The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-04-22
FINANCIAL NEWS
And COMMENT
Trading still on a Million
share Scale, but Prices
Are Irregular.
ROCK ISLAND AFFAIRS

Although dealings In the stock mar
ket yesterday aggregated again in ex-
cess Of million shares the mainte-
nance OF volumes was not accompanied
by an unchanged continuation, Of the
character Of the price movement. Trad
ing resulted I'm a great deal OF irregu-
larity all through tho session and the
general drift Of prices was rather down
ward. The afternoon market was quiet
comparatively and fairly steady. while
closing quotations showed only a frsc-
tional average OF decline despite the
substantial proportions of some net
losses and In the late dealings a Arm
undertone was displayed.
Business in the bond department was
a striking feature Of the day. Trans
actions we're on the largest scale yet
attained and the expansion was far
from owing wholly TO the sales at de-
clines in the Rock Island bonds and
the issues OF some other moro or less
distressed railroads Tho Now York
Central debenturs SIS exhibited aggrcs-
sive strength and testified to the i'm
provement which has been working In
the investment market.
Whether or not tho recoil from the
Rock Island receivership was overdone
on Tuesday afternoon tho stock market
was unable to keep up tho advance
which was resumed at yesterdays open
Ing. Early operations were extraordl-
narily active, but selling pressure even
tually attained an ascendency which
became moro manifest late In the fore
noon.
Throughout the day various railroa 4
and industrial specialties moved sharply
upward only to fall back. but the cop
per metal group provided constructiNc
leadership which exercised q fairly wide
supporting influence. A fantastic tale
OF British Government corner in cop
per was circulated. but II seemed hardly
necessary 10 go so far aileld for an OK
PLANTATION Of the favor extended to metal
shares Copper IL selling at l7i5 cents
pound and tending higher and it's
production IL no longer curtailed. while
domestic consumers have begun to com
pete with foreign buyers
So-called war business" stocks Nuc-
'uatcd somewhat cccentrlcally, but the
factor Of this kind of business in tho
general trade and Industrial situate
is not to be measured ny the whimsical
views of Wall Street spectators who
think that II has been overestma ted.
TO very large extent the foreign bust
ness which the country has been doing
belongs IN this category. n circumstance
which is evinced by tho unrelicved heav-
mess of the foreign exchanges Sterling
remittance showed fresh weakness yes
terday despite the selling Of American
| securities which has been going on for
| British account.
Commit Ssi on house buying was attract.
| ed to stocks whenever they showed sign,
| Of recession and there were no indica.
| tons that the public demand for corpo
| rate shares had been materially dimin'
| ished by considerations connected with
N IL n
lative aspects of the days market sug
gcsted two-sidcd activities and ther.
was quite plainly an increase of pro.
fcssional selling for the fall Bearisf
efforts OF the kind we're based in par
on a surmise that the spring advance
had reached its elimination and that q
| good deal of stock had been distributed
which must be absorbed. II cakes two
| sided endeavor 10 test markets posi-.
| ;lon and measure the forces to which II is
| responding. but II was not clear last nigh,
that any distinct advantage had beef
won by reactionaries, although use was
made OF the contention afforded by the
Rock Island bankruptcy.
The share list still resisted the de-
pressing considerations derived from this
episode, although the Missouri. Kansas
and Texas and Missouri Pacific stocks
NeTf uu"U ny uUPtSN sell40B
which the Rock Island affair induced
There seemed to be no ground for be-
lievlng that there was any likelihood oi
a fashionable movement Of railroads
toward receivership and all the infor-
nation obtainahle implied that the
Rock Island situation was distinctly bad
enough TO be much worse than that of
other railroad cripples which have SO
far escaped bankruptcy.
Indeed something OF the sort was in.
ferential from the fact OF the Rock
Island rcccivership Altogether too
much criticism of IT seemed based on the
assumption that the receivership was un-
necessary. This will be seen later (.
the railroad does not go into default or
any Of it's bonds. The chances are tina,
bur for the recent unwarranted bullish
performance in the stock OF the railroad
which was encouraged by the Amster
| campaign. the Rock Island receivershlr
would have been accepted as tho logical
! ending OF tho decade OF Ill fsted expert
% he 80 IA