The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1917-01-30
net LOSSES FOLLOW
TIn|O|TY Of BULLS
Stosks Cloec Heavy After Free Pro
fcssional Selling for
shorts.
COTTON AND GRAIN LOWER
Proposed New Tax on Corporations
and Projected Government NUM-
tions Plant Are Factors Given Con-
sidcra ton.
BY BROsDAN WALL.

New ork. Jan. 29.--StOCks closed
heavy today. after a session in which
there was free professional selling for
the short account. All the traders
around the Street were bullish and
onl va few operators took an aggres-
sive position on the short side. The
bulls. however. were timid and the
result Was net losses of importance
in nearly every issue. steel was un-
der the greatest pressure and in view
OF the large extra dividend expected
tomorrow afternoon, its decline OF
more than a point net was considered
remarkable The Street is in the
frame of mind to look upon n large
dividend tomorrow as an attempt to
let insiders market their steel The
time is so short before offftisl an
nouncement is made that few new
1uesses on the dividend were made to-
day. One was able 10 hear with equal
positiveness that the dividend would
be Ia per cent regular, with IA
per cent extra. la per cent reEu-
lar with per cent extra and also
lie per cent regular with l-2 per
cent extra
Cotton and grain were both lower.
New Haven attracted particular at
tention when il broke to withsn
fraction OF the lowest price on rec
ord. New Haven has splendid man
agement and is backed with unlimited
funds, but IT Is in New England.
Modern industrial development is such
that the old monopoly that New Eng
land enjoyed of manufactured goods
is gone forever. The New Haven svs-
tenn is laid out on the theory that
manufacturing industries Will grow in
New England. whereas all efficiency
experts believe that section has seen
its best days.
Consider Proposed Tax.
Among the reasons given today FOR
selling stocks in general was the pro
posed new tax on corporations II
that tax is to be based on money in
vested it will not bear heavy on the
United States Steel Corporation ex
cept for current earnings. This tax
may amount to as much as 81 share
on United States Steel. On Bethle-
hem it may be as much as $4,000
600 for the year. thus aking practi
caitN all the money to be raised by
tle new stock issue.
In regard to the weakness OF Beth
lehem. Mdvale. Baldwin, Locomotive
and all companies having Russian con-
tracts, il was said today. that Russia
was finding II cheaper to buy NUM-
lions in Japan and would like to get
out of all her American contracts.
Russian contracts in this country were
placed with great abandon at tho be
ginning OF the war and are said TO
have amounted to a billion collars
gross before J. p Morgan and Conn
pany, in behalf of the British govern
ment got them under control. Now
the Bethlehem Is not the only one in
dispute with Russia.
Government Plant Hits Mtdvalc.
The Russian business. taken toSeth-
err with the fact that the United States
government plans to have its own
munitions plant in operation in thirty
months. hit Midvale particularly hard
today Bethlehem could make moro
money in other things than in NUM-
tions, but Mdvale is built on war
contracts and could not he so easily
converted to peace plant.
General Motors was weak issue
and the Street argued that IL it could
10 no better IN the market the other
motors ought 10 60 tumbling, for it
is admitted to be one OF the best OF
them. So all the motors turned back.
Copper stocks held relatively firm,
largely because negotiations are in
progress for the metal to be produced
In the latter half of this year.
About the only hopeful news in
the Street was the report that Penn
sylvania is short of equipment and
VIII pht ttt6NiAS +i tiS iVoi iHIhl N
This will help all the railway equip
ments. Furthermore. II was an
nounced that the freight congestion
on the railroads is easing up a bit
and this will enable manufa turing
concerns 10 get the cash on more OF
the orders already filled.
Broodine over the market and de-
pressing everybody was the fear of
complications growing ont OF a re-
newal OF the tT-boat warfare. The
leak investigat went on, but al
tracted little attention. as nothing OF
importance was developed