Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1918-10-08

OPINIONS VARY
ON END OF WAR
Some Conservative Bankers See
Little Hope of Early Peace,
81 Despite Offer

In brokers' offices and in the street
the German peace proposal was freely
discussed. There seemed no two opin-
ions AZ TO what President Wilson'S
answer would be.
q Among conservative bankers there is
4 a Feeling that people will get tco OPP
tImistic over the outlook. and these
men say that the war is far from being
over. one well-known banker said he
believed the peace proposal of Prince
Max was more for home consumption
than n serious proposition addressed TO
the Allies. lie argued that the internal
conditions in Germany demanded I'M
mediate attention, and that the peace
proposal is just an excuse thrown 10
them like bone to a dog. till the high
command has time to retreat to the
German frontier and then put forward
the claim of a purely defensive war.
which may catch the slow reasoning
Teutons for while longer.
War and Peace stocks
when asked yesterday morning what
was most interesting in the financial
district. the manager of one uf the
largest banking and brokerage houses
said II was the efforts Of investors.
SPECTATORS and the general public to
separate war from peace stocks Some
OF the apparent conclusions arrived a.
as shown by the quotations. lac said,
seemed all wrong to him. and he ho-
iieved this would he more easily den-
onstrablc in short time. OF course
we all know. he said. that oils, motors.
tobacco and several others are essen
tally peace stocks but the ida Of elias
styling such stocks as United States
Steel, Midvale. Baldwin and stocks of
that class as war stocks Is certainly an
error of judgment, he remarked. as some
people who are parting with them VIII
find out before very long
As for shipping stocks. he said. there
was a candid difrerenc" ~ opinion. with
arguments both plausible and well srs-
tanned on each side. Those who put the
shipping shares in the war class say it
Is preposterous TO assume that ocean
freight rates will remain at anything
like present levels when the war is over.
On the other hand. those who assert
that shipping stocks are peace stocks
maintain that those who consider them
war stocks are counting on the release
of an enormous tonnage now used for
transport purposes. and do not take
fully into consideration that the bringing
back of the millions Of American SOL
diers. to say nothing OF the British. In
dian and Colonial troops, will require
the services of all Of these vessels for
a long time to come. And he re-
marked. II have failed to be convinced
by any figures ] have seen aS yet that
our new construction is making any re-
markable heaiway against submarine
mine sinkings."
Taking it all in all, it will take some
time for a proper readiustment of Sc
Int. IL iG.,a-
ton. Besides. the war is not over yet
Liberty Loan Progress
The Philadelphia correspondent of tho
Guaranty Trust Company of New York.
Clayton +. Banks. said yesterday that
he had received from his New Nork
office by telegraph the following per-
centages of the fourth Liberty Loan,
which had been secured in the various
Federal Reserve districts throughout the
country as officially reported UP II
October 5.