOr. but added nothing new
except that all the good things would /
come up for official approval at the meet /
ing of directors this month. An increase /
in the regular dividend rate, the deelara- |
tioE of an extra cash dividend. and the /
of a big stock distribution /
the coal properties of the |
were the principal things which /
those in charge of the manipulation of 4
the stock promised to their followers |
but all these promises could not quite 1
remove the doubts created by the one /
small fact that the jump IN the price /
which was promised after the opening /
proved to be downward instead of upward /
Offerings of Reading by house which 1
often executes orders for Henry Clay
Flick caused the afternoon reaction in 1
that stock. The light-waisted bulls who 4
had made very fine play when everything /
went their own way did not act so well /
in the face of more serious business. and |
traders who had listened to the pretty 4
tales Of the forenoon realized that It was
absurd to talk of extra dividends and the /
like when the company was still con-
fronted with the possibility of serious
labor trouble.
Buy everything that has steel in its
name" is the first article in the creed of
the bull trader.
As an indication of the activity in the
steel trade it Is worthy of note that
a large manufacturing plant, dependent
On a supply for steel for continuance of
is operations was on the point of shut
ting down last week. although booked
with orders for almost a full year ahead.
Chasers were sent out to hunt for cars
oaded with steel and accompany them
70 their destination, men were sent into
The steel plants TO see that work in
orders OF their company was expedited
IS much as possible, and IL was only bv
he smartest kind OF hustling that
'lant employing considerably more than
200 men was saved from a shutdown in