The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-11-14
MONEY MARKET |S STILL ALL RIGHT High Interest Rates Are Easily
 Accounted For RAILROADS MAKE RECORDS Bears Have Not Made Much Headway Out of Agitation For Increase
 For Railroad
 Employees.
RAILROADS MAKE RECORDS
BY w. G. NICHOLAS.

New York, November 13.-The favorite phase now prevalent in Wall street. is that the stock market is scheduled to wait on the money market The money market is all right. It is in strictly nor nal condition. Rates are a little high. but they are very far from being op pressive. Bankers are doing what they can to encourage the idea that funds are verging on scarce and that borrowers will be wise If they provide themselves against the future. That is all right The merchandise the banks and bankers deal in is money and it is their business to get as much for their goods as they can 1egitimately They had two lean years and for the first time since the depres- sion following the panic of 1907 they are getting remunerative interest rates. They are very willing this condition should continue There is a legitimate demand from every business and commercial quarter for money and it is worth all the owners are able to squeeze out of the borrowers The best that lenders have been able to procure is about per cent. There have been days when higher quo- tations have obtained for call money, but transactions at a higher figure than per cent are small in aggregate volume. Nevertheless 1t suits the mood of the stock market to fall in with the idea that speculation must be held in leash until money conditions work easier. It can truthfully be said that the banks at this particular moment are against speculative expansion They do not care to over extend or to be placed in a position of really aiding and abetting the high rollers on the stock exchange. At the same time it can be said with exact fidelity to facts that nobody with credit and stand ing is being turned away fro mthe banks if they want to borrow money. Money can be had in any amount and for time periods to suit the borrowers. Meantime the stock market actually is awaiting the pleasure of the banks and the great field marshals of manipulation. The situa- tion suits the big sold-out bulls and the active contingent of professional bears on the exchange.
 At the same time 1t may be mentioned that every railroad and industrial on the list is doing record work in the matter of business and earnings. In some in stances the gross income may still be little under the high figures of 1907, but there is hardly case in which net earn ings are not far and away better than ever before This shows very much bet ter operative efficiency than during the loose and extravaga:lt regime immediate ly ante-dating the 19V panic The New York Central, for instance, has a record of nearly s1z,000,000 more net income for the first nine months Of 1909 over the cor responding period of 1908. The New Haven shows about $1 100000 increase for the last quarter over the corresponding quarter of 1908. And 50 1t goes through the whole list. Rock Island is one of the systems making a splendidly favorable showing in net and gross. Southern Rail- way looms into the foreground with re- markable showing of returns to owners. Right here, before 1t is forgotten, the fact should be noted that a very live tip is abroad of big speculative cam- paign pending in Southern Railway. Among the low-priced railway stocks Southern is one of the most attractive on the list. It has long been one of the pets of the Morgan house and as that in- stitution is at the present moment the most influential factor in Wall street friendly ear is given to all kinds of re- ports affecting things under the Morgon wings. It is now quite the popular thing to insist that every speculative movement has it's origin and direction in the office of J. P. Morgan & Co. Among other things, that house Is supposed to be more than friendly to the speculation In Copper stocks and to be giving financial backing to the grand scheme involving the merger of a group of the biggest copper pro- ducers. This report may or may not be true. Before betting too heavily on the accuracy of the story intending investors should look for corroboration.
 The bears in the railway list are trying to make capital out of the agitation which has been started for an increase in wages of railroad employees. They have