The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-08-25
GOSSIP or WALL STREET.

'hhAF y aNA's FeNhH " bHNNNNNA ~ %N,s
yesterday. IL was not 30 much the mere de-
post OF the funds that evoked favorable COM
ment a. the method formulated by tho Secre-
tary for making the deposits. Both for this
particular occasion, n was said. and In the
course Of the operation OF a general policy
IL was desirable that deposits be strung out
over a period OF weeks and placed In centres
OF greatest stress, just now we're the former
practice Of dumping a block OF many millions
on the money market ut once followed. a
large part. " not all. OF the money woubd 20
TO Europe. kInce exchange is decidedly IN Eu-
ropes favor. That may be.avoided UNDER
the new regulations. The danger Is reduced
at any rats. But entirely apart from this.
H. Ia realized that the indlscrimlnate deposit
OF big blocks Of money makes n fictitious
Ease for a moment In the money. market and
tends to encourage speculative activity and
business expansion which may not at the
time be warranted by conditions. such
lump dDposits. u was agreed, have at many
times I'd the past produced an undesirable
sudden change In temporary conditions,
with the inevitable reaction subsequently.
A more stable and enduring benefit n deriv-
ableBfrorn smaller deposits extending over a
considerable period OF time.
The question, who will get the gold 10 be
depoeited7" remained unanswered. IL was
realized that the Secretary had taken all
Sc'tUtt eott' nv w wv
Europe. but there were din erences. OF opinion
as to whether or no, the precautions would
prove effective. London Was closed and no
answer was obtsinable from money move
ments there. Here bankers. though din erink
on the main question. believed that the amount
which Europe may secure will be much smaller
than IL si5. OOo. 600 or go. O0o. 900. for instance,
was deposited. at once. In some uarters
an even more favorable opinion was ex-
pressed. The deposits. IL was said, would
not be large enough TO produce any par
ticular ease In two weeks. and when they as
sumo arge proportions exchange will have
been turned in our favor by grain and cotton
bills.
With the money now on hand and the es-
timated balance Of receipts over expenditures
in the immediate future, 10 was figured that
the Secretary could deposit s45. 900. 900 in the
next six weeks without disturbing the work.
ing balance in the Treasury. n was not pre-
dioted that as much az this would be- deposited.
For that matter, no predictions Of the amount
we're ventured. for the very good reason that
the Secretarys prudent. reticcnce on this
point would have made all such predictions
unwlrranted.
The bank statement showed the unex-
pectedly favorable features Of a decrease Of
81. OO0. OOO in loans and an increase Of $500. Dob
in reserve. For the first time in many weeks
the reserve was greater than in the corre-
spending week OF last year. and more notable
still. IL was s5. e00, 600 greater. The figures
were more satisfactory than the explsna-
ton. For one thing. IL was said. the crop
moving season is later than in recent years.
the season being backward. For another. banks
have resisted requests for funds from West
ern bankers and otherwise husbanded their
resources until the Treasury policy was out
lined
The market opened as IL an effort we're to
be made to drive the shorts to cover under
the developments in money. Most of the
active stocks. though the Fries were con-
spicuous exceptions. showed gains ranging
from q fraction to ~ points in Union Pacific
on the first sales. IL there was an effort 10
drive the shorts IL was soon abandoned or
soon failed. for the majority OF operators
welcomed the high prices as good spots on
which to sell. and liquidation. accompanied
by q drive in various issues, sent prices tum-
bling rapidly. The sharpest drive was made
on the Fries on renewed talk Of reduction or
suspension of the dividends. Erie common
dropped to IS and closed weak at 1871, ~
points or for the day. The last sales Of the
preferreds were at the low prices Of the day,
the first at 90. a loss Of ~ points; the second
at 30. a loss Of "a points. At these prices the
first was selling on nearly a 0 per cent. divi-
uNnu ~ tiC oCNohe Oh NV VI
than 10 per cent.
Among other stocks to make new low
records for the year we're General Electric and
United States Express. Some one brought
q hundred shares Of the express stock to
market and got the auction price Of IS. go q
share less than the price on the last previous
sale. and the low figure since 1901. Some one
looked back and discovered that General
Electric, In the Northern Pacific panic year OF
1901, ranged between 1881 and 2s9x. The low
price last year was i5s and the low In the
March panic 1881. II sold at i2i NJ one time
yesterday. Manhattan Elevated. at ITO. also
made q new low record for half a dozen years.
The weakness Of the Fries and renewed
weakness in the Southern Railway shares.
also. depressed the entire list to such an ex-
tent that an unusually small number OF shorts
deemed it advisable TO cover in the late trad
ing, The closing was accordingly near the
low prices Of the day. and these low prices
we're on the average the lowest OF the year.
On the last Saturday in July the average
price OF the twenty statistical railroad stocks
was sI07 so a share. For four weeks since then
every succeeding Saturday has seen q lower
range Of prices than Its predecessor. More
over. prices at the close Saturday have. been
the lowest OF the week for every one Of four
successive weeks. In the first and last weeks
OF the decline the declines were gradual and
of less extent than in the two middle weeks.
But the tendency has been steadily down
ward. Time and time again IL has been pre-
dicted that the bottom had been reached. but
these assertions have fallen down SO frequently
that every one hesitstes to place a bottom
figure now. The average at the close yes
terday was about SOS q SHARE, or $3.50 below
the price at which the twenty active rails sold
a month ago. With specialties and inactive
taken into the comparison the loss
would be very much greater.
There was nothing encoura sing in the col
umns OF the Financial Chronicle. That organ
Of financial opinion summed up the situation
in these words: The truth is, we have
reached a point in the crusade against cor
porations and against capltal where securities
Of every grade and description are regarded
with fear and apprehension. The cause, as
We have seen, is not obscure. The remedy
10 equally plain, 10 can come from only one
direction. rr. Roosevelt alone can stem the
tide. Thus far. on account Of the enornous
volume Of accumulated orders, general bust
ness has not revealed the evh effects to a
great extent, But the point has at length
been reached where mercantile activity can
only be sustained. by new business. and this
latter unfortunately is now lacking. Soon
there will be idleness and want; then there
will be discomfort. II the President does mot
reverse his course before the. confiasration
which h0 has atarfaI 0aa.s. 1890