The Washington herald., 1921-09-28
STOCKEXCHANCE 1
PRESENTS ENIGMA
TON. Y. TRADERS
Market Is Unimportant
AS Guide to Future
Trahsactions.
PROFESSIONAL TONE
Reaction Covering Broad List
Is Followed by Half
Hearted Recovery.

NEW YORK. Sept. 27-Today'.
stock market vas as unImportant
from the broader viewpoint and as
guide TO the future a. anything
Wall Street has witnessed since
the forward movement was def
nitely checked. Trading was again
OF professional nature A reac-
tion Of ! and points spread over
broad list OF industrial and rail-
road stocks lasted until around
noon. to be followed by a half
hearted recovery and then a period
OF dullness- In the fourth hour
industrials were again sold, but IN
most cases stopped short Of the
morning low level. The riss IN
the call money rate from S 20 sag
per cent was practically ignored
as a market factor.
Among the houses which def
nitely turned from the constructive
side Of the market today were two
which were reputed to be operat-
ing for the bull pools while stocks
were being bid up earlier this
month. One of these houses used
nothing but technical market con-
ditions as a basis for their predic-
tiop Of a reaction. The other made
half-hearted attempt to make its
switch to the selling side appear
well founded, but the most bearish
person in Wall Street could find
nothing in any Of the reasons set
forth that could not have been
made to apply with equal logic two
weeks ago Both these houses were
reported to be sellers Of stocks
during the day. On the whole the
Street was less certain OF the mar
ket's position. although there were
some observers who continued 10
feel that any slight reaction would
be sign OF health and should be
used for the purchase of well Sc
lected stocks.
Cause of Change.
The big question that must haze
entered the mind Of anyone who
conversed today with persons of
varying opinion was whether the
several sp-called bearish factors
were the cause of an excuse for
the change of position. The steady
dwindling in the value Of the Ger
man mark is nothing brand new.
The threat of a railroad strike is
just as pointed around the middle
4 Of this month when the result Of
the shopmen's vote was announced.
Railway chiefs are counting the
ballots cast by the other crafts and
this latest stir about a strike was
caused by the prediction Of one of
the officials that the vote In each
case will be in favor Of a strike.
Observers who are not Influenced
by a stock market position that
must be protected. and are there
fore able 10 view the situation
without bias, believe that there
will be no strike despite the vote
They point out that such a protest
against the recent wage cut was
TO have been expected as an offset
against the demand of some OF the
railroads for still further wage re-
ductions.
Mexican Petroleum.
When il was found in the early
3 trading that market was headed
downward many market observers
and traders who have come TO con-
slider Mexican Petroleum as a stock
which can move in either direction
without affecting other stocks ma
terially, watched the ticker tape
closely. expecting to observe an I'm
teresting development. Word had
been passed around that IF Mexi-
can Petroleum breaks through IS
the bottom will again drop out OF
it," The theory was that a large
volume of stop-loss orders had been
placed just under 9s and the execu-
tion Of them would lead TO another
precipitate decline. Mex" did
break through IS before the end
of the first hour. but after going
to 97i1 it recovered gracefully and
was well above 80 before noon.