The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-03-19
PRICES TUMBLE IN STOCK MARKET Opening Is Strong But Selling Takes Away Advance REALIZATION FOR PROFIT Bears Get Busy Early In the Session and Nearly All Stocks Feel the
 Effect of Liquidation Before
 the Close.

New York, March 1S.-The stock mar ket gave evidence today of the contin- ued operation of considerable forces in the speculation. The movement shifted so constantly however, and presented such sharp contradictions in some of it's demonstrations that 1t had the effect of greatly unsettling and confusing specu- 1ative sentiment and increasing suspicion until stocks were unloaded in haste. The strong recovery in yesterdays late mar ket was held to be an infallible sign that the bull leadership had let down prices on Monday and early yesterday merely for the purpose of shaking off a weak speculative following and for the advan- tage of buying back stocks which they had themselves sold out at a profit. The sharp break which developed today after 8 moderate advance proved disconcert- ing to this view of the situation.
 Incidents in the days news were against a rise in prices. The market showed primary resistance, however, to the prin- cipal of these, which was the reduction in the New York Central dividend rate from to per cent basis. This action caused no great surprise as the original advance in the dividend rate was regard ed in the view of the market as bear ing rather on the marked attractiveness of new issues in contemplation than on the rate of earnings of the company.
 The New York Central was one of the earliest to suffer from the heavy inroads on net earnings caused by increase of expenses and the maintenance of the div idend has been long in doubt. The ef- feet of the announcement was even more pronounced on other trunk line stocks, notably Pennsylvania, than on New York Central itself. The effect was aggravated by the heavy decline in net earnings for February reported by the Baltimore and Oho The authoritative statement car ried in the Associated Press dispatches from Washington clearly defined the much discussed probability of a special mes sage from the President relating to leg islative measures which have been sub jects of conferences at the White House for some time past.
 With that subject thus removed from the realm of mystery, much of the oc- cupation was gone for an element which has made use in the stock market of vague rumors on this subject. The omis- sion of the dividend on Union Type writer stock, although that stock is not dealt in on the stock exchange, was of some effect on sentiment as an evidence of a prevailing tendency. The picking out of National Lead for sharp advance evil dently, for sustaining effect on the gen. eral list. was based upon it's sustained div idend record and the disproportion of it's price to the dividend compared with oth- CT prominent industrial stocks. The eff feet, however, was to aggravate the gen eral weakness.
 The knowledge that men influential in the steel trade were in conference in this city and intmations that trade conditions here reported were not bearing out re- cent predictions of betterment, weighed on the market severely and made the most substantial factor in the weakness which developed. The Illinois Central fin ancial plan, although involving valuable privileges to stockholders at the present price of the stock did not save that stock from sharing fully ip the general weakness.
 Final slight recoveries from the low point of the break were plainly due to nasty covering of short sales.
 Bonds were irregular. Total sales par value $2,450,000; United States As regis tered declined A per cent on call.