Evening star., 1921-09-23
LIST YIELDS PART
Of EARLY GAINS
Rails Show Best Strength.
Traders Quick to Cash
In on Profits.
BY STUART p. WEST.

NEW YORK. September 23.-With
the immediate opening the great ease
in the money market was responsible
for a materially improved tone. Com
mercial paper rates dropped and all
apparent effort to hold for high rates
was abandoned.
The advancing trend was especially
notable In the high grade rails. ex-
tending to the preferred shares of
Chicago and Northwestern. Great
Northern and Jersey Central, while
many of the junior rails advanced one
to two points.
In the industrial list Famous Play
ers. May Department Stores. Interna-
fional Paper, Allied Chemical and
Corn Products made gains from one
to two points.
Other leaders moved up sharply.
Realizing sales promptly appeared
as soon as prices were bid up point
or so and, while it was still plain that
stocks went up easier than they came
down, there was not the slightest
suggestion of any big speculative re-
vival impending.
statements have been even better than
expected. especially in the extent of
the gains in gross earnings over the
month preceding, was an explanation
for the strength of the rails. South
ern Pacific, Union Pacific and the coal
&,
but the whole movement in the rail-
way group indicated a broader and
more genuine interest than has been
shown in some time.
Mexican Petroleum was under heavy
pressure at noon. with all gains lost.
ReadinE-Jersey Central.
Jersey Central stock, inactive for
weeks at time, has suddenly begun
to make its appearance on the tape
The transactions have occurred at ris-
ing prices, and seem to have more
meaning than simply sympathetic
move in the wake of Delaware. Lack
awana and Western. Jersey Central.
under the Reading segregation plan,
was compelled to dispose of its hold
lngs of Lehigh and Wilkesbarre Coal
Company. This sale brought into the
Jersey Central treasury a cash equiv
alent to over S46 share on it's own
stock. With the turn for the better
IN railway earnings. in which Jersey
Central has borne it's full share, there
is no reason why the proceeds of the
Lehigh and Wilkesbarre sale should
not be distributed to Jersey Central
stockholders. The principal benefi-
ciary in such case would be Reading.
and this furnished the most plausi-
Bile explanation for the strength in
Reading stock today.
There seems to be little doubt about
the restoration of Ontario and West
- II ~ q DdSN. Inc Onlv
question is whether it will pay ! per
cent. as 1t did when it ceased divi-
dends year ago, or whether it will
cay the full per cent. which was the
old rate of distribution from 1906 to
1918. inclusive. There is no doubt that
ontario and Western could easily af-
ford the larger SIM. because its earn
Ings are running at the rate of 5 per
cent a year.
So far as New Haven is concerned,
even 2 per cent dividend on Ontario
would bring in only s5S3,0O0, or con-
siderably less than a half of l per cent
on New Haven stock
The only way that New Haven could
benefit materially would be if the re-
turn to dividend payments enabled it
to get a good price for the 29I,6OO
shares of Ontario and Western stock
which it holds. If it could sell On
tario and Western for $50 a share this
would bring in sS,74S. 900. which would
be more than the recent loan from the
government.