Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-09
PRICE LEVEL HIGHER
Stocks Score Gain, But Rea-
son Is Not Apparent.
TRADERS FEAR TO FOLLOW
Suspect Much Stock Will Be for
Sale on Advance.
HOW BANKS INCREASED CASH
Statement Shows They Hold $21,-
100000 Less in Securities.
Call Money Easy.
TRADERS FEAR TO FOLLOW
HOW BANKS INCREASED CASH

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, February with moth
ing in the way of overnight news to
change the course OF the market, stocks
rallied sharply today from the depressed
levels reached around yesterdays close.
As no information obtanahle during
the stock exchange session to account for
the turn of affairs, and as none of the
days developments of marketwise bear
ing was an obvious factor in the price
movement 1t was inferential that tech
meal causes were responsible for the up
turn.
Temporarily at least. therefore, stocks
disclosed an oversold condition by the
viGor of this mornings opening advances
and the aggressiveness with which gains
were increased in the subsequent deal
ings.
An all-around advance took place in
American stocks in the London market
before the local opening, and the initial
transactions here We're at further adj
vances. In the early part of the session
the market was quite active. but the
pace of business slackened toward mid
day In the early part of the afternoon
trading was in very light volume, and at
that time the list tended to sell off.
The average price level, however, was
between one ana TWO points dDONe last
nights close, and maximum gains were
fairly well maintained by such stocks as
Atchison. New York Central. Chesapeake
and Ohio, Reading, Southern Pacific
Union Pacific, American Car and Foun-
+. dry. American Smelling, Amalgamated
Copper, Consolidated Gas, United States
Steel and Utah Copper.
Rally Not Followed.
Traders were rather indisposed to fol-
low up the rally, the professional element
being imbued with professional skepti-
cism, while the speculative rank and file,
taking cogniZance perhaps of Its own
position and feelings, suspected that a
greater or less supply of stocks would be
for sale on advances. Short covering on
large scale undoubtedly explained or &C
counted for the bulk of the days absorb
ton of stocks, but the retirement of short
contracts was nothing like the panic
stricken retreat which part Of Wall
street had been expecting.
The days news comprised a varigateo
lot of interesting matter for discussion,
although its relation to price movements,
actual prospective, was not obvious.
The report made by the committee of In
uuiry into the Hooking pool scandal was
provocative of argument, but in view of
the fact that the governors of the stock
: exchange have still to act upon the re-
port, it would be easy to draw premature
conclusions from 1t. Banking and IN
vestment circles were naturally interested
in the proposal of Mayor Gaynor for the
abolition OF the personal tax. because
of it's bearing upon the outlook for New
York city bonds.
At present these bonds include In their
price the tax exemption privilege. AS
this may be quoted to be worth precisely
the amount of the tax rate, 1t is evident
that the loss of the privilege Will be
equivalent to sacrifice of much more than
the premium which city bonds have aver
aged in recent years