The Washington herald., 1907-05-12
SLIGHT GAINS SHOWN
Shift Between Strength and
Weakness i'll Market.
LITTLE ATTENTION TO WHEAT
Commission Houses Believe Rise IN
Grain Prices Due More 10 Speeu-
IatiOn Than 40 Governments Re-
port-HOstiIe Comment on Money
raising Plans of the Pactncs.

New York, May u.-Neither IN the vol
unne of dealings nor ia the character OF
the transactions did business on the stock
exchange to-day present any notable
change from the sort usually noticed on
the market on the last day Of the week.
The security market was. however. some
what more mercurial and uncertain than
1t has been on corresponding occasions re
Gently. and closing prices exhibited Gu
rious medley Of advances and declines
If anything the market evineed pre-
vailing feeling that speculation for the
fall in the last few days, based on the bad
crop news and the unfavorable reception
given 10 the Union Pacifc-Southern Pa
cifc financing, has been carried somewhat
TO an extreme; but, nevertheless. there ap-
peared to be no mitigation Of the imme-
diate prospect OF diminished crop yield.
nor was there any lessening of the Sc
verify OF the judgment passed generally
upon the Hartman financial projects
The market, in fact. shifted very irregu-
larly between strength and weakness
throughout the day, but maintained upon
the whole a somewhat frmer undertone
than il has done Of late. II is. of course,
quite clear that security prices are deriv-
ing great help from the thorough market
liquidation that has recently occurred. No
weakly held Zines" of stock are pressing
for sale. and hence adverse developments
like those Of last Thursday and Friday are
largely shorn of their power of harm from
a speculative point OF view.
No Attention 10 Wheat Prices.
Very little attention appeared TO be
paid to-day in the stock commission
houses TO a further vigorous rise in
wheat prices, partly because in the first
place this seemed to be provoked by the
strength OF foreign markets for wheat
which Is by no means a bear" argument
on the value of securities. and secondly,
by reason of general recognition of the
fact that a great speculation for the rise
in grain is now being carried on. Buying
of wheat on the scale witnessed in the
last few days is likely soon to overdo
itself
The end Of the week bank statement
was favorably regarded, inasmuch as it
recorded a gain in the bank surplus of
s.,GoO0OO This showing was brought
about by a welcome decrease Of $4,000 600
IN the bank loan account, which was suf-
hcient to Offset an Unexpectedly large de
crease in the cash held by the banks Of
over s4000,0lO.
Hostile comment concerning the money
raising plans Of the Union Pacific and
Southern Pacific railway companies, as
just made known, has not been based SO
much on the circumstances that the terms
Of the new bonds and the stock Issues
were not made sufficiently attractive to
investors, as generally upon the profound
condemnation now visited by the public
upon the Hartman idea of forcing the
Union Pacific and Southern Pacific COM
panies TO borrow money at hgh rates
for the purpose of purchasing stocks Of
other railways at a time when all the
railways of the land are in need Of every
dollar they can spend on their property
in necessary improvements, and, further.
because it is realized that the constant
dilution of Union Pacific stock now in
progress renders less and less valuable
the equities In the stock itself. If q
majority of the new Union Pacific con-
Vertible bonds are taken by syndicate
at a price considerably below 80. as 1t is
now believed they will be, they can be
converted into Union Pacific common
in the terms offered to stockholders, and
as it is not at all improbable that such
conversion win sooner or later take place
and that remaining Union Pacific financ-
ing will follow the same path, larger
and larger quantity Of new stock will be
thus created and greater doubt will be
cast upon the ability cf the company to
maintain 10 per cent dividends on the
stock in hard times.
Gloomy View on Crops.
So far as crop conditions are concerned
it is rcgrettable that a more pleasant
view cannot be taken of the subject than
must be taken by every candid observer.
bat it viii be idle to deny that the out
look CT the moment is for anything like a
fun average yield this year of either
wheat or cotton.
Two e0ungeFbalaRcing factors in the
situation, however, exist. Stocks Of both
wheat and cotton at the moment are com
paratiyely large. so that diminution of
the output OF the staples this year will
not have the harmful effect that it other
wise would, while many of our most saga
cious students of economies hold the
opinion that moderate reduction in the
haFvests as serving 10 Obviate the proba-
bility of such a congestion of business on
the railways and in the life of the cOun-
tTy generally as was witnessed last year,
VIII be a good thing rather than bad.
1t IS TO be remembered too, that the
- business year has not passed out of its
primary stages, and that il Is, as yet, i'm
possible to find basis for any conviction
concerning the prospects of the year as a
whole