New-York tribune., 1909-05-02
The Financial World.

The security market continues faithfully to
register lettering conditions Almost every
where improvement shows Commercial circles.
notably dry goods. report increasing orders and
( excellent outlook In the metal trades are seen
growing earnings and expanding Orders-sig-
naIIy attested by the inspiring report OF the
United States Steel Corporation for the first
quarter of the year, exceeding the most san
guine hopes In the grain markets maintained
high prices for wheat prove that the high level
reached must have represented something more
than the mere result Of manipulation
With sequeutiaI accuracy. railroad earnings
Join the upward march. So accustomed is Wall
Street to prosperity exhibits by the Union
Southern Pacific system that its current show
ing excited small comment But what comes as
a tonic revelation is the remarkable gain re-
ported by the Rock Island system Wall Street
has long prOfessed TO be dubious concerning
the future Of this immense property-rankins
second in mileage among the premier systems
of the country-cOntending that the st. Louis
and San Francisco division must sap the
strength of Rock Island But the current
statement shows that far from this being the
case Frisco becomes a potentiaI element IN
earning strength and the WlsdGIn OF lLI{ nan
agenent which consummated the coh5o!llatlon
grouped under the term Rock Island - mus
vindicated by actual results Gross earnings
marvellOusIy expand while operating expenses
The territory which Rock Island serves covers
a vast area which is developing with giant
strides And Rock Island keeps pace with
public growth It's various lines are brought
to physical excellence, while the COMPANY
r,oIicfes have aroused no public antagOnlSrL
1t follows from these outlined condltlons tnat
there must soon come market apPIecialI.n III q
the increasing intrinsic Vaiue OF f|oCh ISLe-iI
stocks which till now have been laSgards IN
the general upward market movement among
the lower priced railway issues Ft'ch l9iallI
7icyb+ OUa1 " become
Vague hints are heard of approaching an
nouncernent that will disclose hitherto un7
suspected intimacy between Rock Island ana
Southern Railway Rock Island lost Georgia
Central to Mr.. Harriman-but the ambition for
an outlet to the Eastern South was not neces-
sarly thus stifed
Chesapeal,e and Ohio can have the SeabOard
Air Line Mr. HawIey can quite naturally fall
into a successorship TO Mr.. Ryan-not Inter-
borough merely.
Local fractions by the by, have been IN
market class by themselves this week-Wh!le
other stocks We're generally strong. no other
group moved a group in quite such orderly
fashion.
Even Third Avenue advances TEe accuial'-
Iating gentlemen seem finally TO have reached
a point where even their crassest hamrnerIns
processes fail 10 dislodge further stock For a
sustained bear campaign, this in Third Avenue
passes all recent record; but investors STOUT
hearted enough to hold are bound toward
sure. satisfactory, profit
Brooklyn Rapid Transit is helped by the ad-
journment of the Legislature without an ad-
verse enactment Spectators who sold the
stock short a month ago, and added to their
hear commitments this week when five cent
Coney Island fares seemed threatening AZ Al
bany. have found themselves so FAR unable 20 -
buy back their stock except al ShaFp auFaA-rS-
II now be IN oFCcF 10 permit 'IIltidl us
closure of the Pennsylvania Railroads invest
rnent relation % the Brooklyn property.
Interborough's Strength-bOth preferred and
common shares materially advancing-ts not
able as one of the most popular features OF the
market. That public participation IN this
movement Is upon a large scale IS manifest M
many ways. And this is indicative Of pubic
approval Of President Shonts.s widespread ap-
peal in the press Tor CONSIDERATION or 'oHPIE
henSive plans for physical expansion OF thr
subway and elevated lines Furthermore this
pu bile attitude teStites To cordial welcome OF
the new proprietary interests recently acquired
in InterborOugh-assuring able and honest
handling Of that most important matter the
local passenger transportation business or New
York city. There should be no astonishuleht
AT the strength of these traction stoCks-unIess,
indeed. at the comparatively mild headNay
under which the advance Is moving
Strength in Nickel Plate is accompanied By
the revived rumor that the Vanderbilt system IS
ts accept a bid made by the LacSawanna This
time there no official deniaiS
That United states Realtys next dividend IS
to he at the rate Of per cent is now tacitly ad-
mitted by the company's directors-making the
WELD to an investor at the present market price
close TO s per cent. over twice per cent IS
earned
stock Exchange oracIes keep busy with fore
casts Of miracles 20 be wrought in all the Gould
stocks as soon as Missouri Pacifc's pending
finance plans are disclosed. MI Gould himself
is not participating in any such chatter though
doubtless he can find grim satisfaction IN see
ing the extended bear interest in his stocks
scared TO cover for there are few shorts re-
naming in any OF his stocks now. Edwin
C;ould's St Louis < Southwestern is still beins
supported" BY the outside pool. which came 10
grief last year when Mr.. Gould declined 70 be
nut in the attitude of market manipulation Ths
property is doing we'll Nearly "a per cent was
earned on the preferred stock last year There
should be as much this year
Toward the close of the week Canadian PACT
hc has shown some new strength; but a volume
of stock is found abroad awaiting rea bsorptlon-
Last wears real estate operations seem 20 nave
been a disappointment at LondJn-land sales
falling to los. 600 acres compared WIN sS0.ulV
for 1907 and 1.115000 in l9O6-hSures not qIue
cOnsonant with some excited Wall street as
cOVeries OF armies of new settlers ruSnlng over
from the United States to become contributors
of Canadian Pacific traffic
Growing activity in Mexican Railway shares
is due TO better knowledge Of the excellent con-
dition of the companys affairs. When DG
cent is earned for the second preferred Il uust
forthwith be paid-not held back piled up
Another important point is that after such
per cent is paid the second preferred continues
to benefit from any surplus earnings-divdins