New-York tribune., 1910-07-31
ALLAWAY'S REVIEW.

the nido. of the week proclamations,
everywhers appearing. forecast the mil
lennium. Asthe end of the week all Stock
Exchange me,taIity is topsy-turvy.
All the kaisdoscopic record and rep
resentation has however. little that is
definite to make It seem worth consid-
ering. Basic constions change slightly
Trade slackens, jut as for months past
it has been slackenify just as for months
to come it threatens to sIacken. Con-
sumers are become Conservative. Wheth-
er it be the housewife, or the railway
corporation. they who ,ow order sup
plies are ordering them nth extra pru-
dence. That we are in az era of econ
omy is attested everywhee In every
way. The little purchaser md the big
purchaser are alike restricting. And
evfdences-recorded financial records
are making clear what Is actually rev.
olutionary change from what in recent
years has prevailed
But what Wall Street this week has
exercised itself over, what has been con-
trolling in Wall Street markets-sonsid-
cred only superfciaIly perhaps-cSntres
a
the fortunes and the future Of a group
of important American railroads may be
influenced, even dominated a year or 80
ago the representatives of European
syndicate Credited with s10o.000.000
ready capitaD were welcomed IN Wall
Street; and from time TO time during
the past tweIvemonth we have had
ecstatic bulletins announcing the intf-
macy and pleasure ableness and partner
ships of these European ffnanciers- They
were cited as buyers of Rock Island
and Rock Island advanced They we're
quoted as buyers of Wabash-and Wa
bash rose. They were bulletined in Le-
high Valley-and Lehigh Valley shares
went up They were absorbers, so the
continuous statements stated. of Denver
and a long list related Upon every hand
this was hailed as expansion to be en-
thusiastic over. And so the recognition
ruled till this week there suddenly was
thrust forward the grewsome outcry that
this hitherto anointed syndicate was
really the index of disorder and danger
that it's elimination was required IN A
hurry, even to forefend from panic
The whole market went to pIeces-de-
Conspicuous stocks fell points between
sales. Properties with which the syn
dicate was identified showed panic
friendlessness. Almost the entire group
shrunk an average of dozen points
Then-then-came official announce
vided, that a group of bankers had
bought as insiders. had made Sacrlhces,
and that there was to be a new deal all
round. From hopelessness Wall Street
leaped into a state OF frenzied happiness
Stocks that had been friepdless were
suddenly competed for. throughout the
Stock Exchange list there was rushing
appreciation: and within couple OF
market sessions values were hfted
anywhere from half a dozen TO Whole
dozen points. Upon every SIDE Inere
was optimism: upon every side feelings
OF certainty that at last a bull market
was 10 start and stay And until the last
day of the week this theory had support
substantial. No stocks were weak Most
stocks were buoyant. An extended snort
interest that had overplayed It's oppoT-
tunity suffered extinction All the oracles
were chattering enthusiasm. It was diff
fcult anywhere to find a stock market
6oubter.
Yet in actual measurement of market
conditions the record shows little en-
couraging-little. at least. newly en-
coura ging. Even superficial inquiry dis
closes that they who were the big buyers
of stocks were professional spectators.
there was nowhere any sign of new ap-
pearance upon the part of the public
The public had urgently been signalled-
The public declined to respond
Under fairer or better or more attrac-
tive conditions no appeal has recently
been made-none could be less needed
For the present. thus. it must be re-
luctantly conceded that the PUBIC re-
fuses to be woOed-
That ir1portant speculative interests
are approaching this was shown in Sat
urday's n1arket-fOr as the public re-
fused to buy they who are speculative
leaders sold. Prices all along the line
shrunk-
A week hence an important Southern
steel company cuts its dividend The
foremost cement manufacturing corpora
ton of the country passes its dividend.
wholly The example set by Edwin
Hawley. it may be depended upon. is TO
be followed in the railroad world. In
dustrials and railway shares alike are 10
face ultra -conserva tive dividend policies
Some dividend declarations have lately
been made which should not have been
made-would not have been made except
that they were incident to the winding
up of the fiscal year-leaving for the
wear TO come the facing of necessitOus
contraction. Examples are not hard To
find St. Paul illustrates Illinois Cen
tral looms as a forbidding example
They, though, are merely typical of a
too long list whose dividend policies
transgress the danger line
Union Pacific may become controlling
exemplar Union Pacific ceases TO be
the giant finance vehicle that Mr. Har-
riman drove. The 10 per cent dividends
then available have now to be supported
by conditions tremendously different.
Union Pacific minus Z H. Hartman is
not the Union Pacific which last year
and in previous years could domineer the
West dazzling the Stock Exchange vision
by stupendous overnight distributions
Operations there have changed altOgeth-
er. Union Pacific has now matter OF
fact administration. 1t isn't picking up
millions of dollars in oregon nor tens or
million dollars from Northern Securities
investments any more. What it earns
now must be earned from railway bust
ness. And in this new situation there
are limitation which nobody in the pres
ent direction of the company will he
likely to ConteSt-and dividends for the
future are going to be dependent upon
what the railroad as a railroad earns
unhelped by the largesse of transcendent
specuatious in the stock market That
the loss of Mr. Harriman's devotion and
genious is loss incom parable will be from
this time forward Union PaCifiCS reau
zation. As s per cent stock Union
Pacific would hardly be considered cheap