The Washington times., 1919-11-15
Boersianer's
Comment
on Business
by BoERSIANER.

| BY H0ERSIANEhs
! Bullish strategists may not have
much money-or not so much money,
which is different--but there remain
to them skill, ingenuity, conviction
and courage All these qualities were
exercised yesterday.
Although call loans had to be re-
newed generally at IA per cent and
the industrial section of the stock
list faltered forebodingly, market for
warders were equal to the occasion
when it became patent that the short
interest would go no further than 1t
had gone the day before.
The forwarders executed a flank
movement, on an involuntary cue
from Congress. They addressed them
selves to the rails and found 1t easy
to advance these shares. Congress
having decided by a large majority
to take a hand in rate making-a
hand favorable to the roads-that part
of Wall Street which had not been
daunted by Wednesdays crash or by
continued high money went into the
rail group and there made a demon
stration which must have surprised
some bankers and members of the
Federal Reserve Board.
Every railway issue susceptible of
activity in normal times was buoyed
strikingly-both as to liveliness and
! price. This part of the market COM
pletely replaced the former furore in
the Industrial section; and. the substi-
| tuition must have been relatively mex
pensive. s
Possibly the members of the Society
for the Prevention of Booms on
( Change, was quaked by the criticisms
of its endeavors, concluded it had gone
too far, for while the demand rate
ruled excessive there was enough of
/ 1t for those who would pay the price.
Anyhow the slightly less unfavorable
status was skilfully exploited. The
choice of the rails was happy from
every aspect. Railway stocks have
been. at best, quiescent. for over five
years, have not been affected either
| way by the violent mutilations on the
bourse. New line of investors are de-
void of them. Old line investors, in
cluding fduciary institutions, have
perforce-held on; hence the elemen-
tai prestige of those stocks has not
been seriously impaired. Despite the
past narrowing legislative experience
they are infinitely preferred, even as
1t is, at the banks. to the industry
certificates as whole.
singularly Timely.
The selection was singularly timely
| in another way. The Congress
promises to do the reasonable, if not
the handsome, thing for the roads, a
promise which, of course, has been
prompted by the change in public
opinion toward the properties.
Before legislation becomes final not
improbably in the last stages of it.
the focused power of the properties
will appear from the background and
have enacted an important clause per-
mitting the pooling, If not outright
consolidation. of parallel lines and
making the divisions Zonal.
In other terms, railroad men want
formerly competing companies to
operate hand in hand and to toll off
the railroads throughout into zones.
They hold that so long as the Gov
ernment-through the Congress or
the Interstate Commerce Committee
regulates rates, there is no sense in
compelling the roads to compete for
service when such competition really
results in disservice.
| Surplus of Business.
The railroad men point to the Penn
sylyania and the Sante Fe, which
have surplus of business which is
more or less retardive to recipients
; Why not, then, they ask, do as was
done during the war-throw the sur
!, plus to parallel lines? The Pennsyl-
vania to the Erie and to the Balti-
, more and Ohio; the Sante Fe to the
| Rock Island. For, as a rule, the less
, favored roads have lack in proper
, tion to the redundance of the favored
: systems. There would be infinitely
, better service and, as rates are al
ways made on the basis of the weaker
lines, the stronger cannot suffer by
the arrangement proposed; which,
Furthermore, would mean larger pet
revenues whilst the public were bet
ter served.
Judging by what the Congress did
late on Thursday, it will lend a will
ing ear to the clause mentioned. The
roads are asked-by the Congress
to file higher freight rate sched-
ule within two months after they will
have reverted to private control
a between-the- lines reader need
not be told the request section annuls
a vital prerogative of the Interstate
Commerce Commission. Nobody-not
even shippers-will be panied by the
annuIment. The commission had not
performed it's office judiciousIy. II
had, rather, judged and sentenced
railroads hastily and unjustly; had
besides, stressed the popular prejud
ice against the roads.
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