The Washington times., 1910-09-04

nlEEly irregular during " al street >
business week. but the transactions
were so limited in volume and so highly
professional in character as to deprive
the movement Of any real significance
Upon occasions, toward the later Dor-
ton Of the week when prices eased on
one heard reports Of renewed Equida-
ton, but this was Of a scattered variety
and obviously II could not have been
very considerable, for dizziness rather
than reaction was the chief feature OF
the week. Leading commission houses
ma de no secret Of the fact that they
were doing practically no business. and
when they commented upon the prevail
ing apathy. most Of them took occasion
to say that while they were executing
DO buying orders, their customers
showed no disposition 10 sell.
Il is a weary round that Wall Street
presents these days TO men who crave
action Day after day. for weeks three
issues, United States Steel common,
Union Pacific. and ReadinE, have made
up the bulk Of each days business, con
tributing from 50 10 . per cent Of the
small totals, and leaving only few
hundred shares or so for the sum total
Of business in all other issues To vary
the professional program might liven
things uo q trife, but the traders are
old hands at the game. and they know
that IL is not safe TO stray far from the
beaten path II would surprise some
security holders IF they knew how mar
row the Wall Street market actually IS
at the present time. Many issues, which
under ordinary circumstances possess
a fair trading market, have become dir
fcult of sale in ordinary amounts. at
IL -an-erGe
practically no market at all. a glance
through the quotations Of inactive
shares and specialties discIcses unusual
~ wide variations in the bid and ask
quotations OF very many properties
There is always a market close TO quo
tati0ns for such stocks IS Reading
Steel, and Union Pacific, and in con-
sequence the traders confne themselves
TO that limited group
Wall Street At Dead Center
Wall Street may be said TO have
again come practically TO dead center.
For the time being, It has fallen entire
y under the influence of politics, and
ordinary news Of other variety. wfeth-
er favorable or unfavOrable. has little
or no effect Il is as though Aar0n-s
rod had swallowed I'D all the other ser
penis. for politics. for the time being.
seems to have absorbed all other mar
ket influences, and become the sole
market influence Markets at times be
come possessed of a single idea, as
though they were celebrating what
course TO pursue They look not IN
like a dog doing by a hreside, which
nay be aroused possibly bv a note OF
Encouragement. and possibi- by a
sharp kick IL Is difficult TO say which
Wall Street, for instance, received the
utterances of Colonel Roosevelt at Osa-
Watomie, Kan. in a beuumbed sort Of
fashion. an1@ then began 10 fret and
Chafe somewhat under the enunCiations
OF the principals of the new national
ism which Wall Street, apparently,
thinks must be unfavOra BILE 20 the mar
ket, because as described last week. Il
has gone under an hypnotic influence,
and has gotten into a way Of thinking
that anything Colonel Roosevelt says
must be unfavorabie 10 the market be
cause he says IL
There can. of course be no two
opinions that the line along which
political discussions are running is
0lsquieting TO financial and CONNER
Gal interests One has but to suggest
the topic IN Wall Street banking par
lorS Of the first class, and with the
views and opinions that Eush forth
comes the realization that Drobab
not since the Bryan free-siIve com
palEn in 1896 has politics played SUch
ket as al the present time In fact.
under existing conditions il would be
as difficult TO refer 10 the Wall Street
market without making slime slight
mention to the part which political
discussions now play as II would 20
make en- Omelette without brea king
eggs Political matters assumed no
such prominence IN the eyes OF the
banking fraternity even during the
national campaigns Of 1908, 1904. OF
even 1900 as they do today, and the
either. as Wall Street. which recalls
the oft-rspeated visits Of Senator
Mark Hanna 20 the financial district
has occasion 70 remember.
Some Extreme Political Views.
OF course. the circumstances are IN
usual and the banking community has
been quick to grasp the significance OF
Colonel RooseveIt-s activities in the
West and elsewhere Wall street to d
man assumes that the political cam
paigu now Ushering in is one destined
10 stretch out until November, 1912, md
end only in the White House. on March
4. following. and thereon and there
after for a longer or a shorter interval
for well or for III, as depends upon the
final outcome of the next Presidential
campaign In consequence II IS difficult
10 find among bankers Of the first class
now. any OF tnem VINO co not predicate
their views upon the future security
market, and the general Commercial and
financial situation. upon political de-
velCpments- At present 1t mast be ad-
miJted they are taking a rather gloomy
VIE Of the prospect. Some OF them
go So far as TO insist that a crisis is
impending in the affairs Of the Govern
ment itself, not a crisis in the affairs
Of the Republican party alone, but a
CONFUSION growing out of a third party
movement, presenting clearly defined
sOCiaiistic tendencies.
OF course Wall Street may be taking
this matter entirely too seriously ct tlse
present time, but aSSuTedly politics as
Wall Street sees them now and as no
ore but Ar Roosevelt can compel Wall
Street 90 see them are uo joke. Bank
ers who take view of the political
outlook less extreme than those who
are talking Of an impending political
or Governmental crisis, have within the
week. Gke1ed the situation 10 1.-THE cam
p3iSn of lS2i. with wee silver left out
It IS idle 10 point out 10 men in such q
frame Of mind that the campaign Of
1S6- with free silver lofc OUT IS Ike
that famous cast Of Hamlet. with the
character of the Prince of Denmark left
out mentioned by Sir Walter Scott
However the fact remains that very i'm
pOrtant financial interests are. for che
zine being. taking this comparison quite