The Washington herald., 1909-05-31

New York, May 30-The stock market
was moderately reaetionary IN the early
days OF last week, and FOR perfectly
natural reasons It is trits saying that
the security market cannot be expected
to go up" all the time. and prices n CIR
own market have advanced continuously.
although not excessively. when the
grounds Of the advance are considered.
since the latter part o. March.
st this period Of the year buying OF
stocks often hesitates more OF less be-
cause OF uncertainty regarding the crops
and knowledge that this uncertainty viii
not be terminated until quite little time
further On. Meanwhile professional crop
killers and the Ike must be s4Iowed 70
have their say, and the host % people in
Wall street who have sadly uisUnder-
stood the strength q the existing bEsi-
ness situation and have therefore missed
the advance IN the market. must be per
mitted TO make tie most OF & small Op-
portGussy to engenGer as much pessimism
as they can n the financial community.
al for the avOEed purpose. even If It IS
successful OF allowing them % buy stocks
70 little better advantage than they
Eow can
Double Tracking Continues.
The railroad companies are stiu pro-
cesding slowly with their double track
Ing, building Of nav lines. and other
similar enterprises. but they have been
forced 20 abandon their policy OF in2ctioa
as regards purchases OF new equipment
Not a day passes but there IS news %
orders fOr CARS and engines and steel rails
that, Il stil not as large es tsoss placed
IN 1916. are such as 10 indicate that bUsi-
ness recovery Is proceeding at z much
more rapid rate than earlier n the year
TIE weakness OF certain particular
stocks no doubt helped along the decline
II the market IN the fore part Of last
week. Just as tie strength OF others %
a more influential class gave 70 tbs mar
ket as & whole, OF the other hand, q bed
rock hrmness OF Undertone.
Tie Reading common shares. which
often rise OF decline without known rsa-
son therefor. sc far as considerations q
value are concerned, were the focus OF
weakness, although they did not decline.
after ell. in any material degree Some
tine since Reading stocks rose with light
ni5glike speed because Of rUmors that the
dividend distribution on Il was shortly 20
be increased Il declined last week be-
cause OF another runor that the FIRST
rumor was without foundation
Western Maryland Heavy
The Western Maryland common shares
were another especially heavy issue owing
70 the strong probability that Al sssess-
ment viii have 10 be paid upon them n
the Reorganization of the y sstern Mary
he's been strong for long period Il does
not follow that there are not weak spots
n e, and that there may net be more
than one stock that has risen higher than
Is warranted. That as mater OF fact
stock market prices are az TIE moment
generally high is herewith denied without
reservation. Prices OF stocks seem high
because they have risen sharply from rhs
great depression OF two years ago. but
they are not high. absolutely consid-
cred They are. OF az least those OF the
standard railway and Industrial shares.
20 be accounted as selling below thsfr
value when dus thought Is taken q tbs
manner II which they sustained them
selves In the period OF storm and stress
in the country just happily ended. ard Il
II Is held 70 be probable thar the agrioui-
, tural prosperity OF The country this year
Is to be as great as Is az present Prom
ised. The commanding place both II the
security market and IN the business stu
alton at The moment IS occupied By the
United States Steel Corporation
All TIE news last week bearing upon
the market was strkingly favorable.
While tie tariff debate 6rags along n
Congress with EloTness that Is tantaifz-
rsz e ~ l.
plain that the upshot Of the matter Is %
be the enactment Of another protective
tariff, and tat the impulse toward reoov-
cry IN business IS making such hesdEvsy
that the details OF the new sohszse are
daily becoming OF less and less ImDor-
tance-
Railways Restore WaReG.
One or two OF the great railway com
psnies followed the example Of the IL
dependent steel producers T. restoring
the wages CT employees 20 the level from
which thesa have been reduced A &c
e0o. 90 bo1d issue o. the Armour company
vas heavily ovsrs0SscrIbed Immediately
upon its Offering. An1ounceu ut was
made that the Hiu and Hartman rail-
way interests had settled the long dis
pute between them regarding rns Use OF
the sO-calied Portland gateway fl the
Northwest
The new United Dry Goods Companies
launched On Tuesday under the auspiees
OF :. P. Morgan & Co.. would never have
been put together II business men and
bankers were lot confident o. the future.
a stiEeat1g Of prices went On al al5uE
the line in the IRON and steel and COPPER
trade The crop news from the West
was almost ideal