The Washington herald., 1911-03-13
WALL STREET NEWS
Market Is Quiet Despite Ru-
mOrs of Mexican War.
FEAR OF TARIFF TINKERING
Extra Session of Congress Taken
PhiIOsOphicaIIy by Most Investors
Looked For-ReciprOcity and "a
Few Reductions Only Expected.


ory may be searched in vain for an oc-
casion in past years when an incident
occurred corresponding in general char
acter to the entirely unexpected issuance
of an order last week by the President
for one-fourth of the regular army of
the United States to concentrate at
point upon the Mexican frontier without
causing any more disturbance in the
country's security markets than was
caused last week. 1t seer1ed for a time,
of course, as II what had been done por-
tended knowledge by our government of
some impending sensational development
regarding the Mexican situation, and
supposition not uncommonly indulged in
in Wall street was that the state of
health of President DiaZ had become
such as to make his tenure of life short
or that he was on the point of reSigning
his office.
The unofficial statement of the govern
ment issued on Thursday seems to dis
pose of ideas of this sort. President Diaz
is an old man, and in the course of ma
ture his death at any time now would
not be surprising, but 1t does not appear
that possibilities OF this sort were in any
way the reasons for the action of our
government. The step taken was chiefly,
if not wholly, for the general purpose of
enforcing our neutrality laws. President
Taft has been criticised for what he has
done in the mattdr upon the ground that
the revolution in Mexico has not yet at
tanned such a stage as to make a demon
stration by this country necessary.
Must Police Border.
- But it is apparent, even to those who
have read no more than the reports in
the daily newspapers, that the condition
Of ffafr IN hot II haE
become the plain duty of our government
to cause an effectual policing of the Mex
lean boundary Therefore, toward the
end OF the week there was disappear
ance of whatever small stock market i'm
portanCe the matter had at any time as
sumed.
Likewise, too. there was a vanishing OF
the extra session of Congress bugaboo.
Ii is thoroughly realized that no one can
ever tell in advance what a session of
Congress will do or propose to do. and
yet all business foresight and calcula-
ton of chances regarding anything in
wolves a balancing Of probabilities. In
the present case these probabilities are
so overwhelming that at the extra session
Of Congress there will be no such med
ding with the tariff question as will
hold the business of the land in any seri-
Gus restraint
The evidence accumUIates daily that the
programme of the Democratic party that
will be in control OF the new House OF
Representatives will be merely to pass
the Canadian reciprocity measure and to
pass also n bill reducing the tariff duties
into two or three schedules dealing with
the necessities of life, principally. if not
exclusively. those relating to wool and
cotton and manufactures of these prod
uctS. The leaders OF the Democratic
party are not idiots, and they know that
nothing could be more prejudicial to
hopes of their success in the next cleo
ton than to tear up the business of the
country now by an attempt at a general
overhauling of the tariff, which must
from the very outset be doomed to fall
ure anyway, as it would be resisted by
the Upper House of Congress and by
the President
Settled for Several Years.
Meanwhile, it must be said that careful
observation in the financial district is
to the effect that programme of legis-
lation confning itself to the details al
ready mentioned would not be hurtful
Once accomplished, it would mean that
interference with the tariff one way or
the other was over for a considerable
time to come, and it would represent
what very many financial leaders believe
to be a wise concession to popular senti-
ment
That the improvement in the iron and
steel trade in January was not a mere
fash in the pan is now pretty well proved
by the statement made last Friday of
untitled orders of the Steel Corporation
at the end of February Of 2S9,o0O tons in
excess of those at the end of the first
calendar month. The new orders re-
ceived by the Steel Corporation during
. 10 70 Of
nearly 1900 tons a day, against 5000
tons in the preceding month, and as ship
mentS for February were largely in eN-
cess of those of January in consequence
of the greater number of mills in opera
ton it Is estimated that February earn
ings OF the concern were in the neigh
borhood of $2,0Oo0O1 greater than those
of December. when business was at its
low ebb.
Steel Business Developing.
This, taken in connection with the sus-
tained advano oe in the price Of various
STEEL products, goes to show that the
steel business is developing slowly but
surely on a sound basis. The orders tor
iron and steel thus being placed like
those given in many other industries, are
not now showing in railroad earnings.
but they will in due course. and it is
impossible to avoid the conclusion, look
ing the whole field over. that the busi-
ness OF the country IS maintaining itself
pretty we'll and is getting into a shape
where a decided upward movement will
sooner or later take place.
With the trust question settled, with an
abundance of money on hand. and with
stocks of merchandise everywhere low
as the result of a general conduct of
business on a hand-to-mouth scale for
two years back, what must the result of
these conditions be IL there is added to
them the force Of reasonably large crops
in the present year? The governments
report issued aon Wednesday of stocks
of grain on hand from last years har-
vest indicates that the farmers are en-
tering the season with a much larger
quantity of unsold wheat and corn on
their hands than usual, while as regards
the next crop prospect the most illuminat-
ing information afforded to date has been
the statement of last weeks Modern |
Miller. the country's leading agricultural
journal, to the effect that owing to abun- |
dant moisture through the winter thus
far the general crop outlook is consider