Evening star., 1916-01-04
STOCK MARKET ERRAT|C;
HIGHER, THEN SLUMPS
Nervous Tension During Morning
Hours, With Many Sharp Ad.
vances in Rails and Industrials.
Turns Weak With the Noon Hour,
and Serious Declines Are Sustain
ed-Bears Press Advantage.

NEW YORK, January ALI things
considered, the market gave a good &C
count of itself during three hours Of more
or less nervous activity up to noon.
| With startling headlines in newspapers
ard much uncertainty as to diplomatic
matters, there was some disposition to
take profits. Just as there was Monday
morning, and then there was also the
same kind of support, which soon con-
vinced nervous traders that the powers
that-be were back of the market and
would not permit any serious slump.
| Nervousness prevailed right along. al
though not in evidence in the rails as in
the industrials. and changes in values
were frequent and often radical.
| Proft-taking featured the day in Mexi-
can Petroleum. 1t made an advance OF
Is before the turn came, selling to 128 ah
and then the liquidation started, resulting
in a decline to 124%, a pet loss as COM
pared with yesterdays final of 2% points.
smelter One Of the Strongest.
California Petroleum was also weak,
losing PA points to 76A.
Smelter was one of the strongest of
the industrials. Preliminary figures
for 1915 place the net earnings for the
common stock as close to II or IS per
cent. $4,000. 900 to $4,000 600 on the $780,
! 100000 common shares The greater
part of the excellent showing is ac-
credited to the last half Of 1915, recent
monthly earnings running close to is
per cent.
On this news the price advanced to
1132s. as compared with a closing yes
terday of 110h.
The copper shares generally made
gains. though Anaconda was rather
slow.
Mercantile Marine held a gain Of bet
its shareholders the satisfaction of a
further Improvement in values.
Baldwin Locomo otive, Crucible Steel
Studebaker and MAXWELL Motors. old
time leaders in the war group. were all
slow and inclined to weakness even
while there was strength elsewhere
Losses were limited, however, to frac-
tions-
Steel Common Fluctuates.
Steel common fluctuated freely within
a comparatively small range, between
ss2: and ssT coming back strongly in
the later trading.
The great earnings of the railroads
seem to have given this section of the
market more strength and holders
much more confidence. Conservative in
vestors who will have nothing to do
with war stocks or inflated industrials,
turn to the rails, and their purchases
are making decided showing.
With but one or two exceptions, val
ues for rails were always better than
the closing figures of yesterday and "
to / point higher by noon.
Union Pacific sold to 140k, a gain of
Ia points. Reading gained a point
Lehigh Valley. IN: Canadian Pacific,
q. and Southern Pacifis and st. Paul
about y point net.
Whole Market Weakens.
Then as the market progressed into
the afternoon all the stiffness went out
of it-weakness developed and there
seemed to be no stopping it. Advances
were wiped out before the middle Of
the second hour of the afternoon and
further declines extended to and 2A
points.
There seemed to be no good reason
for the change OF sentiment. Latest
news on the ship destruction contro-
versy was that the matter was still
indefinite. but that the President would
send word to Congress as soon as full
facts were known. A.. f.
Perhaps a little profit-taking. started
the stump. but. whatever 1t was, 1t was
a genuine decline, and the bears.
recognizing it as their opportunity.
went after the list hard.
Mexican Petroleum. the market lead
er, declined from 12sH to 121 ": Texas
Oil broke az California Oil dropped
points. and other oil shares were
weak. Perhaps an investigation by
Congress, as urged by some members,
may have had some effect on Oil
shares.
Smelter lost it's big gain and drop
ped back to 1l0H.
The rails also dropped back. gains
being wiped out and further declines
exceeding a point being sustained
The closing of the market was generally
p TO / point above the low. with COM
paratively little activity in the last hour
of the session.
Pressure was in evidence on Stude-
baker. with a decline to 1853. a net loss
Of 2Ia points.
Steel common recovered to So, show
ing net loss Of u for the day.