Los Angeles herald., 1907-03-14
STOCKS SHAKEN
BY LIQUIDATION
HEAVY SELLING EXCEEDS ALL
FORMER RECORDS
Banking Credits Withdrawn from Wall
Street and Borrowers Called
Upon to settle-seeuri-
ties Decline
Rv Assnclnted Press.


NEW YORK, March 13.-The stock
market was shaken into Generalization
today by a course of Liquidation Whlcn
for violence and precipitation mad not
been euualed in New York for several
years The Overwhelming power of
stocks came as a general surprise as eX-
tensive progress was supposed TO nave
already effected in the liquidation to meet
the present situation. This suppostton
had been fostered by the action of the
market for several days past but ap-
parently the exigencies of the money
situation had been greatly underesu-
mated.
Alarm for the adequacy of available
supplies to meet immediate or early re
quirements was acute today, not only III
New York, but in London ana berllu.
The construction of the credits tell upon
an unsuspected extension Of speculative
accounts and they were indiscriminately
forced to sale. apparently at any SaCrl-
flee. Banking credits were practically
withdrawn from the stock market and
the borrowers were called upon 10 pay
their obligations. At the same time bids
In the market for stocks seemed to be
withdrawn and prices were offered down
points at a time before the abortive de-
mand.
The immediate pressure in the money
market which precipitated this series of
events was attributed to the large de-
mands converging upon the 10Th OF tne
present month. These include subscrlp-
lions to the new Chicago 81 Northwestern
stock to the Pennsylvania note issue
and several large dividends including
the Standard Oil. Preparations for these
payments were in force today and IN
volved a higher money rate from the
outset The banking position was weak
at the close of last week and the sub
treasury has taken from the banks since
that time upward of AOOO,OOO.
London already was upset by the money
situation before the market opened here
and as soon as the New York market
opened foreigners began to unload mold
i,,e in which started prices
sharply downward. The liquidation
steadily gained force through the ac-
cumulation of influence which follows in
evitably from violent decline in prices
and the market became quite demoraliZed.
Seemingly the absolute necessity for
further drastic liquidation became rec
ognized feeling of hopelessness over
any early market to insure. the success
of this opera ton prompted the Spasmodic
method pursued. The acute weakness OF
the Hill and Hartman stocks indicated
that the semi-panic condition today was
the aftergrowth of the unbridled spec
ulation in those stocks entered upon last
fall and which has never been satisfac-
torily cleared up in the market since.
Such day as today must necessarily
have accomplished much toward the pur-
pose.
The violent fall in the latter part of
the day indicated the cessation of the
pressure. but the closing tone was eX-
ceedingly pervous and with some stocks
at the lowest and others fast falling
back to thier previous low levels. Union
Pacific especially broke violently at the
last. an extreme 11ss below yesterday s
final price.
The fall in the Hill stocks was almost
as violent and Reading dropped over u.
st. Paul. Chicago & Northwestern. Ca
madam Pacific. Amalgamated Copper and
Colorado Fuel fell upward of Z points.
The range of losses for practically all
the active stocks ran from to over 6
points.
The extent of the shock of such an
enormous shrinkage on values is not to
be estimated Immediately Even after
the fall in prices was checked important
after effects of wide extent are to be
looked for. The nervous action of the
market at the last left opinion entirely
at sea as to whether the worst had been
seen there or not.
Bonds were weak Total sales, par
value. s2534.0O0.
U. S. bonds were unchanged on call.