The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1913-04-26
WEAK CLOSING
TO ALL STOCKS
Foreign Outlook and General
Bearish Trend Causes Cen
eraI Declines in List.
LOCAL GAS MATTERS
List Continental Trust Shares on Ex-
change-Local Stocks Slow
but Steady.
LOCAL GAS MATTERS
BY I. A. FLEMING.

Central, Northern Pacific, Northwestern
and a number of others reach the pres
ent levels, it's a bear day.
Year affer year the labor unions have
been forcing up wages; year after year
better service is demanded OF the great
railroad corporations; heavier rai's, niol
safety: better roadbeds, the last in the
interest of the railroads themselves,
while materials have advanced in every
line But the railroads have not been
permitted to meet these increases, Eot
even the payments to labor, with no in
creased income, no advances in rates.
and what an more, they have been COM
PEELED to defend rates to prevent re-
auctions The Interstate Commerce
Commission makes ineffective every ad-
vance makes them imperative Tor
months, and then quietly kills them OH.
The railroad companies are burdeneo
with financing. Short-terms notes ma
ture just as certainly as notes.-the re-
payment of notes with notes and bonds
must eventually reach a point Where
they produce little actual financing ana
make hard other bond ventures on
crowded market.
4 Unique Movement.
4 day or two ago the Republic Iron
and Steel Company actually paid on
s1,Oo00OO of a note or maturing bond is
sue. Few of these occurances'have been
noted in months.
European complications are threatened.
1t doesn't seem probable that monte
negro would defy Austria without some
promise of support from big brother.
While it may be but blum, II mas
been made as If there was support pach
of the hand.
This was supposed to be. the cause
of the weakness in the last hour when
most Of the recessions were made, out
before that the bears were certainly IN
the ascendancy, and are much more
numerous than the friends of stocks.
II is still within the possibilities for
the big holders of the stocks to make
il warm for the bears, but on further
support and attempt to run in the shorts
long stock probably will come out very
fast.
Investigation, probe. antagonism, even
in the midst of great prosperity, may
be the down brakes signal.
The Losses.
ST. Paul dropped / 1-2, Illinois Central,
ia: Chesapeake and Ohio, IA; Read
ing, l SIS; Steel rs, and so throughout
the list with many stocks holding at
1-2a1 point below Thursdays closing.
Especial weakness developed in the to-
bacco shares Lorillard leading, with
points loss: American Tobacco fol-
lowing, with 41-2, and Liggett & Myers,
with 4 points loss. Snuff was off ! IA.
Ii is. perhaps because of discrimination
on the part of bankers that the tobacco
stocks suffered so severely.
Union Pacific opened at 152 IL, the
high, and closed at 151 is, the low. Read
ing actually rose IL point. and turned
from 16S to 161 3-S, closing is better than
low
Gas Resolution.
Meaning no disrespect to any member
of the House of Representatives, it
doesn't require extraordinary effort to
obtain the introduction of resolution
these days.
One was introduced on Tuesday, calling
end directing the Commissioners to bring
suit in equity for the dissolution of the
Washington Gas Company for holding
over 20 per cent of the capital stock of
the Georgetown Gas Company, prohib-
tied by the La Toilette amendment 70
the utilities law.
The resolution also orders the Com
missioners to report Immediately what
they have done to enforce section ii OF
the act, and there is also an order for
the sale of the Georgetown stock by the
Washington Gas Company.
ne TSSOlutloH was Hol pdeSCu.
There is pending in the Supreme Court
of the District at this very time a suit
20 settle once and for all the right and
title of the Georgetown stock now owned
by the Washington Gas Company.
The resolution also contemplates in it's
wording the making the utilities act ret
rosctipe.
Gas Matters.
This brings, up for consideration again
local gas matters. Every effort is being
made and has been made to, sell the mi
nority holdings of Georgetown Gas stock
to the Washington Gas Company and by
some of the very people who insist and
reiterate that the stock the WASH
ington Company now holds is held IL
legally. Wherein would it right a wrong
to have the Washington Company buy
the rest of the Georgetown stock, if what
II now owns is illegally held?
But they ought to get together and
make It legal, is the answer.
How could it be made legal by unanim-
ity OF action on the part of interested
parties? If ii is illegal now it would be
more than ever illegal then.
Then, too. there is a disposition in
some circles to complain because the
price of Washington Gas stock does not
go up. The statement is actually made
that ii is being held down to put it
into Washington Utilities at low price.
AS a matter of fact Washington IT'LL
tiles will have nothing to say about the
price at which any stock will be bought
en- bloc. With equal certainty it is
fortunate shareholder who has stock
that will remain anything like steady in
these days of falling values
The officers and directors of the
Washington Gas Company have given
their stock no support. This is alb
solutely true. They say that this is
not in their business, that they were
elected to conduct the business of the
company, make gas and sell II, and con-
serve the interest of the shareholder
not to speculate.
And vet Gas shares are not without
support There is always fairly good
buying, developing with every recession
under S. buying from people who like ii
because Of this steadiness, this firmness.
May Merge.
When the time comes and the Utilities
Commission is organized and in working
order, some time i'm the not distant
future, II would DE the most natural