The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-11-16

rull OF bargains
The market is "chuck full'' of bar.
gains. Dozens of stocks that are nor.
mally appraised as gilt-edged Al to
per cent dividend payers. go begging al
to per cent and even bonds continue
to work lower under mysterious pressure
The bravest ''plungers'' rarely risk more
than a few hundred shares, where 1t was
formerly blocks of 10000 to $1,000 shares
Those who have money are suffering
from confessed fiscal paralysis; thoss
who have light capital (and they are In
overwhelming majority in the Wall street
district, are merely thin voiced mem
bers of the stagnant host and contribute
nothing to the sum of gambling or in
vestment intelligence. Liquidation for
New England account is probably heav-
lest. reckoned on the dividend sacrifice
basis, and New Haven is not the only
issue tnat has gone and Is going to a
meal ticket sacrifice" Tens of millions
in securities have been sold out to pro-
vide for the current needs of the poor
INVESTOR Qiterally poor, and New Eng
land Is the chief sufferer thus Tar. And
yet it must be confessed that there are
fundamental reasons for stock market
and money market construction. The
down turn has been foreshadowed for a
long time by such "seers" as Jim Hill
Jacob Schiff. j. B. Forgan and others
of that class.
/ Prevailing Sullenness
am afraid 4 made nuisance of my
self by persistent harping on the long
unrecognized fact that the fight of radi-
calism against capital would sooner or
later take the form OF a terribly dan
gerous agency for the repression of enter
prise, destruction of values and revolu.
ton of established business institutions
but the dangerous gravity of the capital
to whose activity the material progI ess
of the country of recent years has beer
and is largely due, is threatened with
confiscation, and It's owners with con-
dign punishment Wholesale nervous
ness and actual fear are now in tangi-
BILE evidence in the giant markets. Hun
dreds and thousands of men compose q
list of capitalists who will not risk q
dollar ION q chance" as they put 1t. A
condition of rank apathy has been cre-
ated. Prevailing sullenness, that is dis
heartening In the extreme. rules and
from 1t there is no present evidence OF
recovery.
When Judge Gary said repeatedly
that the United States Steel corporation
could compete successfully with tn,
best equipped European steel and iror
mills regardless of tariffs, nine out OF
| ten doubted or openly disbelieved tho
claim. The steady increase in the vol
| ume of American exports during the
last three years "a large per cent orig
mating with the so-called Gary trusJ
has brought about an overwhelming
change of opinion. With quotations OF
product ruling IS to 81 per ton lower
than they did on top level and trust
expectations more than doubled the Gu
rious demanded how the miracle could
be done. The explanation was easy and
1t Is no longer concealed. For that
matter 1t was never concealed. Tho
corporation simply went quietly along
Saving wood and saying nothing"
1t had been the custom of the Levia-
than producer to put back the part OF
surplus earnings into plant and expan-
sion. In about eight years over $780,
900 of velvet" went back tha
way. About two years ago a change
of policy was determined upon. 1t was
decided that ther was no longer vital
need for further large expenditure OF
earnings in plant and that the owners
tthe 125,000 shareholders) had right
to share In the future surplus earnings
The S40O00,000 to s50,0O0,O00 subtractec
annually from earnings and turned Into
improvements and expansions was sud-
denly diverted to the pockets of the
grand army of individual shareholders
The wonderful annual surplus could be
spared to the shareholders for a few
years without detriment to plant. OF
impairment to efficiency, and that is
what is being done now.
1t was merely the legitimate diver
sion of a large fraction of the net
earnings into different channel. BY
common consent the United States Steel
corporation has 81 to $3.50 per ton the
best of competition In home manufac-
|ture and is proving by the figures of
the custom houses on both sides of the