The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-09-25
VOTE EFFECTED
WHEAT ADVANCE
RECIPROCITY DEFEATED IN CAN
ADA IS FOLLOWED BY JUMP
IN MARKET.
THE AMERICAN TRUSTS
THE PUBLIC NATURALLY LEANS
TO sPEcULATIoN-THE MONEY
POWER AND ITS OPERA
TONS DEFENDED.
THE AMERICAN TRUSTS
BY THOMAS G. sHOTWELL,

B1 THOMAS &. SHoIWELL.
NEW YORK, Sept. 24,-About the
only thing that can be said with GER
tainty regarding the stock market at
present Is that professional Wall
Street Is soon to enjoy a season or
prosperity. The official and unoffi-
cial attacks on the big trusts in caus-
ing wholesale shifting OF investments,
II anything can be called an invest
ment in America at all If the at
tack succeeds and the big corpora
tons are split into their original
companies it Will multiply the num-
Der of stocks to be- traded in.
The Steel Corporation, for instance.
controls 119 companies. all of which
would be turned adrift in the event
OF dissolution. They would not all be
listed on the exchange. perhaps. but
it is safe to say that for every one
Of the big trusts dissolved an average
of ten new stocks would appear IN
the market Brokerage business
seems to be the only one with a brill
liant future.
The American people are natural
born spectators, and they Will join
in the destruction OF the trusts with
as much enthusiasm as they partici-
pated in the construction of them. Be
sides, they will not have so much to
do in the way Of legitimate business
and their idle hours and idle capital
can find some exercise in the stock
market.
Government An Uncertainty
Judging from past experiences the
| destruction OF the trusts Will result
in a material increase in the cost or
living. and in better times for the
rich and harder times for the poor.
| II is doubtful, however n the trusts
a natural development Of modern bus
mess methods, and the Supreme Court
OF the United States has said that
the innocent stockholders OF the trusts
must be protected.
One of the worst features of the
situation is that it is impossible to
! find out what the government really
/ intends to do. No sooner does a pub
| lie officer get quoted distinctly than
he repudiates what was said IN his
name.
| Enforcement OF the law against H.
| legal corporations will not destroy
many of the trusts, and will not In
Jure business seriously, but If all the
great corporations are to be attacked
simply because they are holding COM
/ panies, business chaos will result.
/ Even u no more than a hundred he
attacked the government has under
! taken more than Ii can accomplish in
generation.
| The fact must not be lost sight Of
that a great deal of the excitement
! iii the stock market the last rev days
! has been the direct result Of a vicious
] attack by multi-millionaire traders
| 1t need surprise nobody 20 discover
that at least one director of the Unit
| ed States Steel Corporation was &C
! tive in the raid.
Effect of Reciprocity Vote.
Al the same time it must be borne
/ In mind that the crop disaster In this
country and Europe justified more
than half the decline. The big raid
might have failed had il not been
i for the loss of crops The fact tina,
wheat did not advance fs no proof
| Of big harvests, for until Canada
voted against reciprocity the Ameri-
| can wheat market was under the
shadow of record big harvests in Can
ada.
| The advance Of from to cents
bushel In wheat within twenty-roui
hours after tho defeat OF reciprocity
is significant, especially in view OF
the fact that the warehouses of Chi
eago are heading record large guam
titles OF wheat, because the abnor-
mally dry summer hurried the har.
vest ana MADE the early movement
greater than normal.
In regard to the irAm ediate future
OF the marked full consideration mus
he given to Rhe fact that the breat
has been OF sensational proportions
but the part of it due to professional,
raiaing has been comparatively small
The strength Of the railroad list a
/ the end OF last week furnished eH-
| dence that banking interests were
supporting the railroads to prevent 8
panic They must have accumulated
many thousand shares more than they
want. and this surplus stock will bt
for sale on the hrst sign or public
buying. It will be all the more diff.
fcult to start n buying movement be
cause railroad earnings are runninf
SO low that they discourage invest.
menI