The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-07-21

The press clippings would seem to indicate a restoration of national up and resist alleged encroachment on the part of the solvent masses to brace up and resist alleged encroashment on the rights of individuals to control property and business affairs in their own way-within the law. They seem to detect in the changing sentiment increasing power of resistance against administration efforts toward central ization of Federal authority. They be- lieve they see and feel a swelling concert of thought along these lines and realization of the growing menace of popularizing unsafe depart ures from sane political action. We have been going through the ordeal of several years of continuous agitation In one form and another, disturging to business conditions and disquieting to investors both at home and abroad The result has been suspicion of the permanency of American securities Tn foundations of our credit have felt the effects of the continuous lombard ment directed by the highest official authority of the nation.
 According to the critics the record shows vastly less in actual results ac- complished than claimed in the political advertisements of wonders performed un- der the leadership of the chief executive The greatest achievement set down on the asset side is the passage by Congress of an amended interstate commerce law abol- ishing rebates, cutting off free passes in railroad operation, etc. As a matter of fact, the railroads themselves wanted this law and Acaused 1t to be passed. a fact which Is being more generally understood as the truth finds wider diffusion Many of the so-called reforms which are sup posed to have been wrought through White House inspiration were the natural evolution of the times, being given the impulse of White House indorsemnet the same as they were the impulse of Tom Lawsop's help and everybodys help. In most cases the heroes were entitled to the credit of good intentions and such lever age as they could give. Really, however, individuals were of not much more actual importance in the grand movement than the fly on the wagon wheel which congrat- ulated itself on the tremendous dust 1t was raising.
 Boiled down and applied to the current situation, Wall street feels that the new and developing system of resistance against what 1t calls impractical politics. is operating to the advantage of the mar ket. It feels that a large part of the great decline which has been witnessed in securities being due to fears of admin
 
 the time has arrived to take the other view the temper of the people now being opposed to a prolongation of distraetlng agitation. The record showing that the President is powerless to do what he is trying to do fear of him is disappearing In other words, tho belief Is growing that the country is bigger than the President, and that it will move on serenely, regard less of his vagaries and of his incessant activities This sort of revelation Is un- questionably operating to the advantage of the market.
 Fear has figured largely in the liquda- tlon which has been going on for more than year in the stock market. Absence of fear will naturally work In the direc- ton of recovery.
 The news which Wall street Is receiv- ing from the agricultural districts from the west and south become daily more en- couraging The crop outlook generally speaking, is decidedly better than it was as recently at the first of the current month. There is no pretense of bumper crops, but the gross production of most of the staples will apparently be about average and as the foreign yields will be short our farmers have every prospect of getting very remunerative prices for what they have to sell The question In this connection, which Wall street is try ing to solve, Is whether the crops will be of sufficient magnitude and the returns thereon sufficiently satisfactory to give a fresh impulse to the chariot of na- tional prosperity. That is the gambling element in the situation and there can be