The Washington times., 1908-08-25

NEW YORK, Aug. 5.-Stocks are
very quiet IN Wall Street today, though
prices are hrmer and the market is
in rather better shape than for several
days past Following a weak and irreg-
ular opening, prices began to harden
slowly. Union Pacific. Southern Pacific.
and Great Northern showing good
strength among the railroads. and Smelt-
ers among the industTials.
Little stock seemed to be forthcoming
and prices responded easily to such buy
ing as timid brokers ventured. BY mid
day the leading stocks had added about
a point 70 the opening prices. Wall
Street IS still discussing the operations
of last Saturday. and has not yet ar
rived at a satisfactory explanation OF
how il was done. Meantime. orders are
few and many brokers are refusing
commitments until after the air clears.
There is no excitement anywhere in the
speculative world today. so far as heard
from.
Street Distrusts Lawson.
Wall Street discussed a new report in
regard to Saturdays business II is
now generally believed that Thomas ".
Lawson had nothing 10 do with II, al
though he claims TO have handled the
manipulation. The most generally ac-
cepted theory today was that Daniel
u. Reid. the Rock Island railroad man.
was short 500 900 shares Of different
stocks, and PLANNED to put the Rock
Island system into receivers hands to
break the market and cover at profit.
The Standard oil people under the
leadership of f. +. Hartman. discover
ed his intention, so the story goes. and
notified Reid that they would ruin him
# he persisted.
As a compromise. the Standard oil
people are said to have put into the
market enough stock for Reid to cover
his sales without a loss.
II II is true. as this report suggests.
that the Standard OIL people have dis
posed OF 500 0O0 shares of various stocks.
there is no danger or any wild advance
III the market just yet.
Shorts Run to Cover.
The market continued TO rise gradual
ly on good buying which in the after
noon developed into active short cover
ing. There had been a disposition all
the morning 10 give the big houses,
caught in the Irregular transactions OF
Saturday. opportunity 20 supply their
lacking stock. But the temptation 10
harry the shorts was too great for the
little fellows. and the market turned
more active and prices hardened a
point or so at the turn of noon. Be
tween then and the middle of the aft
ernoon a considerable volume of stocks
came out and was eagerly taken on
rising scale.
The more the transactions OF last
Saturday are explained the more mys-
tertou= they become. and the Street has
not yet setried down to anything like a
unanimous idea OF what happened or
what produced IL. Somebody played
Joke on Wall Street that will not soon
be forgotten. everything, except at
tributiug the trouble to President RoOse-
velt, has been offered and rejected, the
latest story about the row among
STANDARD OIL Ried and Hartman being
accepted with about the same sus-
piCion as the claims OF Thomas Lawson
In the middle of the afternoon the
short covering movement seemed TO be
in full swing, with the manlpulators
holding the market back as Tnucn as II
seemed possible to do in order for the
big houses TO get back their stocks
without too serious loss.
ThouEh Wall Street received the shock
of the year IN the announcement of the
failure of A. o. Brown 4 Co, as the
direct result Of the transactions OF last
Saturday If had little effect on the mar
ket. The stock exchange had been sail
ing under reefed canvas so closely 70
The wind that IT seemed nothing could
affect It, and after few moments the
trading went on about as II had been
doing before the announcement OF the
Failure.
The market closes fairly strong after
-.