The Washington herald., 1912-03-04
WALL STREET NEWS
Strength Of the Market Last Week
Proves Puzzle to Many
Professionals.
b, THOMAS c. sHoTWELL.

New York. March S-Strength Of the
stock market the past week has forced
many a professional 10 double on his
tracks TO see whether he has not made
some mistake In sizing up tie situation.
In Wall street there is nothing 50 dan
gerous as a fact IL Il Is picked up by
the wrong end. Perfectly reliable statis-
tics have ruined as many investors as
have been, slaughtered with false rumors,
One fact on which too high a value
has been set by Wall street Is the dis
content Of labor. Admitting as truth
even the worst that has been alleged IN
this respect the fact remains that or
ganlzed labor is such a smah minority
Of the labor OF America as to be a neg
ligible quantity when considering the
business conditions as a whole. The
liquidation OF labor, Of which so much
has been heard the last year. seems not
to be taking place, but instead labor Is
going to force the liquidation OF some
dividends, II necessary, to maintain Its
position. Disseminated labor is dear at
any price, and the real hnanciers know
that the workmen always win in fact
even when they lose IN point OF price.
Labor Always Wins.
Surrender of the British mine owners
is an illustration OF. the broad view taken
in recent years by employers. That
strike will be settled in q few days at
the most. The faAt that a strike was
called at all is due to the impossibility
of the miners to realize quickly what a
great victory they have won. The lead
ing fnsnciers OF the world. knowing In
advance what terms would be offered to
the men on the last day of February.
could not believe there would be a strike
at all. They were dumfounded when the
men refused to recognize their victory.
and turned IL into an actual strike. The
strike must be ended shortly, and the
victory the miners are so slow In reailz-
ing should make II easy for the Amer
lean miners to get satisfactory terms
when the crisis is reached here on
April l.
But more important than the mine trou-
bles Is the report, current In great law
ofiices. that the government and the
United States Steel Corporation have al
ready gone far In a plan to settle the dis
solution suit out OF court. Lawyers d.
rectIy concerned viii not discuss, the
matter. but It is understood that the
Steel company is willing. as II has always
been, to make concessions. and that
recent events have made the governments
more than willing 10 let the corporation
confess Judgment and be ironed out by
the courts without formal trial It would
be a big thing for Taft to carry the scalp
Of the steel trust into the convention and
slap the Roosevelt boom In the face
with It.
Compromise Ii Near.
The compromise, IL maze, viii result
In some radical changes in the steel trust
for Taft would rather lose
the Presidency than be a party to a
sham reformation. The real points at
Issue between the trust and the govern
ment are such that the trust managers
realize the people will demand them any,
how, and the concessions might as well
be made gracefully. Therefore the pub
lic should watch the Steel suit carefully
the next two weeks.
Ideal crop conditions prevail after
season in which the money loss through
crop failures was more than 81. 900. 900 0o0.
u which II was estimated last Septem-
1er. Greater acreage than ever In all
,rops, and greater yield per acre is the
promise for the coming season.