The Washington herald., 1907-03-15
What's 1t All About?

What's il all about. this near-panic III
Wall street which I'm two days has i'm
poverished the holders OF various securi-
ties-most of them comparatively small
holders. by the way-to the extent OF
many millions of dollars?
Surely there is nothing in the existing
commercial and financial situation 10 ex-
plain. much less warrant, such deterio-
ration Of values as the dispatches from
New York are describing. 1t long has
been the boast of the Republican party
that il is panic-proof. The Republican
party is in complete control of the gov
ernmentaI machinery. There is not even
a remote possibility of any changes in the
schedules of the protective tariff, which
is said 20 be responsible for the country <
prosperity, and which, with equal force.
might be said TO make that prosperity
permanent. Crops have been bountiful.
Prices have been high. Money has been
easy" People who. although they make
no pretense TO the possession Of expert
financial knowledge. at least have COM
mon sense, belieYe-and believe with much
reason. as this newspaper sees the situa-
tion-that business conditions are unusu-
ally favorable. and that the outlook is for
the continuation of such conditions.
rather than for commercial eataclysm
which if the sinister promise of the last
two days be fulfilled. might lead to a
financial crash as serious and as disas-
trous as any which occurred while the
Democratic party was in power.
We ask again. therefore. What Is the
meaning OF this Wall street turmoil-this
slump Of stock values, which has already
induced the Secretary of the Treasury Of
the United States to authorize three
measures of relief" for the money mar
ket?
II is hardly reasonable to expect the
public to believe that legislative enact
ments either of the Federal government
or OF t:,c various States, are wholly re-
sponsibI5. Congress adjourned ten days
ago. and taost Of the State laws said 10
be unjust to the railroads have been on
the statute books so long that whatever
effect could be expected from them would
have logically been in evidence long ere
this
1t is true, doubtless, that railroads are
experiencing some difficulty in securing
money to maintain their roadbeds and
equipment and extend their lines,
and that railroad securities are not
finding the usual ready market But,
apparently. there is money in plen-
ty for other enterprises, and the IN
evitable conclusion is that whatever un-
favorable symptoms may be noticeable in
the railroad situation are due to the rail-
road companies themselves-to such per
formances as that little Alton deal which
Mr. Hartman described to the Interstate
Commerce Commission. for example
Without presuming to assert that our ex-
pert financial knowledge entities us to "a
position on the directorate of any rail-
road. but firm in the conviction that. like
the common people" we still retain
somewhat Of that commodity vulgaTly
known as horse sense, we venture to ex-
press the opinion that the Wall street
panic commenced largely as a result
of the manipulations and Vaccinations Of
certain extensive gamblers in railroads
and railroad ana other securities. The
downward movement may have gone fur
ther than was intended by the originators
Of the plan TO scare President Roosevelt
into doing something for them, however.
II the damage was confined to those
originators alone, the public doubtless
would contemplate the result with salts
faction. as an Illustration Of the express
sion hoist by his own petard." But the
big men of money, We suspect will not
suffer.
Anything approaching persecution of
the railroads is to be deprecated. And
tlis newspaper believes there is no prob
ability of such persecution and, more
over. it firmly believes there Is no legiti-
mate cause for Wall street panic.