The Washington herald., 1909-01-25

New YORK Jan. 24.-Th0Se whose daily
occupation it is 10 come down 20 Wall
street and regard the security market
with greater OF lesser degree Of hxity
OF attention from the point Of view OF
either professional OF business interest
found last week OF during me greater
portion of the week as dull and per
functory market as it has been their
fortune TO observe for a very considerable
period Up 10 the last two days Of tia
week transactions Of stocks were steadily
reduced and developments OF Importance
seemed TO STOW less and less.
On Friday and Saturday the market
gathered more strength. and there were
some evidences Of more powerful buying
OF stocks than had previously been pre-
seEted It is stiH true. however. that
throughout the last six weeks the stock
market itself has been an unsatisfactory
affair. judged by ordinary speculative
standards.
II has not been weak market and
Spectators for the rise have not lost
any great amount OF money in i except
the unfortunate few who chanced 10 pos
sess margined holdings OF Consolidated
Gas, but il has been q market in which ;
both downward and upward movements
in r-ices have run but IUJle way. 50
that people who bought stocks when they
were strong OF sold them when they were
weak usually found that they had made
bad bargain Such q market IL uluse
De confessed. Is one that is not infre-
QUently noticed II the first two OF three
months OF the year.
Generally Stronger Undertone.
One thing IS apparent. and that IS that
the security market last week displayed
generally stronger undertone than it
has done for several weeks past and acted
more Ike q market n which liquidation
had been completed Certain large spec
ulators who would under ordinary cir-
cUmstances be large operators in the mar
ket for q decline a. this JunctUre are de-
TERED from making commitments OF the
kind described because e weIl-groundsG
fear that while the public may not 5e IN
clined 20 participate n q great upward
movement II speculation i would be q
greedy buyer OF stocks 81 any consider
able recession n prices.
The general situation az the moment
IS undoubtedly Of mixed character. Il IS
commonly said that business IS not as
good as il was sixty days ago. but on this
point contradictory details are furnished.
Il IS pointed out on the one hand thar
tEe number OF IDLE freight cars in TIE
country has increased, but Il IS doubtful
whether svch al increase has been due
10 anything else than the usual diuiru-
ton Of railroad activity AZ this season.
or IN the present year especially 10 q
necessary CUTtailnent of railway freight
traffic consequent upon the cessation Of
the extraordinarily rapid movement Of
the country crops 10 market last fall
While al the superficial occasions for
talk were IN Wall street last week. such
matters as the tedious runo-s OF the en-
trance OF the Hartman interest into
the New York Central board. OF pro
posed" lease OF the Norfolk and Western
by the Pennsylvania Railroad COMPANY.
OF one OF its subordinate Companies. OF
shifting plans for reorganization Of the 10
cal traction interests, OF an increased
dividend distribution upon Chesapeake and
Ohio stock. and an initial dividend by the
Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. talk
in banking circles converged upon the
numerous evidences of the slow but sure
return once more in lines OF trade and
industry 20 q normal basis OF dealings
and TO a demand for investment securi-
ties proper on the part Of the people OF
the country that outran al previous an
ticipations thereof
Bonds Are in Demand.
The truth IS. although it may not be
apparent on its face that there IS in
progress just now what Is really deserv-
Ing the name Of a runaway bond market
This does not mean that the people are
buying with avidity the bonds os a dis
tinctly low grade OF highly speculative
class. OF speculati1g in bonds on the
stock exchange. but Il does mean that
there is q seemingly Unsuitable demand
for the bonds OF any railway OF business
concern Of good or even fair credit that
has yet shown no signs OF stopping. Not
2 bond issue OF this sort has been brought
out in recent weeks but that the sub
scription books for it have closed almost
instantaneously with their formal open
ing
The Russian loan affair is now al but
a thing Of the past. subscriptions being
large for the part OF it preliminarily Of
fsred IN London. and running on a
perfectly enormous scale n Paris,
where the bulk OF the loan was placed.
After the loan IS over e IS 20 be hopeG
that the Paris b21ks VIII adopt a more
liberal policy IN lending to foreign coun-
tries than they have in recent months,
and VIII at any rate allow the Bank OF
England 70 increase It's gold holdfns,
through a normal absorption Of the gold
from South Africa weekly offered for