New-York tribune., 1909-05-04
FINANCIAL AFFAIRS
STOCKS CLOSE STRONG.
Commodity Clause Decision Helps
the CoalerS- More Gold Taken
for Export

The long looked for commodity clause deci-
sion was handed down by the Supreme Court
Yesterday and for q brief period following It's
announcement there was 50 much confusion in
the Street regarding the exact meaning OF the
opinion that for a short time the stock mark Z
was every kind of a market. in the course OF
which Reading suffered sharp break which
subsequently was more than recovered. W heh
II dawned upon the speculative community that
the ruling Of the Justices was a practical VIC
tory for most of the roads concerned the gen
eral market developed strength on an enormous
volume of business which, however was not
maintained throughout the afternoon thougi
there was no material reaction in prices from
the high levels established. Reading closing at
a gain of more than points from its low price.
The great strength in this stock was based upon
the short interest in il and on the realization
that while the Reading Company vas not a di-
rect party to the suit just decided the opinion OF
the court leaves no chance for government ac-
ton against the property under the commodity
clause of the Hepburn act. The commodity
clause made It unlawful for any railroad to
carry across a state border any article manu-
featured or produced by such company or any
road in which it had a stock interest, and this
last September was declared unconstitutional by
the Circuit Court at Philadelphia, on the basis
that ii deprived the companies of their property
bv prohibiting its transportation. While the Su
rrer71e Court holds that this inference does not
follow and that the law is constitutional II red
SONG that the companies have the right TO sell
their commodities before shipping them from
the place of production and this. with the ruling
that commodities not owned by the railroads,
though the railroads may own stock in the COM
panies producing the commodities, places an In
terpretation upon the law favorable to the trans
portation companies, except IN the case OF u4e
Iscllavanna which doubtless viii form another
company in which ii will have a stock owner
shin for the mining of its coal, or sell its coal
at the mines. as in the case of the Delaware *
Hudson. The stock of the last named gained
net % while Lackawanna, on sales OF 100 shares,
lost Is The general market strong at the
close but showed few important net gains, the
chief Improvement being recorded by Baltimore
& Ohio which sold at new high price Tor the
year Pennsylvania and the United States steel
issues Steel preferred was quoted at the beSS
figure in the history Of the corporation, at III
Total dealings ran in excess of 100000 shares
Money market rates show easy tendency,
while sterling exchange is at the level that per
mits of gold shipments from New York TO Paris.
Engagements of the metal TO the amount or
81 OOO, 900 were made yesterday for the account
~ the French capital the movement rejecting
the absence of commercial and bankers bills in
the foreign exchange market and the increased
demand for remittance as consequence OF our
growing import trade The recovery in the
grain markets has upset recent calculations re-
garding an increase in the outward flow OF our
breadstufs exports last week of wheat and corn
showing a reduction Of 1,25993I bushels from
the corresponding time a year ago and sub
staDtial decline from the preceding week, Nltn
the sales of export wheat were increased as 4
result Of the break in the market following tGa
retirement Of the Patten interests. Strength IN
exchange is helped also by the maturing Of short
contracts which always are large at this period
of the year The ease of money here and 1t
London and the demand for gold at Paris and
Austria the latter point securing yesterday all
the South African gold offered in the open Lon
don market furnish combination the outcome
of which will be watched with unusual interest
in all financial circles. The in money is
encouraging financial operations of great i'm
portance but so far it has failed to attract an
active mercantile demand for accommodation "a
this centre which is falsely interpreted in scma
quarters as indicating absolute BUSINESS stagna-
balances from New York, because they have an
ample supply OF funds hand to finance home
requirements and merchants not large boz.
rowers as they have sufficient money to meet
current necessities The mercantile community
is in a generally sound position. Business oper-
ations are growing larger every day, and in view
OF tariff uncertainties the volume of trade
hected in bank clearngs is astonshingIy large.
For the month of April clearinSs were nearly 4)
per cent heavier than in the same month last
year and per cent heavier than in April, 1906.
when trade was active gains being pronounced
at cities outside New York, the large increase
here being due in part TO speculative operatio--.
The New York Central lines. like the PEI
sylYania system, handle great variety of traf