The sun., 1916-12-17
FINANCIAL NEWS
AND COMMENT
Prices Recover One to Three
Points, Mainly on Pro-
fessional Buying.
SHORTS SHOW ACTIVITY
Hysteria and Uneasiness Alb
sent-Stronger Interests
Get Stocks.
SHORTS SHOW ACTIVITY

An orderly recovery In prices Of from
! to 8 points in the active list was re-
ported In yesterdays stock market. the
Upward movement being based to q great
extent upon the operations Of the pro-
fessional element rather than upon heavy
outside buying. The public was not an
important factor In the dealings on
either sid Of the speculative account,
while tho more substantial Wall Street
interests were not identified with the
operations to any particular extent, ex-
cept In q few Of the leading issues. rs,
for instance. United States Steel. which
provided . large proportion Of the total
sales.
Evidence Of accumulation In various
parts Of the market was detected.
notably In some Of the rails, Including
such low priced stock a. Missouri Pa
ctic. Missouri. Kansas and Texas, and
Southern Railway. Buying Of the rail-
road shares was Of the best sort In the
two recent panicky days In the indus
trial securities. n according to close
observers Of the dealings In this group
yesterday purchases were made for the
account Of different Wall Street opera
tors Of means who had made enormous
profits on the crest Of the bull wave In
the industrials.
Earnings Of the railroads are iDcreas-
Ing over the growing totals reported at
this time last year. Returns now com
Ing to hand In most instances are better
than ever before known at this period,
while all Indications In the transportn-
ton industry suggest a tremendous traf-
nc business In the new year.
Shorts were active in the two hou
session In covering contracts. the NOV.
! ynANf hAtnD orrnvNNA Ne. A.. a.~- $500
taken by the Russian Premier and Duma
In opposition to Germany's overtures for
peace and by the expectation Of a favor
able exhibit in the weekly return of the
Clearing House institutions. The actual
statement Of combined bank reserves
published after the close OF business bore
out the bullish predictions Of the day be.
fore, based upon the easier tendency In
the money market and upon the est.
mated movement Of currency In the week
the surplus above the legal limit increas.
ing S20.656.4so to Ss4.sl7.sc0. Two
weeks g the surplus was only q little
more than &41. zoo. 900. the low point since
the establishment Of the Federal Reserve
system.
Cash holdings Increased by more Thar
SCI. 900. 900. while in spite Of the heav,
liquidation in the week Of stock market
accounts the loan item expanded to tn,
amount Of 1 I.s72.ooo. although toward
the end Of the week the tendency Of loan:
was to contract, as shown In the mate
rial difference in tho average and actua
statement, the average loans increasing
more than SIS. 900. 1000.
There IL now no idea In banking cir
cles that there will be any reappear
ance Of tho stiff rates for call loans tina
marked the market for brief periods OF
recent days. but It Is believed. however
that until after the January intares
and dividend requirements are take'
care OF rates will not return TO the alb
normally cheap figures Of a few week
ago.
The week In the Stock Exchange end
ed with a complete absence OF the hys
terra and uneasinses OF Thursday ant
Friday. Investigation showed hat IN,
great decline in market values a no
weakened Wall Street houses. while l
showed also that stocks had passed 4
the strongest interests. who would M
he satisfied to sell them ( tho prevail
ing level Of quotations. lnvestmen
houses reported hat on Fridays breal
buying for permanent holding had bee
heavy.