The Washington herald., 1913-05-13
NO LIFE in THE
STOCK MARKET
Failure Of Supreme Court to
Decide Rate Case Is Fol-
lowed by Breaks.
JERSEY CENTRAL SLUMPS
Loss of Twenty-four Points Recorded
Important Developments-Loeal
Securities.
Nv 4. A. FLEMING.

by 4. A. FLEMING.
Wall Street passed another dreary day,
with slight shrinkage, added to the big
shrinkage i'm values during the last few
.eks.
At the immediate opening there was
some strength, due entirely to the COW
ering Of shorts, but this movement did
not last very long, settling down to in
activity. prices temporarily holding. un-
Ill after the disappointment, the usual
Monday failure on the part OF the Su-
preme Court to hand down the Minnesota
rate decision.
Wall Street needs some eliXer to raise
the market from the pit of dullness and
gloom t'lat has ingulfed il for months.
but il now looks as if Attorney General
Smith, of Minnesota, was right some
weeks ago when he expressed the opin-
ion that the rate decision would not
come down until the e6th. The court
now stands adjourned until that date,
and il is confidently expected that a de-
cision will be handed down two weeks
from yesterday
But the Street is nothing like as sure
of its nature it professed to be weeks
ago. The long delay has sapped conf
dence. as il seemed to warrant the be-
lief Of badly divided court.
Important Conference.
Tomorrow morning the commissioners
appointed by the railroads 20 present
arguments to the Interstate Commerce
Commission will hold an informal con-
ference with the commission, Inaugural
ing the conference proper. This PROPOSE
ton is one OF vital interest TO the rail-
roads and indirectly to the financial sit
uation. Labor has been victor in con-
test after contest. Legislation passed an
the States has added nearly 81, O00, 900 to
the burdens of the railroads during the
last year. while labors demands have eX-
ceeded this sum in the aggregate.
Rendering service demanded, making
improvements and betterments. running
double crews, &c, and meeting with pos
ponements on every attempted advance in
rates has brought the railroad companies
TO the verge of trouble in funding obli-
cations and prices on many high-grade
stocks, like New York Central, Pennsyl-
vania, &c. are at their lowest record for
many months.
Suits Against Reading.
1t was to be expected that Attorney
General McReynolds would bring suit to
separate Jersey Central from Reading.
lie was connected with Attorney General
Bonaparte in prosecuting the coal roads
i'm the commodity cases and prepared a
large part of the evidence I'm that case.
He has made special study of the an
thracite industry in its bearing upon the
interests Of both the consumer and the
controlling railroads, and is known to re-
gard il as a patriotic duty to bring about
the dissolution Of what he regards as
combination, in the hope of lowering the
price Of coal Since the decision Of the
Supreme Court in the so-called Temple
Iron case. in which the court held that
tho government had not sustained its al
legations of general combination, but
decided against the legality of the Tenn
pie Iron Company and left the door open
TO further attack upon specific phases
OF the relations between the railroads
and the anthracite-producing companies,
Mr.. McReynolds has been continued in the
government service in the investigation
Of these other phases OF tn subject. The
filing of a suit by the United States
against the Lackawanna Railroad and
the Delaware. Lackawanna and Western
Coal Company, about two weeks go, is
an evidence of activity along these lines.
Mr.. McReynolds is credited by asso
ciates with the conviction that the Della
ware and Hudsons relations with coal
companies, the Erie's ownership of the
Pennsylvania Coal Company and control
of the New York. Susquehanna and West.
ern, the Readings control of Jersey Cen.
tral, and the organization of the Lehigh
Valley Coal Sales Company are all vul-
nerable in a legal sense.
Jersey CentraI's Smash.
Jersey Central was the weakling of the
market yesterday for a appoint decline.
IL has always been more or less inactive.
but some one, determined to sell at the
market, took the loss. Delaware and
Hudson was off points, Lehigh Valley
] IA. and Reading rs of point Most
of the active 90 stocks were 1-2 a point
off. some Ia 3-S. were not mentioned
in the days declines.
4. Sugar dropped points. The tobacco
shares were very erratic. Lggett & My
ers gained S points, Lorillard dropped
1-2. Westinghouse. Colorado Southern.
Western Union. and wool preferred were
the strong stocks.
steel Suit.
The defense of the Steel Corporation in
the Government suit for dissolution be-
gan it's case yesterday. President Far
rel was the first witness. The corpora
tion was represented by Attorneys Lind
abury, Severance, Reed and Boiling. For
mer Secretary of War Judge Dickinson
is leading the prosecution, assisted by
Henry r. Cotton.
The testimony will be watched with in
terest day by day as giving some fndica-
tion as to the position the company will
take on matters that have been brought
out by the prosecution
Local Market.
There was little better business than
on the previous session of the exchange,
but the session was not especially inter-
esting at that. The strength of Wash
ington Gas continues the feature. recent
heavy selling of kind that would. have
put the stock down a point or two has
had no effect, there having been buying
orders sufficient to absorb the offerings
right along at fra ction under s.. Stock
sold at So Monday.
Capital Traction sold at 40 3-i. A
few odd lots of Railway preferred sold
at 81, and this price was bid. while
81 l-2 was bid for the common shares.
Mergenthaler was steady at PIG 1-2a2l7.
American Security and Trust, 800.
Greene Camanea.
The situation in the district embrac-
ing Greene Cananea Mines shows some
Improvement, according to representa-
tives of the company -Four blast fur
nacee and two reverberators are in op-
Grafton. and copper is being turned out
at the rate of something like 3,0O0,0
pound per month. Operations at the
veta Grande mine will be started soon,
also one section of the Concentration.