The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-02
i. STOCK MARKET IS SHOWING SPURTS Waiting on MOmentOus Trust Cases MONEY IS COMING IN Small Investors Continue to Buy the Standard Stocks-President of Wool Trust Is in
 Trouble
 
By ". G. NICHOLAS

New York April 1-CSpeciaD- stock
 market has shown spurts of life during
 the week, just enough to prove that it
 still has some energy left and can get
 on the job should occasion arise. The
 spirit of repression still weighs down tho
 situation, however, and from present ap-
 pearances dullness may prevail until the
 supreme court decides those momentls
 trust cases-and then will follow sea
 son of uncertainty until a better line can
 be obtained on the ability of the demo-
 cratic house and insurgent democratic
 senate to carry out it's tariff revision
 programme. Non-aetion in the stock
 market continues to be more of a tri-
 bute to the supposed great wisdom of
 the multf-milionaire Standard Oil coterie
 whose members have piled up an enor-
 nous emergency cash fund in their lead
 ing banks in order to take care of them
 selves when the market goes to pieces
 after the decisions are handed down in
 Washington-that is, provided the de-
 cisions go against the trusts Nothing
 can relieve the mind of this group Of
 millionaires that the country will go to
 
 ness at their own fashion, regardless of
 whether their ways are lawful or not If
 the Standard Oil and tobacco trusts
 methods happen to be violation of the statutes and against public policy so much the worse for the laws and for the public. That is the only viewpoint cognized by the little band of trust fel-
 lows who have colossal fortunes in oil,
 tobacco and .other enterprises conducted along similar lines. This subject has been discussed so much in these letters that the writer is almost afraid to again refer to them, but as they continue to hold the middle of the stage, there
 seems to be no escaping the necessity of occasional further reference to them. It will be matter for congratulation when the court acts and when whatever is to happen afterwards is done and out of the way.
 The vast accumulations of cheap Inon- ey in the several financial centers of the k new and old world are proving to be the backbone and the foundation of the X stock market. General business having k sackened somewhat in almost every di- \ rection, people with money can find no better use for it at present than invest ment in dividend paying securities. They cannot invest it in commercial or in- dustrial enterprises to advantage, they { do not care to embark generally in new N projects and the small interest they are \ able to get from banking institutions N not all of which are allowed to pay any N interest-does not satisfy the yearnings s of the American heart nor the income I necessities; hence it is that money con \ tinues to find it's way into stocks and II to stay there. This applies particularly Il to that large volume of capital which Il has no settled habitat. but is held in Il liquid or semi-lquid form in order to II be available for quick use wherever II there is best promise of unusual returns. Il When it comes to discussing the position I of the great mass of stockholders of II record, there is only one thing to say. II They are standing pat with the greatest X of unanimity. They appear to be very 1. well satisfied to keep their money where | 1t is. They can find no place else to | put it where they can get more money lB and where their principal would be saf- 4 CT. It is very comfortable state to be X in both for pocketbooS and mind. There
 Is not the slightest appearance of ner- vousness among stockholders of record,
 and very little elsewhere, except in < spots.
 One of tn csc spots is locatabe in the q American Woolens company, a New j England institution in which there are N 10000 to 12,000 stock holders. The man t agement has undertaken a quiet little t stroke of financiering-the star cham aa Der retirement of s1O,O00 900 out of it's |H s3000O,000 common share capitaliza- I# ton. While this 1000 shares of stock |N was being bought the price advanced # 10 to 12 points and now the rank and F file of shareholders are asking who lt Benefited by the advance among the 4 insiders. The questions border on im-
 pudent and they are greatly anger
 Ing the insiders who pretend to be
 greatly offended at the suggestion that they would be base enough to make @ K any money out of the deal To add | to the irritation an interview or state \ ment was published in which the pres dent of the company is represented as having said that if Congress monkeyed with the woolens schedule all the mills ols the corporation would be closed down indefinitely. The statement achieved a degree of publicity and aroused such a storm of protest that President Woods makes haste to repu- hiate 1t but that does not seem to reach anywhere. Everybody appears more willing to believe the original state ment than the denial. Mir Woods and his friends realize that he has got himself in "DutclT' and that he has directed upon him and persons of his kind most undesirable bombardment Ii is going to be very unpopular for presidents of corporations and of other ! enterprises enjoying the benefits of high protection to indulge in threats of what they are going to do if Con- gress has the temerity to interfere with their business. It was for MT Woods to be the unwilling agency for |xbroadly advertising this fact He .Fwishes he hadn't.