The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-05-12
EENfaenah AND ooMMER0IAL.
SATURDAY, May ii

SATURDAY., May II.
Neither in the volume Of dealings nor in
thssSharacter Of the transactions did bust
neaSop the Stock Exchangeito-day present
any notable change from the sort usually
bbtieed on tho sspaFket on the last day OF
the Eeek. ~TheSsecurity market was, how
ever somewhat more mercurial and uncer-
tain ,than il has been ON corresponding
ocGR8lons recently. md closing prices eI-
hibited a curious medley Of advances and
de6lfhes. II anything the market evinced a
prevailing feeling that speculation FOR the
falldn the last. few, days based upon the bad
erop news and the unfavcrable reception
kiYab 10 the Union Pacihc-Southerp Pacific
hnqacing has been carried somewhat 70 an
extreme; but nevertheless there appeared
70 p no mitigation of the immediate pros
pecfpfa diminished crop yield nor was there
anyIessening OF the severity Of the iudg-
meet passed generally upon the Hartman
hnapcial projects. The market In fact
shifted very irTegularly between strength
D weakness throughout the day but main
tanned upon the whole a somewhat firmer
und&rtone than it has done OF late. IL lie, of
coutSe, quite clear that the security prices
araederiving great help from the thor
oug9 market liquidation that has recently
OCCURRED. No weakly held lines" OF stock
arasJoreSsing for sale and hence adverse
Developments like those Of last Thursday
and9riday are largely shorn Of their power
OF hsrm from a speculative point OF view.
Very little attention appeared TO be paid
to-d1y in the stock commission houses to q
further vigorous rise in wheat prices partly
because, In the first place, this seemed to be
proBoked y the strength OF the foreign
mari tets for wheat. which is by no means a
beAn argument on the value of securities,
andrBecondly, by reason of general %recogni-
tionsof the fact that u great speculation for
the rise in grain is now being carried on.
Buying of wheat on the scale witnessed in
the Iast few days is likely soon TO overdo
Itself. The end Of the week ban state
meht was favorably regarded, inasmuch as
IL recorded a gain in the bank surplus OF
4l&QD 900, This showing was brought about
byea welcome decrease Of Sl4, OOO, 900 in the
bape han account, which wes sufficient 10
offaat an unexpectedly large decrease in
the cash held by the banks Of more than
3I000, 900. s
Hostile omment concerning the money
raising plans, Of the Union Pacific and
8outherp tactic Railway companies as just
made. known has not been based 80 much
on the 6ifcthnistsnoe that the terms Of the
new bond and stock issues were not made
sufficiently attractive In investors as gen.
orally upon:the profound condemnation now
visited by the public upon the Hartman
idea Of forcing The Union Pacific and South
eFn Pacific companies to borrow money at
high rates for the purpose OF purchasing
stocks Of other railway companies at a time
wbet-all ther railroads Of the land are in
nte6 Of every dollar they can spend on their
properties in necessary improvements. and
further. because IL Is realized that the con-
STANDARDIZATION of Union Pacific stock now
in progress renders less and less valuable
the equities in the stock itself. lfa majority
Of the new Union Pacific convertible bonds
are taken, by, q syndicate at a price con-
siderabIy below 40 as 1t is now believed
they Viii be. they a be converted into
Union, Pacific common stock ct n price
below that which figured in the terms offered
to. sto6kholders. and as 1t Is not ut all i'm
pr1h4ble that such conversion, will sooner
OF ter take place and that remaining Union
Paciflc financing will follow the same path.
a larger and larger quantity Of new stock
win be thus created n greater doubt will
be cast upon.th the ability OF the company to
maintain 10 per cent dividends upon the
BboCk III uHTO tlI1et. ~ luI db crop COu-
ditiongt are concerned It is regrettable that
a more pleasant view he taken Of
the enbjeot than must be taken by every
candid observer, but it would be idle to deny
that the outlook OF tine moment is for any
thing like a full average yield this year Of
eith&f wheat or cotton. Two ounterbalanc-
ing factors in the situation, however. exist.
Stocks' Of both wheat and cotton al the
moment are comparatively large, SO that a
diminutipn Of the output OF the staples this
year viii not have the harmful effect that
itotherwise would, while many Of our most
e~aeacinus students Of economics hold the
opinion that a moderate reduction in the
bSrvSsts, as serving to obviate the prohahil-
ity of such a congestion Of business on the
the Railways and in the life of the country
generally as was witnessed last year, will
bs1a good thing rather than a bad, 1t is
to.be, temembered. TOO, that the business
yeaY3has not passed out of its primary
stages and that II is as yet impossible TO
find basis tor any conviction concerning
ths prospects of the year as n whole.