New Britain herald., 1916-09-23
Henry Cleus , Weekly Letter

New York, September 23, 1916.


 some of the large interests to take profits that had accrued as a result of the recent sustained rise in the Stock Exchange price level. Selling of this character, not unnaturally, served as a temporary check upon the enthusiasm and strength that so dis
 tinctly were the features of the pre-
 ceding week. But definite weakness
 however, did not develop. feither was
 there a corresponding reaction in the
 volume of business. The market
 seemed, for the moment, to have lost
 it's sparkle and declined moderately,
 change suggestive of a necessary
 readjustment that did not essentially
 alter more distant prospects, That
 such a view was justified was lndicat-
 ed by the sharp and general advances that subsequently, took place.
 Fundamental conditions have not
 changed. Our national activities are experiencing the stimulus of admitted imitation. Gold that is not needed is coming forward in a steady stream in partial payment for the products of Anne erican factories. These are being manufactured at such favorable prices that they leave large profits, not alone in the hands of the manufac- turers but in those of labor and of all interests connected with them from the point of production to that of final delivery abroad, including land and sea transportation, insurance and oth- CT charges. Thus money is circulat- ing freely and is available for luxuries and necessities at home, in this way becoming responsible for a domestic demand of a magnitude quiet in keep ing with that from foreign sources. Eventually a severe check must come to this nationwide imitation. When 1t will occur must be governed very largely by the duration of the war and the conditions that will confront the world at large after the present stu pendous massacre ends. At the mo- ment, unfortunately, there Is but slight encouragement for any expectation that peace is in sight. In turn this suggests an absence of inducement to believe that the inflationary move ment to which I have just referred is culminating. More likely will it proceed still further and in the long run include to a more general ex- tent than at present securities as well as commodities in it's influence. The iron and steel industry never has been so active. A local trade authority, reviewing steel trade conditions, de- clares that the drift not only is to- ward higher prices but toward greater difficulties in delivery. The situation, it adds, is that Europe will take what ever amount of steel American mills will agree to deliver when wanted, and that domestic buyers are provid- ing for their wants in the first half of ,,1~io to consider two months ago. Con- sumers are acting on the more defi- nite signs that with the war prolonged into 1917 the steel mills of the coun- try will continue to have to choose between buyers. Trade authorities Q whole seem to agree with this view. An almost identical position seems to apply to copper and, in fact, to near ly all of the various divisions of the m etal market, which is so representa- tive of industry as a whole. ]
 The national political campaign is beginning to attract attention as a market factor of importance. The tariff is being accepted from the mar ket standpoint as the chief feature of contention, and the prospects of the rival candidates, so far as many of the industrial stocks are concerned, acquire importance in proportion as them suggest the election of a high or low tariff advocate with a National legislature so prOpOrtioned as to sup port him. Our country is very for tunate this year in having choice between two such good candidates, men who already have served the people and. who are we'll known by their acts. It also is pleasant to re- call that the campaign is not one of freak issues represented by the var ious 'isms'' that have been such dis turbing features of presidential cam paigns in the past.
 Increased interest is being taken in the railroad securities. This is quite natural in view of the evidence that we are approaching the end of the European liquidation of American se- curities that has been made necessary by the exigencies of the war. Some thing over S1,500, 1000 of American securities, chiefly of our railroads, have been sent back across the At lantic and absorbed by American in- vestors as the result of the present conflict. This is additional to con- siderable amounts that were returned when the Balkan wars so thoroughly upset european Cap1IalS. But there seems excellent basis for the belief that as practical proposition the re- turn movement has about ended. of our securities are still abroad are, as a broad proposition, de- posted with the British treasury and are to be used as collateral for loans instead of being sold outright. For tunes are being made abroad out of 1 the wars necessities quite as freely as is the case at home here. These l fortunes are not only being acquired by English and French and Russian subjects, but by those of Holland, Denmark and Switzer- and, as neutral countries are piling up wealth on a large scale. American | securities have been favorite invest ]