The Washington herald., 1907-04-04
WALL STREET NOTES
Atchison Dividend Increase
Creates Little Stir.
BULLS UNABLE TO MAKE GAINS
stock sells Higher Before Announce
ment Is Made Than AfteFvard.
Bears Try TO Agree on Campaign
Against Hartman stocks Because
of Controversy with President.

of Controversy with President.
New York. April "A market in which
good news is good only until it gets out
is not a very robust bull Market Just
before the announcement OF the increase
in the Atchison dividend was made. the
stock sold at "a SIS. A few minutes later
the price dropped TO "a, and within half
an hour il was fully a point down from
the high morning. and more than points
from the highest level touched on the
rise on Tuesday. At first the traders
hardly knew how 10 consider the increase
in the dividend rate as a market factor.
Ordinarily, such an announcement would
be considered a strong bull argument on
the general market. but the bears, by at
taching to it a report that the next news
in the stock would relate to an issue of
notes. deprived 1t of much of the effect
which might otherwise have sprung from
1t. The technical position of the stock
was none too strong. and this induced
the bears TO strengthen their argument
by demonstration.
They knew that a weak long account had
been opened within the past few days,
based on the general expectation OF an
increase in the dividend. and concluded
that profit taking would tend TO keep the
stock itself heavy IN any event, the time
was opportune for raid on the general
list, knowing that there is nothing more
discouraging TO the speculative holder OF
stocks than 10 find that good news does
not help the market
Had Atchison advanced materially on
the announcement of action taken by the
directors on the dividend question. the
circumstances would have been regarded
as the passing OF another milestone by
the bull wagon and an Indication that the
way had become toleraby clear for the
Passage of the vehicle to a point much
higher up than it has attained so far.
For months past ali announcement of In
creased dividends had proved obstacles to
bullish pr0sress-as generally happens in
a bear neutrality-suspicious. for the fan sur
rounding them with all sorts OF argu-
men s calculated TO strengthen their own
position. Had the Atchis0n proved "a
notable exception to this rule, it would
be an indication chat the bears were not
as well able 10 oppose a further recovery
ia tile market as they had been to force
prices down during March and the pre-
ceding months.
II Atchison did not 20 up. it showed
resistance TO pressure around "a, and as
This level was much nearer 10 the high
than 10 the low OF the preceding day, 1t
was conceded evident that the bears were
unable to make much progress with
their operations. Considering the stock
action as an indication OF the relative
strength of the bulls and the bears. il
appeared that the former made rather a
better showing
Tho bear party seemed to be DESTROYS
of making the Hartman stocks the bat
tie ground, but the bulls were indisposed
10 wage contest there. apparently con
Guiding that the further the bears car
rled their operations in that field. the
more certain would be their ultimate I'M
doing. From the bear standpoint the
controversy between President Roosevelt
and Mr. Hartman was a very serious
matter; from the standpoint Of the bulls
it had no bearing on the value OF the
stocks at all. and the more short selling
there was on the false hypothesis that fl
had, the greater would be the facility
with which these stocks could be aG-
vanced later
a lively advance In Union Pacific and
Southern Pacific when the proper time
came could hardly fail to be of great in
huence in the general market. There
fore, the bull interests merely stood by
and watched the selling of these stocks.
and the more closely they watched. the
more they were pleased with the course
matters had taken.
It would be difficult TO say whether the
allusi0n in the Lawson advertisement 10
the alleged imminence of drop Of or
cents a pound in the price Of the metal
or the decline of e3 IS in the quotations
both for spot and futures in the London
market had the greater effect in de-
pressing the Copper shares. Probably one
played as much part as the other. and
both combined TO produce the result.
Neither was worthy of the slightest con-
sideration as market factor.
About the middle of the afternoon the
market underwent a change of form.
most Of the active issues recovering the
greater part of their earlier losses and
some of them reaching high figures for
this movement Conservative interests
argued that the effect of the Atchison
dividend was not lost by any means. for
although the increase iii the rate had
been largely discounted in the stock it
self, the indication that railroad mana
gers were not discouraged over thc out
look was too strong d factor to Re lost
sight of. when 1t was we'll known that
some of the principal bear operators had
based their operations against the mar
ket on the evidently falIae1ous theory
that a recession in business and increased
OUTLAWS Tor wages would involve not only
the pOstpOnement OF dividends, but the
necessity of cutting present dishurse-
ments to conform TO new conditions.
If, it was argued. the Atchison board.
which includes some of the most promi-
ncnt capitalists in the country. saw hit
to increase the common stock dividend az
this time, it's action should be inter
preted as an intimation that adjustment
of prices to value involved a raising of
the former, since it is generally admitted
that, based on present dividend Yields.
current quotations for stocks are toe
low
There has been discOunting of divi-
dend reductions, which, in all probability
Will not occur
Brooklyn Rapid Transit and Reading
We're among the issues that rose in the
afternoon to new high levels for this
movement and while both derived much