The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1912-02-15

country is still taking the rest cure.
Retailers and wholesalers are carry
ing small stocks. Few mills are run
ming on full time. Conservatism pre-
walls everywhere. The spirit of econ
omy is gradually overtaking the spirit
OF extravaganza. AS result trade
and industry are upon an exceptional
~ sound basis. There is no overex-
pansion of credit. Our railroads are
curtailing as far as possible. often cut
ing expenses down to the bone.
Such economies as are now being en-
forced by many of the roads cannot
be continued without serious impair
ment of equipment and roadbed. Soon
er or later the railroads will be fore
ed into the market for supplies much
more freely than at present. Just
now they are embarrassed by dimin-
lshed earnings and the difficulty of Sc
curing satisfactory rates. Such diff
culties will In time cure themselves.
Traffic is bound to resume it's nor
NAL growth, and capital will be more
ready for new ventures when political
uncertainties begin to vanish and con-
fidence is restored. The long distance
view is probably more reassuring than
Tor some time past, simply because
the curative process has been steadily
progressing and the increasing sound
ness of our financial, industrial and
commercial systems is more and more
evident. The steel trade is in an
unsatisfactory condition owing to the
weakness of prices, although the vol
ume of business tends to expand. In
the textile trades there is some i'm
provement, the demand for goods in
creasing and prices showing more
firmness. In this field the chief trou-
BILE is in the labor situation the I'M
fortunate strike at Lawrence contain
ing disturbing potentialities of polit-
ical and social as we'll as an economic
nature.
The local monetary situation con-
! tinues favorable from the stock mark
ct point of view. There is an abund-
ant supply of funds awaiting invest
ment. Buyers show preference for
short term notes, good bonds, high
class railroad shares and the PREFER
ed stocks of standard industrials in
the order named. Bank reserves are
now showing a declining tendency
owing to a cessation of the influx
from the interior, to temporary por-
rowings by the city of New York and
to gold exports. Possibilities of the
latter have been somewhat modified
by the easier condition of the foreign
money market, the decline in the
Bank of England rate and the increas-
ed local demands just referred to.
New security issues of importance are
still pending, but appear to be held
back in the hope of reaching more ia
vorable conditions. European affairs
are still unsettled. The approach of
a better understanding between Ger
many and England is favorable, but
the outcome of the Italian war is still
uncertain, and new loan for it's sup
port is among the early possibilities.
For the time being we advise con-
servatism in all speculative opera
tons. When business is dull and dis
appointing, when political uncertain
ty is at its height and when the out
look for improvement is distant, con-
ditions- are not favorable to bull
market A few sharp fluctuations are
occasionally witnessed, but these are
generally due to special causes such
as those which have affected the
coal, copper and tobacco issues. The
most hopeful influence of the wee,
has been the absolute defeat of the
Bryan influence in the Money Trust
investigation.