The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-09-21
MARKET LEADERS
ALMOST IN PANIC
They Pretend To Fear Result
Of The Elections
ALL EYES ARE ON HARTMAN
Operations In Stock Market for the
Past Week Show That Prices Have
Been Held In Hand BY
the Professionals.

New York, September 20.-The pro-
ve1oped in the securities market last
week was generally attributed to what
the financial district called ''politi-
cal scare" After the result of the
Maine election became known on Tues
day the struggle to maintain prices
became manifest. The special force
given to the political scare" was due
to the influential financial sources
which gave 1t countenance. E. II. Har-
riman and ]. ]. Hill, newly returned
from prolonged stays in the west, gave
public utterance to views expressing
feeling of doubt over the outcome of
the elections and dissatisfaction with
the languid interest in the campaign
manifested by voters. Coupled with
this tone of admonition against tho
assumptions current in Wall street on
the political situation were other cir
cumstances which intensified the I'M
preston that these accepted financial
auth critics found something to criticize
in the course to which the speculation
has run. This impression was decisive
in checking the speculative operations
for an advance and in precipitating
liquidation. During Mr.. Harriman's re-
tirement in the oregon forest the spec
u1ation has centered around his per-
sonality to a degree rarely witnessed
in the stock market. The connection
of his name in however remote a de-
gree with any property has served to
stimulate an animated speculation in
its shares and to stir up cloud of
rumors and suppositions as to his
plans regarding the property. Upon
his return to the financial district Mr..
Hartman called in the newspaper men
and bluntly denied many of the ru-
mors which had been in circulation re-
garding his properties and his plans.
This action cut the ground from un-
der the speculative position of the most
active element in the market opera
lions and implied the disapproval of the
man crdited with lending all his power
and influence to the movement.
When it was realized that the sup
posed responsibility for the course Of
the market was being practically dis
avowed there was a quick turn to more
attentive consideration of some of tn Q
unfavorable factors in the situation.
Amongst these it was not lost sight
of that enormous obligations for call
loans, presumably employed in market
operations, were controlled by the
financial institutions holding close re-
Iations with the wealthy group created
with the leadership in the stock mar
ket. The dependence of the specula-
tive position upon this relation was a
cause of uneasiness. This was aggra-
waited by the course of the money mar
ket. The process of pi1ing up idle
reserves in the New York banks man
ifestly had come to a pause with the
beginning Of the flow of currency out
of New York bank reserves and into
western and southern channels Of
trade. The persistent firmness of the
foreign exchange market in face of
all the conditions making for New
York control of the New York ex
changes kept alive discussion of gold
exports, and gave warning of the
burden of keeping up securities prices
at a level which was attracting for
eign holdings to the home market.
Railroad earnings were SO far from
showing the hoped for recovery that
dividend prospects came in for revived
discussion. This discussion bore with
special weight on the great systems
which made the largest issues of new
stock just previous to the financial de-
preston. especially Great North ern.
Northern Pacific and St. Paul. The
slowness of the recovery in the iron
and steel trades which has been the
object of constant remark, was re-
ported to be emphasized and further
reductions in the price of copper ex-
tended the unfavorable influence into
other fields of the metal industry. The
anxiety over the drouth was but partly
relieved by the amount of precipitation
and a decrease in the ultimate yield is
taken into the reckoning.