The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1920-02-25
ATTITUDE Of UNIONS
FACTOR IN SLUMP
ny nRoADAN WALL.

New York, Feb. s4,4-waI street was
diSEppoi today when the stock
market opened quietly without ma
I tcr1aJ advances in the railroads. I
I was evident that the general situation
was worse than even the professional
4 traders had thought. Such news should
have been good for a I'VE or ten point
rAliy even in bear market, hut tbs
nrst that happened was q point or 50
An a few rails that some professionals
were trying to manipulate.
This aisap appointment resulted in
rather heavy sailing OF the industrials
ut Arrt and later OF the rails The
beartsh influence of this selling Wss
cumulative and the market became
snt+-Te-aea4ee- he ieGeF- 1xeat-- tn Z
close was active and weak with tF7r7
INVEST prices of the day recorded IN The
/ last minute OF trading.
There are several good reasons for
selling stocks even though there may
be some good ones fer buying them
An organization Of farmers allied with
union labor furnished another reason
for selling today by rctitioninE the
president to withhold his signature
from the railroad bill until they could
present their reasons for veto The
bill as PASSED is very satisfactory 10
I. the railroad executives. They propose
to begin dischaEging employees AT once
when the properties go back into their
hassas, provided ~ course the bill ts
signed nv the president and they have
flil authority to handle their proper
tisA
In the midst Of the rising railroad
prices last week the general public
rnisunderstood the 6i4 per cent guar
aniee" contained In tho new law. The
government does not guarantee to see
thai they earn that much monS, It
AuSnasy agrees that they will be per
nrsted 10 earn that much II they car
and If the interstate commerce com
nissioners can he induced TO TX rates
go IS TO make such earnings possible.
The only real buIIish feature Of the
ngw law is the permission to make
combinations. There are great posi-
ti!ities II deals and Wall street NAV
ret great deal of excitement out OF
then This heEan today whom St Paul
and New Haven rose sharply on the
theory that they would become mem
hers Of Some other system presumably
the New Work Central lines The Hil
stocks thas were engaged "a marry la-st
week were not enthusiastic for both
Great Northern and Southern Pacific
susked to lower levels
Some market observers who have
been bearish for weeks and who expect
materially lower prices before the mar
keJ turns INOAR6l the TA1ETOau Rilt com
bined with the new attitude Of the fed
erai reserve board should have caused
4 rally, These things having failed 10
rally the market these observers are
much more hearish than ever for now
they feel sure of their ground.
On March Is the first installYnent of
income tax payments will be due and
between now and then very few per-
SIMS with money will be risking it in
the stock market. Banks will be called
on for large amounts of money. This
combined with the fact that the condi-
ton Of the Federal Reserve banks Ia
poor causes little hope of ease in spec
uiative funds.
Republic Iron shocked the street
after the close with an annual report
for 1919 showing that 1t did not earn
the dividends IL paid by some 1921
ea1, IT paid s53s2.ss7 and earned only
s2i4.1sS. Other small steel companies
are understood to have done no better.