The Washington herald., 1907-04-20
WALL STREET NOTES
Bull Tips on SHELTERS Are
Not Taken Seriously.
READING STRONG AND ACTIVE
Season Favorable to the Hard CoaI
COmpRnies-UnIon Pacific IA Favor
mated Copper Refuses 10 Move UD-
ward, Despite Efforts of Traders.

ward, Despite Efforts of Traders.
New York. April 19-Almost every
raider professed TO have buliish informa-
ION on Smelling and Refining from the
highest possible source, and If this
meant that a single individual had given
,ut all the tips. then there could be little
ioubt as TO who was the busiest man in
Wall street. The trouble was. however
hat professional traders opinions OF what
S the highest source of information on
any stock have to be taken at a consider
able discount. The secretary TO a private
secretary has often been elevated to a po-
5ition as an oracle away above his mas
-ers master. and so-called very good in
formation has often come from the bar
Der. who exercised his art on the downy
chin of an office boy week before last. As
for the actual operations in the stock
they seemed TO be entirely devoid of sig
and there was not a single
transaction thai looked Ike anything
more than the most ordinary kind of
speculation seeking a chance TO scalp d
small profit
As the favorite Of the Spectator Union
Pacific. judging from to-days market,
holds the frst place. This is not I'M
natural from the fact that on the basis of
it's present dividend rate tie stock is
best Of the leading railroad lines. which,
by the way. is susceptible 70 entirely
different lines of argument il may
when the temper is bulllsh. be cOntended
that the stock is unreasOnably cheap;
when the temper is not bullish il may be
argued that the very price of the stock
shows that the dividend rate cannot be
The price can be worked up
on the one argument and then put down
on the other, and the professional trader
seeking 10 make quick profits aYails him
self of the means thus placed In bis
hands. The see-saw game may continue
until genuinely good buying or a pre-
ponderance of selling orders gives the
impulse for a substantial movement in
either direction.
Reading during the forenoon was one Of
the strongest and most active features Of
the list. The season could hardly have been
more entirely favorable 10 the hard coal
even II the weather had been
regulated by the same mysterious agency
thar determines the output and the prices
of anthracite At the end of March the
s.pply OF coal in the hanls of dealers or
piled up at the distributing CenteTs was
lower than at the corresponding time in
any other recent year. with the possible
exception of the year following the strike.
Had the weather since the end of March
been normal, the railroads would have had
about all they could do preparing for next
winters requirements. but the low tenn
peratures since have caused an immediate
and inslstent demand altogether unprece-
dented at this season. The result is that
the companies are working to fun capacity
and selling all the coal they can produce
just as fast as they can turn It out
Traders wanted a rise in Reading. but
the large interests apparently did not.
The latter being powerful enough to ex-
ercise a restraining influence, the move
ment which started of with such promise
petered out at about noon. and thereafter
the stock moved with the rest Of the mar
kct. unaffected by any special influences
diuons. Usually in a dull market the
traders pick out one stock or another on
which some argument can be brought To
bear or in which the technical position
seems to present an opportunity fos
manipulation, and on occasions they have
not only succeeded in moving the price
several points. bat in making a fair profit
on their operations.
Several conservative brokers have re-
Gently been favorably impressed by the
action of Missouri Pacific. which no long
er appears to be the friendless outcast
that it seemed to be a few months ago
For the first time in year there seems
to be an absorption of the stock. although
nothing is said in explanation of the ap
parent readiness Of some interests To TAX,
all offerings Not the least encouraging
change that has come into the markc
for the stock IS that the clumsy manipu
lation that made Missouri Pacific the de
spised member of the granger group only
few short months or even weeks ago
has completely ceased, Instead there il
now a quiet, ever-present demand, max
ing few bids, but taking all offerings
This, If continued, may bring back tn
popularity that Missouri Pacific en-
joyed at one time.
Amalgamated Copper was one of tn
few stocks that the traders tried to NOV
upward. but their efforts here as else
where fell rather fiat. The principal argu
ment used on Amalgamated was that tn
holiday in Boston cut of a supply o
stock that had been the means Of keeping
the price down On the preceding day. bu
that it was not very potent became evi
dent from the lack of result 1t is doubt
ful if Boston has been a seller on an
large scale at any time in the presen
week, bat apparently the large interest
in this stock have been as little incline
to permit premature operations in It a
the large interests in Reading and Uniol
Pacific have been to permit speculatiY