The Washington herald., 1907-12-11
STOCK SALES HEAVY
Unexpected Activity Chiefly
Affects Railroads.
SMALL DECLINE IS NOTED
Great Northern, Northern Pacific,
and Reading Common Fall on Four
Points with Rise in Call Money.
Rate Makes an Average of - Per
Cent-GFeat Activity in Sugar.

New York. Dec lo-The sentiment
among the rank and hle Of professional
traders in Wall street which was pres
ent in tentative and more or less modl-
fed form yesterday was unrestrained
and aggressive to-day. and resulted in a
continuous selling of securities from the
opening 30 the close Of the stock ex-
change session, which brought about net
declines varying from nearly 4 points in
the Great Northern and Northern Pacific
and Reading common shares TO from / to
points in other issues.
feature OF the market WAS also the
large drops on small transactions in such
usually active industrial stocks as Inter-
national Paper preferred Republic Steel
preferred, Distillers' Securities. Pressed
Steel Car, and American Sugar Refining
common
Rise in Money Rates.
The one adverse development in the
market was the further sustained rise in
call money rates. which was regarded as
altogether surprising and 20 a consider
able degree disconcerting. in view Of the
pronounced ease I'm call money that has
been maintained for the last ten days
The rise IN rates yesterday appeared 20
be due 10 the calling of loans by q single
prominent banking institution. but to-day
this ingathering of funds was conducted
on a moderate scale and no very salts
Factory reasons for the action could be
obtained
There were not wanting observers who
declared that the move attcsted that the
relatively low prices for temporary fnan-
eial accommodation recently quoted have
been unnatural and that to-day's aver
age call rate of Is per cent was more in
accord with the facts OF the present finan-
cial situation. that is 10 say, with the
S46,Goo.000 deficit In the reserves in the
local clearing house institutions.
This explanation was of the same sort
as rumOred purpose on the part Of
banking authorities 10 advance rates here
FOR the purpose Of limiting thai outgo Of
money to the West which is stiIl being
carried on and also perhaps OF making
such bid Tor funds from outside centers
that might unlCcsen some of the boards
OF money in Western banks.
Premium on Currency.
The premium on currency here to-day
was even sitter than il was yesterday.
and larger sums of money changed hands.
and the persistence Of this phenomenon is
in no way pleasing If not exactly a dis
quietlng matter. The Local banks have lost
s. l5,0oo this week mainly through the
shipment of money westward although
the presumption is that the weekly bank
statement Will again show a further re-
duction in the clearing house deficit The
greater stiffness of money was. however.
regarded in many quarters as foreshadow-
ing another period of more or less acute
financial stringency at the end Of the
year.
Although. as stated, one noteworthy
aspect Of the market to-day was the
weakness OF some of the industrial stocks.
the metal shares particularly. The Amalg3-
mated Copper and American Smelling and
Refining stock, which were weaker than
any others on the day before. were to-day
relatively the strongest stocks on the list.
and the strength here was generally at
tributcd 10 short covering following the
announcement of the practical entire
suspension OF the Amalgamated Com
pany's mining business.
Activity In Sugar.
Greater activity was witnessed to-day
in American Sugar Refining stock than
has been for a very considerable period.
and the selling OF the shares seemed 10
proceed on the theory tnat the company
had suffered a loss through the removal
by death of the forceful and vigorous
personality that was so long and IN
singularly exclusive way the company's
master spirit.
The liquidation In. or speculative at
tacks upon the Northern Pacific and
Great Northern shares was based ac-
coTding 10 common gossip. upon the pros
pective impairment of the earnings Of
these companies. due 20 the prostratiOn of
mining operations throughout the West
and also 20 the large falling of in the
lumber business that has, il is said, oc-