The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1920-03-16
1|||lIFI TIGHTEkS
As MONEY CHEAPEhS
BY RRoADAN WALL

III New York, March 1s.--Aii WAN
gree4 was surprised today at the
s0frenkth OF the market Even those
Who looked for higher prices thouSht
tnoro vo0l BE- some reAc1Aoa Aor
2AH9har prices thought there would %
n4nae reaction for high n1onay was
NnrDecxed But the rate dtd not go
above nine per cent and time money
sNas actually easier. Even the an
aouncement that $ae.ooe.seo OF goio
would be shipped to South Ame1E A
1A1aed to disturb the money market
The German revolution was ignored
n Shorts took fright and covered
wildly In several issues and the longs
who had been selling took their stocks
back. A pleasant mystery seemed TO
nervads the street 1t was just the
reverse Of the usual experience of haV-
ing something hanging over the
market for today IL was something
holding up the market
The cause of this mysterious buoy
Hnce was the fact that In making UP
lat weeks statement the local federal
reserve bank understaled by $4,000
zoe the amount of its gold holdings,
AT the bank today il was stated
correction had been sent out
Saturday night but apparently IL an
mol TE3EH tf4S new SGdheEH 4Gi %tAc 80
correct figures we're published. The
public went through today's market
without Knowledge OF this mistake for
attention was not called tn II any
where. Therefore the bankers and
those in toach with the money lead
ers had a tremendous advantage in
me stock market of which they avail
ed themselves 10 the limit
This astonishing error may have the
same effec. on the stock market to-
morrow as the importation of sl6,-
geo, 0ee OF gold would have. AS
htnnder IL is eQueiled only by the re-
part OF the stock dividend case that
came from the supreme court last
week.
Crucible was leader Of the market
Ia the morning and the street was full
Of rumors of stock dividends TO be
declared These dividends ranged
from 20 per cent quarterly to as
much as zoe per cent Directors
are expected to meet tomorrow to
take action. Friends of the manage
ment say that very conservative ac-
ton will be taken IL any. The stock
broke ten points just before the close
presumably on the Little resolution
sn-congress.
Shorts in Crucible having been
runished SO severely those in Bald
win took fright They ran that stock
up more than FIVE points The advance
of Baldwin, Car and Foundry press
ed Steel Car and American Locomo-
tive can be justified on the theory
that the railroads are now free to
do their own buying and will buy
heavily of equipment. The rails them
selves were quiet This was due more
to the fact that there was excitement
La the industrials than to any back
ward movement in the rails which
seem still to be in strong hands. The
important factor in regard to the
rails LIS the money market Money
Nas cheaper than expected today.
People identified with the banks own
the rails. There is evidently some
connection between the cheap money
and the campaign in the rails Some
OF them have moved so sharply as
10 preclude the idea that speculative
pools are advancing them. Nobody
but the very strongest interests
could do what has been done.
Rubber and the tire stocks join
ed in the upward movement.
The advance in the price OF ga6o-
line and fuel oil has created a situa-
ton in the oil stocks so buliish as tc
be without precedent
The German situation was looked
upon as buliish argument by mosi
bankers on the theory that a mon
Archical government would be strong
and able to do something.
There was consid cradle disappoint-
ment because the supreme court did
not hand down n decision in the
Reading coal case.