The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-01-07
STREET RECOVERS
 FROM HOLIDAYS Business in 1911 Poorest
 Since 1904 FEW NEW LISTINGS
Immigration Tide Not Near so Large as Many Think-Locomotiye Works Always Pays En-
 ployes in Gold
By PRESTON c. ADAMS

 street has recovered from the holidays and is getting ready for the business of 1912. The general anticipation is that this years business on the stock exchange is going to be satisfactory. It is not thought that any records either in the way of prices or volume of business are likely to be broken.
 With a presidential election on hand and a Congress bent on reforming the tariff and probably ''perfecting' the anti trust law in session, this is not to be expected. But, in spite of these draw backs, Wall street has become convinced that the fundamental business conditions pre so sound that it is safe to trade.
 If the total listings of new securities, londs and stocks, on the New York Stock Exchange during the past year should be considered criterion of business done pn the board. 1911 shows up as the poor est 12 months for the exchange since 1904 It may be said, however, that such fl standard of comparison is not neces- sarily accurate. The fact stands, never theless, that fewer new commodities for stock exchange dealings were placed at the command of members than in any year of the past seven years.
 On the other hand 1911 has been pe- riod of tremendous general financing or preparations for financing. The greatest bond issue ever authorized in this coun- fry was made, that of the Great Northern Railway company of $600OCO,Oo0 bonds. Since January last, also, about $l,S0o,0oo,- 900 fresh securities of all sorts have been sold. Up to and including November a total of $1 $500 400 new stocks, bonds and notes were distributed, an increase over the whole of 1910 of $ll1, $500.
 New listings on the "big board,' in round numbers, amounted to S95AOO0WO, divided as follows Bonds, d95,ooo,OeO; stocks, Si62 100000. Last year the total was s2.047, 564, ,045. of which bonds con iributed $SOS 500 and stocks, $l239, 69l, ,oi5 The record has to go back to 1907 to find so small d par value of bonds list ed as this year. In that year the total was S420,s1S,000. So few stocks have not been placed on the exehance since l9o4 when s175,S66,S0O were passed on faVor- ably by the committee.
 Among the notable listlngs of the year were the following: American Telephone and Telegraph company, x55,0S6,50,0 common stock Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway com pany, s25,000,000 1 per cent gold bonds; Chicago and Northwestern, $30,2il,0O0 Blh per cent and S22,500 per cent gem sral mortgage bonds; Chicago, Rock lsl- And and Pacific, SS9,61S,000 first and tefunding As; Great Northern Railway company, $30,109.000 first and refund ing 4H per cent bonds; Pennsylvania Railroad company, $41,26S,450 common stock, and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railway company, $61,523,5O0 common stock.
 Other large listings were Westing- house Electric and Manufacturing com epany, $36,73S,900 common stock; Inter z borough M Metropolitan company, s27,- S93,2OO preferred stock (voting trust certifcates); Baldwin Locomotive Works, s11,O00,O0O first mortgage 5s, and S20000,000 per cent preferred stock; International Harvester com 7any, s20,000,000 common stock (trust rertificates): Illinois Central Railroad company, s20,O0o,O0o refunding As; Reading company, s20,000,000 general mortgage is; Texas company, 10.753,000 convertible debenture 6s and Southern Pacific, Sl9,000,000 first mortgage 1 per gent bonds.
 On this years addition to the security list, s295,o00,000 bonds were of new Rotations, and $200, 100000 were addi lions to issues already on the eX- change. The previous stock list was sxpanded by $252 GOO, 900 fresh issues and s2l0.0OO,000 extensions of former series. Railroads and traction companies, it is estimated, contributed over two-thirds of the entire supply. .s.s
 Just what the heavy figures of outgo- Ing steerage passengers and the light figures of incoming ones, for the year now closed, signify, may be difficult to judge; but the publication of the figures may well serve to draw attention to the fact that the tide of immigration, with which we are sometimes represented as being submerged in these latters years, has been by no means as formidable for a number of years back as most peo- pie imagine. During the year 1911 the net immigration-eXcess of arrivals over Hepartures-wil be less than 300,0o0; and the average for the four preceding years, i907-1910, was about 525,000. This Is very different from the million that is usually Ipoken of; and, while the showing for these years Is undoubtedly in large meas nre to be ascribed to the check which American enterprise received through the panic of 1907, 1t should, on the other hand be remembered that at the height of the boom before the panic-namely in Inc calendar year 19o6-the net immigra- ion did not exceed a million, the exact figure given by the returns being 996,osi Half n millionz5the average for. the past i've years-it should bezremenbcred, too only half of l per cent of the present population of the country.
 Ever since the Baldwin Locomotive Works was founded, in 1881, the company has paid it's employees in gold. In it's sarly days, when it's employees numbered pnly a few hundred, and gold pieces were circulation. 1t was not d difficult mat ter. Nor was it unusual. In fact. many If the large business concerns paid in rold
 The Baldwin Locomotive Works today las more employees than any single man. 1facturing concern in the world, the xrupp gun works in Germany, alone eX- .epted
 It has mad as many as 19,2G9 men on is weekly pay roll, but even with its present force of 1i.000 employees, 1t re- tuires regular force of IS men and 36 ,xtra helpers to put up the weekly pay ,oll and distribute the money.
 The weekly pay roll ranges between i930,00o and S2500C0, the bulk of which Is s20, s1O and 8 gold pieces. Never is paper money used.
 Even during the Civil war. when gold was scarce. the company paid its em- ,lcyes in hard money, and during the F .ecent panic of 1907 1t paid q handsome premium to get gold to continue its time ionored custom.
 According to a prominent financial au- .hority 9s0,339 people own stock in the 3t leading corporations of the United States at the present time This is an increase during the year of 6i5eo. The increase in the total capitalization of hese companies during the year is Sl59.- e517s. The number of stockholders in he railroad companies is Ss957l. an in- crease of 29.275 or s per cent. while the increase in capital is s97654,24 or about
 per cent. The average holdings in the ailroad companies is 139is shares de- .rease of about nine shares The num- Ser of stockholders in the industrial cor ,orations is 5s0,S2s an increase Of S5,22l