Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-03-30
HEAVY FLOOD Loss
A MARKET FACTOR
Wall Street Just Beginning to
Figure on Enormous
Property Losses.
HUGE SUMS LIE IDLE
PENDING CLEARER SKIES
Plans Under Way for New Financ-
ing, in Belief Money Will Be
Forthcoming.
BY w. G. NICHOLAS.

BY w. G. NICHOLAS.
NEW YORK. March 29-They unload
Balkan Turkish war and broke prices
all to pieces. Then tight money at
home and political agitation accentu-
ated the decline.
The disastrous storms throughout the
west and south have caused an actual
loss to the people of this country larger
by far than all of these other calamities
combined. and yet the awful sacrifices
of property and life have caused hardly a
ripple in the stock market. There are
those who believe that when the magni-
tude of the disaster is better understood
stocks will have another slump. The
columns of the newspapers were SO
glutted for days with descriptions of
local ruin wrought by the storms that
space could not be given to the commer-
cial and financial phases of the catastro-
phe which overlook the Mississippi val
ley.
1t was several days before even the
more cold blooded among the statlsti-
clans felt that it would be decent to go
into the facts and figures of losses TO
railroads. the industries and to the farm
ing region between the Rockies ana the
Alleghenies. 1t will be many days before
figures experimenting the truth can De
compiled. But, meantime. there Will De
plenty of material upon which TO form
reasonably sane estimates. In actual
loss the figures are far larger IMAM Oh
the occasion of the San Francisco eartn-
quake, yet that event made. an impress
sion upon the countrys welfare that was
felt for years. Wall street has not yet
gone deeply into that phase OF the SUD-
ject. The tape. however. is beginning
to reflect the inevitable depression OF
spirit and preliminary figuring on the
extent of the losses inflicted.
Millions for Reconstruction.
It is almost indecorous to dwell on
smaller things with the pictures so
freshly before us of the frightful disaster
throughout an area which includes half
the arabic acreage of the United States.
The magnitude Of the disaster will be ap-
preciated far more keenly fortnight and
a month from now than it is at the pres
emit writing, and it would not be surprls-
ing to find full reflection in the stock
market.
Literally hundreds of millions of dollars
will have to be found to complete the
work of reconstruction-to replace wreck
and ruin with the new, and to make nee
essary repairs and requirements. 1t Is
IL
ment an army of men and the production
of new material, but the loss Is there
Just the same.
No artificial burst Of Industrial activity
can afford more than temporary compen-
SatiOn.
The influential men of the submerged
regions have come promptly to the front
| to minimize the reports of stupenoous
| sacrifices, and they have contributed ma
terially to a restoration of confidence and
ho hal IA nf
front us too freshly for these expressions
| of courage to have as much influence as
| they should have.
Railroads are usually very prompt in
| ties into workable condition. They have
| to. They cannot do business unless
| they have tracks and equipment. II
| these are damaged or destroyed, quick re-
| placement is the only alternative. All
/ well managed railroads have funds for
emergencies which are usually sufficient
| to bridge over demands for the moment.
| The great trunk lines of the east and the
| strong systems of the middle west and
I west have Iived away for quick use de
| probation funds In some cases the
amount appropriated from earnings runs
! as high as 100000 q month. This Is usu-
ally cold cash. In emergencies like this,
| such accumulated savings are Immensely
| useful. They enable the railroad manage
| ments to make heavy expenditures with
out apparently cutting into the current
| accounts, or otherwise making the record
Hook bad later on. 1t is simply fat put
where 1t can be gotten at when needed.
European Sentiment Friendly.
| Sentiment abroad is more friendly
toward American securities than 1t has
been in months, and new buying for
European account has actually been re-
sumed. A few orders dribbled in through
ltheefnternational houses all through the
lddpression. The volume of such orders
| has very materially increased recently
and has become of measurable account.
Foreign and American money markets
appear to be working into better shape,
although there is still room for improve
ment.
washington continues to be source of
unrest and there is not much prospect OF
a change for the better for some time
to come. The bond market is becoming
more active at the lower range to which
prices broke since the beginning of the
3 to points below that ruling around
the beginning of the year. Big bargains
are offered and being taken advantage of
by investors. This is a feature which
pleases the bankers and the underwriters.
They are loaded down with undistributed
| underwriting and would like to see big
reduction in their merchandise.
There must be a big lot of heavy
| weight financing to do within the next
few months by railroads and some of
| the large industrials. The borrowers are
holding off because they do not regard
lit as good business to pay too high a
figure for new capital. They believe they
| will serve their interests best by further
delay. Meantime, available funds are in
creasing in amount and the situation is
gradually working easier-that is. such
will be the case unless the tremendous
i losses incident to the flood embarrass re-
covery.
Market Full of Bargains.
The market has rarely been SO full of
bargains as it is now. There have been
acute moments in times of extreme panic
when buyers could get bonds at more
advantageous prices, but these occa-
| sions have been few and far between.
This time there has been no confirmed
lpanic-simply a shrinkage of confidence,
loss of faith and a development of set
determination to hold off and keep the
money In the strong box. As the air
| clears and an actual return of perma-
nent activity sets in, these boards will
come out Of hiding. That Is what the
wise men in the back parlors of the
banks and trust companies are saying
and what they believe. Hence they are
| going quietly ahead making their plans
for new bond flotations, which have been
| held in allegiance for the clouds to roll
| To while a way the idle moments. some
| of the news inventors of Wall street are
| figuring out transcOntinental railroad
| system This is not a new pastfme, but
| there has been very little serious discus
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