The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1915-05-08
|IlcEr CONDITIONS
seen N WALL STREET
STANDS SHOCK WE'LL
4onasc Strength OF American Bust
nees Structure Asserw Itself and
Rallies Start In Closing Minutes of
Day.

New York May From the point
~ view of speculative experience the
1scord OF this afternoons stock mar
ket was not at all surprising. Some
thing usually happens in the sequel
~ such an excited buliish absorption
+ ~ stocks as went on recently 20 clear
f away the unsafe supvrstructure OF
prices that has been SO enitlusia stic aily
raised
The Wall Street storm. which broke
&oday. began slowly. but II swept vio-
ently over the stock market once It
kArzed. Unouestionably there was
Witnessed a panic expression OF the
pense of a great danger felt in the
most sensitive OF ell institutions the
Stock Exchange. and the activities
Neaich II connotes.
@ The sinking OF the Lusitania fur
nishci an appalling illustration of
what Germany has intended all along
III the European war by its anything
10 win" policy. AS result orders to
sell at the market came pouring in.
and quotations were carried down in
the last hour OF the market anywhere
from five TO twenty-five points from
the early high figures of the day
The selling movement did not really
start until about the beginning of the
last hour. and in that period transac-
Nicns were on the greatest scale that
Wall Street has ever known. being
almost at the rate of three and a
half million shares session.
AT all times In the hour the record
or transactions on the tape were ten
minutes or more behind the actual
trading on tae floor. That the market
stood up so we'll under the shock
was about the most convincing proof
That could be offered of the strength
which American financial and busi-
Ness conditions have developed under
the critical test of the last nine
months
Rallies Start at Close.
Toward the close there were general
rallies which carried the average OF
prices to n recovery of about half OF
the extreme losses of the day. and the
market gave a good many indica-
lions of having been pretty well sold
stut, although observers were disposed
to suspend conclusions until overnight
Information had furnished more facts
10 go upon. Meanwhile. every inf1u-
ence which has been contributing TO
the betterment of general business
and special business alike. and to the
enhancement Of values, remains unim-
rAfred. and they cannot more than
temporarily lose their effectiveness.
no matter II the worst forebodings
of Wall Street today should he justi-
fled
Standards Suffer Less.
What are called the standard stocks
suffered less extensively in the down
fall than the issues, especially in the
industrial quarter. TO which specula-
tive fever has been running. Under
the circumstances, 1t was nothing less
than fortunate that the snare list
had had so much of shaking down In
the previous days of the week, or
the weight OF selling might nave had
a still more destructive effect
Splendid buying came into the mar
ket from investment sources and
there was prompt appearance OF
unlimited banking support, which.
with heavy short covering stemmed
the decline before tsne close. and tbs
upturn was helped along by reports
that the sinking of the Lusitania had
not resulted in loss cf life.
This. of course, was what Wall
Street was most concerned about,
hut assurances were lacking before
TIE close of the business day that
the worst international menace of tsle
most barbarious exploit OF GERMAN
warfare from the standpoint OF
American relations was not to be
dreaded.