The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-08
NICHOLAS WALL
 STREET LETTER Bulls Are AStoniShed At Bear
 Activity MORGAN STILL IN ERIE Farmers Are Rich and May Take h. terest In Movements of Securities. Common People Expected to
 Forget Tariff Legislation.
MORGAN STILL IN ERIE
BY w. e. NICHOLAS.

New York. August 1.-The bull party in wall street which outnumbers the bear party ten to one, and is overwhelming- " the stronger, looks with astonishment and lmpatience upon the pretensions of the bear faction that now is the time to play for a big reaction in prices. They cannot understand the reasoning of the bears and fail utterly to realize why It Is possible for serious break to occur upon the eve of the harvesting of man. moth crops and the reappearance of gen. eral prosperity. For 15 months the stock markets and the general business sit- nation has been working up to what is now in plain view and why there should be break now that hopes and expecta- tions are materializing into facts is in- comprehensible to the bulls. Railroad earnings now at the beginning of the new era are very close to where they were at the climax of the last upward swing two years and a half ago. Net results are comparatively better than they were at the apex of the last boom, showing increased efficiency and more economical operation. The enthusiasts describe the status of the industrial sit uation as "good times reyived-next year veritable industrial and business up- heaval."
 They fully believe that the nation is embarked upon a period of the grandest prosperity In it's history and that the next three or four years at least will be one unbroken upward swing and broad
 
 facts as they are able to mass in sup port of their position, should there be a serious setback in prices, they ask with scorn. So confident are they that their judgment is correct that they hail with expressions of open satisfaction every raid on prices made upon the floor of the exchange by an aggressive bear contin- gent They say that every man who sells stocks now is selling himself into a hole and will get his neck twisted be- fore he gets out They courageously buy on every recession that Is forced and thus far have evinced no weakness in any quarter. either in sentiment or willingness to back opinion with new pur- chases.
 This does not aplly to the old gray foxes of the street. who have been for several weeks scaling down their lines, largely in anticipation of tighter money during the fall and winter months. They do not look for any important declines in prices, but have been carrying tre- mendous loads of securities on money borrowed from banks. The point has arrived when they are ready to share rT,l.1 unhesitatingly putting their shoulders under the load. Unouestionably there is a large public in the market, a public different from anything ever before seen after a bull market has attained the proportions that this one has. One notable feature of the grand bull movement of the last 15 months Is an absence of pyramid ing, a crime against safety almost in- variably attaching to stock market booms of long duration. That fact constitutes an element of permanency to prices which Is quite consoling to holders who like to study technical conditions.
 Mr. Morgan is again dominant in Erie. As matter of fact he never was really out of control, although for many months it looked to many as though MT. Hartman was boss of the job. It so happened that when the powers that be were gently showing Erie into receiv- ership MT. Hartman was at a very im- portant stage in the development of the greatest bull campaign the country has ever seen and the receivership plans in connection with Erie ran counter to his larger market interests. He therefore organized himself into a rescue party, provided funds for the relief of Fries necessities, upset the reorganization prof ect harbored in the Morgan office and made himself such temporary force in the company that he carried everything before him for the time being. Later developments proved the correctness of his judgment inS regard to Erie, which is now earning almost up to the top rec ord of 1906. when $55,OO0,OoO was earned.
 The incident itself gave MT. Hartman added prestige and the money loaned Erie was one of the best investments ever made not only for the advancement of MT. Harrimans private fortune. the rescue of Erie from bankruptcy, but also for the general good. It put Q stop to many reorganization schemes which were quietly under way and forced the finan- cial powers to do with other roads what Hartman had done to Erie. Now that the rescue of Erie served its purpose MT. Hartman has practically lost interest in the system and it's control reverts again to the Morgan party.
 MT. Morgan has good reason to thank God for the prosperity of the nation. He is fond of taking the patriotic stand that nobody but fool will bet against the physical advancement of the repub- lie. Nobody Is greater beneficiary of our national prosperity than MT. Morgan. It has won out for many of the corpor- atons that have passed through the Nor gan reorganization machine and come out overloaded with indebtedness.
 
 We find much in Wall street literature and oratory these days about the farmer investor. It has been discovered that the farmer. collectively speaking, is very rich and that having blown himself in lux uries and personal comforts for while, must have money to invest in securities. Consequently the producers and sales men for the stock and bond houses are turning their attention to him, and pre- pairing to descend upon him with their merchandise Indeed the claim Is ad- vanced that the farmer investor has already become large factor and that he is even now owner of goodly pro- portion of bonds and shares in circula- ton.
 Not content with ownership of billions of broad acres he Is seeking partnership in the transportation and industrial lines by way of Wall street. In view of the pleasing fact that our own farmer invest ors are turning their money into secur!- ties maybe American manufacturers and salesmen will let the French small in- vestor' alone. What Is the use of pester- ing the small fry foreigner to take a line of merchandise for which there seems to be growing home market.