New-York tribune., 1910-12-18
ALLAWAY'S REVIEW

lower and lower ebb; there is disheart-
ened sentiment On every Wall Street
side Quotations do not drop; but there
is no sign of strength. there IS no show
OF public interest whatsoever. Actually
we have a financial holiday. The Stock
! Exchange orens in the morning,
throughout the day il minces at a halt
J ing and improbable gait: and at the end
OF each day the record is practically nil.
| They who are talkative are full Of rad
/ ical proclama ations-some cheerful, more
d:sconsolate. But no heed to either side
seems given by the public-t0 all intents
and practical purposes there Is no public
What is clearly In evidence ct prese1-.
what Is not to be gainsaid. is that peopls
who now own stocks are people VINO
have financial strength enough 70 %
Independent After what has been de-
veloped through recent months OF ensr-
getic depression campaigning, one thing
indisputably certain is that stocks are
ret in the hands of nervous holders. AL
who could be scared have already been
scared: any who could be rusned into
liquidation made their sacrifices long
held to any such extent az at present by
interests capable of taking care OF them
selves.
Among observing investors there un-
doubtedIy is feeling that the railroads
oe the country are playing politics that
they are minimizing what is favorable M
their fortunes. that they are exagseras1
ing their burdens, expenses all rhetf
debit accounts-beIieving it advanta}
geous to marshal bad balances for prsS+
entation in their plea for better traffic
rates. g..
Tremendous stakes are involved It
human beings surrender campaign
What the railroads are doing, in aug
menting their necessities, may be re-
garded as only ordinary and convention
al What they do on a big scale lesser
commercial interests would be apt TO do
upon smaller scaie-wiIn similar pur-
pose, in view, with similar rewards At
stake. All this, though, is apart from
that Issue which al present is pressing
and vital. II may be that the railroads
do not require higher rates TO keep them
out of receiverships- But there can be
no question about their need to have
better rates in order TO yield fair prof-
to investors. Even this, however, large
ly involves che sentimental factor. 1t Is
not SO much that the railroads require
more revenue as that they must have 2
new governmental relationship-must
have it made clear that the government
is friendly. not ininical-that national
influences are not bent upon restriction,
even destruction. It Will be, therefore,
Of consequence Incompatible II there
should now come disclosure that what
the corporations seek is to be allowed
tfSt there is to be recognition of their
rights and their necessities-even though
this recognition should provide no great
allowance of increased rates Just one
official indication that the railroads are
to be recognized as having business
status and business purpose that is fair
and square and entitled to unprejudicsd
consideration, will be all sufficient That
they are something else than defendants
that they are undertakings not AT all
illfcit-that they are not merely COM
petitive buccaneers-for the Interstate
Commerce Commission to certify only
this, will be quite enough TO change GER
tain phases Of public sentiment 50 far as
to inviyorate the investment world forth
with Just one liberal ruling-one ruling
liberal beyond what has been expected
can transform investment depression into
optimism
General business records are not dis
couraging to any such extent as fash
ionabIe Wall Street insists upon These
are times when the conservative man
Of affairs will be a little extra careful
when even the most enterprisins voy-
ageur will incline TO hug the shore Such
policies OF prudence have indeed been in
evidence most of this year. We are not
confronted with overproduction. There
has been no fiambuoyant hnancierfng in
any established quarter Even were the
country IN a period OF hard times. there
would need to be no abrupt change in
na tional business policies; for the record
OF 1910 has been one Of general business
caution
Such hard times talk as il heard IS at
variance with the chief wealth produc-
ing elements of the country. Consider
the years crops In volume they are
stupendous. Their market value runs
beyond ell past totals And there shows
this very week controlling influence
upon the money markets of the world
Only few weeks ago all the great
money lending institutions OF Europe
were lifting their discounts, issuing bull
letins that they were disturbed over the
American position OF sudden they
cut their discounts down They are pay
Ing for American grain, they have 20
remit for American cotton And the re-
suit here is an accumulation Of funds
(nnuch present, stupendously more pros
pective) which assures ready liberal
financial resources unsurpa ssed-
In the Stock Exchange market for the
moment, dulness and Insignificant quota
ton movement may be expected: but It
requires no discernment TO surraise that
most OF the bear arguments recently
SO much in evidence are about worn out
and that with the turn of the year bet
ter market values will prevail In many
notable cases intrinsic value has been
ignored-has been hidden in the fash
icnable bear hurrahing- Take the In
terborough- Metropolitan securities for
example. Interborough preferred is earn
ing dividends And this independent Of
the extraordinary benefits to be pro-
duced by its vastly widened scope in the
operation Of the city's new great subway
expansion-competitiv bids sell eraced.
At the close of the week soma apprec,a-
ton Of the new Intsrborough situation
is reflected in the market, despite general