The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-24
STOCKS TAKE DROP
MARKET WAS WEAK AT OPENING
 AND CLOSE.
The Lowest Prices of the Day Were e Recorded in the Last Few
 Minutes of Trading.

s-D--
 New York, Feb. 2s.-.suspicion and the stock market spread with rapid growth today .and brought the fabric of values down with a crash. The con- viction was quick in forming after the throwing open of the steel market to competition last week. that the stock market position was an artificial one assumptions of the trade position. This
 was not wholly new view of the market but the success which 'the az gressive support of values had met
 stion would be held by the main
 strength of the powerful capitalists supposed to be back of the movement. Today us saw tn sGuisn left after the end week demonstration of weakness last week. Various fac tors com mbined to accentuate the weak force. The serious View taken by the London market of our disturbances as shown by the heavy declines there yes- terday during the New York holiday. downward course. The foreign mar kets were also unsettled by the revival of fears of an outbreak in the Balkans tria. London sent very heavy selling orders to the New York market for ex- ecution as soon as trading began. and this helped the downward rush of
 
 There was considerable accumulation of orders from domestic sources also, some of them for liquidation on ac- count Of the trade outlook, others gins which had been exhausted by last weeks fall In prices. The weak carly market which resulted from these con- pected and the alert professional ele- ment amongst the traders who stood ready to take advantage of the decline. came to cover short contra cts pot in market momentarily, but 1t proved a techntc i4sy weak6n.ny factor when the dec..rtj Tt, I9n .~ed and ,hese "a. along with the continued outside sell ing The new set of weakening fac tors came in the inferences drawn from the reconvening of the Supreme Court
 Decisions were handed down against the New York Central for relating and the speculative element, for reasons umped to aRser tRss goneasen msse no Sa atet decision would uphold the constitution ality of the commodities clause of the Hepburn law, and so constrain the an mining properties. Another weak group of stocks was found in the minor raiiroads @ that have been exploited for
 s or Benefit. o aeerSa from s their purchases by larger systems. Of the steel trade position the speculative contingent was disposed to take the Site extreme of the unbo1nded oonfl- conS dence previously held of the ability of the centralized forces in the trade to maintain the position until demand re- vived. Today's decisions in the neigh borhood 0 fthe stock exchange all had to do with the likelihood of radical cuts In the steel schedules on duties in the new tariff bill. the bear that trade reVivA1 madA halt nnff1 fhaaa tariff rates were decided, the necessity that would follow for reduction of wages and the danger that would then arise news from the steel trade was vague, the rumors were confusing and unre- liable and the unsettling effect In con- sequence was disastrous but as the ex- precision of these sentimsnts invariably issued in the selling of stocks. the re- suit was simplified into undertaking There was only a slight days profits. but the last break of the day was the most demoralized scene throughout and closed practically at the lowest copper and the beginning of the new trial of the Standard Oil fine case were eontributory. factors to the gloom. R Reading sold as low as 11s, 4 loss for Steel sold down to 41 1-2 and closed at day of 4 1-2 points. The railroad list the demoralization of the industriais but the liquidation spread throughout l the market and prices at the end of the day were off from to over points | for all the active stocks.
 Bonds were weak: total sales. par value, s7,2s0.0o0.
 United States 2s, coupon. advanced | l-4 per cent on call.
 CLOSING STOCK LIST.