The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-04-17
RUSH OF BUYING
SHOOTS STOCKS
PRICES HIGHER
fBy Stuart P. VEST

Wali SLFctl new 1Oikr April IL
Again. trading today on the stock
exchange surpassed anything that
has been seen in Wall Street since
me elimination of the Inflated
boom of April, 1920. Not In two
years has business reached such a
totai or fluctuations been 50 yio-
lent. The day began with a tre-
mendous rush OF outside buying or
ders representing the accumulation
over Sunday through the mails and
across the wires from every sec
ton of the country. This huge
buying wave swept nearly every
thing on the list forward for the
suace of a quarter of an hour. Then
the enormous realizing sales, COM
ing from the pools and large specu-
iafiye interests began to tell, and
midway through the morning pric-
es fell for while with considerable
violence. Between the high OF the
onening and the low around noon
acme OF last weeks favorites in the
oil group were off "a and In one
instance points.
This abrupt and very sharp
check had a SOLDERING influence, as
n was calculated to have, upon the
specuIation, which seemed to be
Getting out of bounds. For the rest
Of the day, while dealings con-
tinued heavy and excited, the
movement of prices was more ord
erly.
otso IN tho RpaucfaI sif-
nation was there anything compar>
able in interest to the proceedings
in the stock market. II was big
day in bonds and the market was
strong again. But apart from some
of the railway issues, which went
higher, there was no particular
feature. Some of the Liberty group
kept around par again, but for the
time being the advance in both
home and public foreign securities
appeared To beE over. If anything
could have further stimulated this
part of the market, 1t was the sue
cess of the $50, 100000 offering of
the new treasury 31a per cent ce--
tifcates. The books tor this loan
were closed on Saturday, with a
subscription reported to be nearly
double the issue. In view of the
present rates for money and COM
mercial discounts, the result of this
test Of the governments credit had
not for a moment been doubtful; !
still it was something of surprise
that an over-subscription of such
magnitude should have been so
well counted, as it proved to be. |
in the investment market
The suggestion Of something like
a corner in the May wheat option
made today another day of excite
ment in the wheat pit. Whether or /
not there was any basis for the ru-
mors OF a certain big interest be-
ing heavily committed to the short |
side and finding great difficulty in |
covering remains to be seen. If (
the stories turn out to be true it
will be case of extraordinary mis- /
calculation of existing wheat sup !!
plies at the close of the old crop /
season.
The diversion of interest into !
railway shares was the feature of i
the afternoon market. Buying or
ders were hastily thrown into these /
stocks when the reaction in the in
dustrials threatened to become i'm !
portant- Both standard dividend |
payers and the low priced nom
dividend members of the rail group |
were pushed ahead, many of them |
to new highs for the year.
It was scarcely called for to
read in the days stock market any
fresh significance SO far as its re-
lation to outside quarters was con-
cerned- There was nothing new in !
the situation TO influence the price
movement, which was simply in |
line with increased movement, the |
Preparations which have been go
ing on since the middle of Jaru-
airy. The question whether Wall /
Street speculation is not over do I
ing things may we'll be asked. If |
the proper prognosis of outside !
trade conditions is a further re-
covery that will bring production
ana prices back TO normal, the /
markets during the last three
months have been sufficiently gen.
troqs with their discounting.
The afternoon stock market was
an extremely confused affair. The
lndustrials failed to regain the
puoyance of the opening trading
ana many of them lost ground on :
the day