The Washington herald., 1907-04-11
WALL STREET NOTES
Strong Effort to Break Price
of Union Pacific.
STOCK SHOWS GOOD SUPPORT

Decision 80 Recall Hartman as wit
ness Before Federal Inqutsitors
Has Eneet-steeI Corporation An
tIcIpates Growing Bnsiness--Crop
Report Has Little Eject.
NeWa York, April IA determined ef-
fort was made to break the price Of
Union Pacific soon after the opening to-
day. but the support to this stock was so
good that the bears changed their tactics
and transferred the pressure to other
points Opinion was divided as 10 The
possible effect Of the moyementto compel
Hartman 10 answer questions to which
he refused TO reply during the Interstate
Commerce Commissions investigation,
but perhaps the best view Of the matter
was that the effect on the market would
depend largely on the sentiment at the
time the witness was actually called upon
TO testify.
If sentiment was strongly buliish. then
the incident would probably|be ignored.
If sentiment was only moderately buIlish
er not bullish at all, the bears might be
able to make capital out Of the matter.
The general opinion Of Mr.. Hartman
attitude on the witness stand at the in
vesugation in this city is that he made
a rather poor witness, and this naturally
gives rise TO doubts as 10 whether he
might not, as a witness in court pro-
ceedings. acquit himself in a way to af-
feet the market at least temporarily. A
renewed attack on the stock in the after
noon broke the price from 120. but at this
level the shorts showed some eagerness
TO cover.
United States Steel, which was con-
spicuously strong whenever the general
market showed strength, reached new
high level for the present movement. It
was rumored that the statement of earn
ings 10 be issued on the last day of the
present month would make very favor
able exhibit. both in respect to results for
the quarter ending March 81 and the vol
ume OF untitled orders on the books at
the end of that period The floods, which
did so much damage Ia Pitt8burg d feB.
weeks ago. had, of course. the effect of
reducing the quarters results. and the
winter months are ordinarily the worst
I'm the year, because mining operations
are interfered with and the steamships on
the Great Lakes out of commission. One
thing, however, has been made abund-
antly clear-the sellers are much stronger
IN naming terms than they were a few
Re-
est kind Of confirmation Of the assur-
ances given at different times 10 the
street that the outlook for business con-
tinues good. When it comes to turning
away business because the buyer cannot
wait months for delivery. there can be
little doubt as to the conditions that actu-
ally exist in the trade
The Wall street news agencies pub
iished two items bearing upon the copper
situation. One was the announcement
that the employees of the Boston and
Montana smelter at Great Falls, who, by
striking, had forced the closing down Of
this company's mines, had agreed to re-
turn TO work pending an investigation OF
their grievances. The second was that a
decline had occurred in the quotations
for copper on the New York Metal Ex-
change. and was not of any real inn
portance, although it served the purpose
OF the bears on stocks to make it appear
that they attached a great deal of sig
nifcance 10 it.
The first crop report Of the year about
met expectations and had no effect as a
market factor after it was made public
Before it appeared, some of the Western
houses were conspicuous on the buying
side Of the market, but traders wno
watched the transaction closely came "a
the conclusion that the open buying was
intended to conceal d still larger amount
of selling which perhaps accounted for
the fact that the stocks III which the buy
ing appeared TO be greatest were among
the heaviest on the list
Everybody had the tip that SmeIters
would go to $50 this week and the buying
orders in the stock came from every
where-from the professional trad
ers in the commission houses, from all
over the United States, and from Ameri-
cans abroad. Those who distributed the
tip did their work thoroughly. and it i.
rarely that the public has displayed su1l
confidence about a dividend still three
months Off. as they are doing in tn,
present instance. Such buying as has
been seen in Shelters in the past couple
of days is not the kind TO make a strong
technical position in a stock, but OF
course, If there is absolutely no danger
to a hitch in the dividend expectations
and the stock Is placed on 8 10 per cent
basis. when the directors act on the mat
ter towards the end of May, all will b,
well. but the uncertainty which still sur
rounds the dividend question leads som,
conservative interests to doubt whether
the present movement is an altogether
favorable factor in the market
On the reaction in the market in tn,
early afternoon. quite a little stock wal
bought by the arbitrage houses which
expected an opportunity to sell at prof
in London before our opening Tomorrow
counting on a reduction in the Bank o
England TO strengthen all department
of the exchange in the British capital
The foreigners have taken very little in
terest in Americans recently, and Will
ordinarily quite 4 good many orders ar
I sent here after the regular closing time II
| London. the brokers there have latel.
made a practice of going home early
doing practically no curb trading in an
| international stocks.
/ Many OF the shorts who had been wait
/ ing for an opportunity to cover contracs
/ seized it when it came and part of tn
rally just before the close was due 4
their buying. There is, however, no doub
/ that new short lines were put out, an,
these more than Offset the contracts GOV
I o,,d fbnr ono result of tl,o do,.s.. 1.,..-r