The Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1???-1928, 1909-06-18
STOCKS UNSETTLED
The Market Was Demoralized by Mid
day Yesterday, and Prices Fell
Off Rapidly.

New York, June 17-Speculative de
flation which took on symptoms 0
collapse was in the stock market to
| day. The suddenness and violence
OF the break in prices came as sur
prise. in spite of the expressions o
distrust lately on the high level o
prices and of the extent to which Dor
| fowed money was being used to car
| ry stocks on margin.
The bear party in the speculation
which undertook operations on The
short side based on this situation, ha.
met taseparable opposition so ofte,
| in the shape of powerful support o
the market that ability to hold prices
lied upon. The withdrawal of thai
support undoubtedly was very in
portant element in the weakness OF
the market today Opening selling il
fact was well absorbed and an effect
i've rally achieved.
AT that point stock began to come
out again. and prices fell away As
prices crumbled margins We're wiped
out and stop loss orders uncovered
and soon after midday the market
was demoralizqi, Developments in
the copper trade in the last few days
have impressed the sentiment very un
favorably, owing to the suspicion eli
gendered that the speculative force:
had been at work in the market for
metal to sustain speculation in stocks.
The slump in the copper metal mar
ket in London today reinforced this
suspicion The tone of the stock
market is greatly prejudiced by the
the plan to list United States Steel
on the Paris bourse. There was some
comment on the coincidence of the ap.
pearance of the report of the Hughes
committee on the exchange and the
break in the stock market Members
of the stock exchange, however, were
disposed quite generally to profess
satisfaction with the contents of the
report. Practices which have been
under criticism, such as short selling,
restriction of distribution of quota
tions and even manlpuiations are dis
tinctly defended or commended in the
report.
Some sellers OF stocks professed APP
prehension that the presidents mes
sage regarding the income and cor
poration earnings tax might be pre-.
Jude to the revival of agitation against
corporations. The paragraph dealing
with the incidental advantages of the
decreased powers of inquisition into
the affairs of corporations growing
out Of the proposed tax on earnings
seemed TO be regarded as of sinister
import to corporation management.
The simple declaration of per
cent semi-annual dividend on Reading
yesterday contrasted so wildly with
the rumors which induced the recent
advance in that stock to near 100 that
part played by pure speculation, help
ed by manipulation in the extension
of the prolonged advance in prices
This realization, applied to the stock
market as a whole. had much more TO
do with the days heavy liquidation
than any fresh incident in the news
One such incident mentioned by
traders as the reason FOR the unloading
of stocks was the reported firing Oh
a British ship by a Russian govern
ment vessel. Extensive covering by
shorts In the process of realizing bear
profits retrieved a substantial part Of
the extreme declines, which ran to ,
y and nearly points for stocks most
acutely affected, The closing tone o.
the market was unsettled again.