Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-15
|STOCK PRICES SINK
'-~'-9ssa
follower LEVELS
Market Depressed Further
With New Lows in UtiI-
tiles and Rails.
BY GEORGE T. HUGHES.


Special Dispatch to The Star
NEW YORK, September 15.-Omis-
sion of the dividend by Western Elec-
trio, practically all of the stock of which
Is owned by American Telephone &
Telegraph. together with renewed and
acute weakness in the railway shares,
brought another sinking spell in today's
stock market after an earlier display OF
strength due to short covering.
The passing of the dividend by West
ern Electric was announced shortly
after noon and American Telephone &
Telegraph dropped to the lowest levels
since 1927 Semi Official assurances that
American Telephone would cover its full
SO dividend this year, Notwithstanding
the loss of the Western Electric rev.
enue, steadied the price after it had
broken to points.
The weakness in the rails was in
evidence earlier in the day. They did
not share the firSt-hour improvement
in industrials. Instead, new lows for
the bear market were registered by
long list of seasoned dividend payers,
including New York Central and Atch-
ison. The former sold at the lowest on
record for the present shares and the
latter, at times breaking a point be-
1925
Outside the stock market the COM
modify news included reports of sale
of copper at ~ cents a pound, the
lowest price in the history of the trade.
and a rally in wheat to which consid-
cradle significance was attached because
it came in the face of the weakness in
securities Reports of the meeting OF
the Federal Reserve Advisory Council
at Washington were scanned with IN
tereSt in the hope that some encour-
aging word would be forthcoming from
that body as to business and finance.
The low prices for the day were made
in the last hour with, as usual, feeble
rally lust before the end. The utili-
ties and the amusement shares we're
pressed for sale, the former on pro-
feSsed doubts about dividend rates, and
the latter apparently because Of forced
liquidation. either institutional or indi-
vidual The best support was accorded
TO United State Steel. American Can
and General Motors. 1t was stated in
regard to General Motors that there
was no possibility of reduction in the
dividend this year. while American Can
was expected TO pay the regular rate
plus the regular extra.
The improvement, such as il was in
the early trading. was eXplalnable by
the widespread belief that the market
was oversold and entitled to some sort
Of rally, The large number of stocks
leaning at a premium showed the extent
o. the short interest.
In addition, the Street heard various
reports about an impending announce
mcnt from Washington" the nature Of
which was not stated, but which If and
when issued" was assumed to be some
thing helpful There was no confirma-
ton from Washington of any such pro-
posed announcement, but the story
would not down Then it was heard
that one of the large Stock Exchange
houses was debating the ACCESSIBILITY of
broadcasting advice to buy stocks at
this level.
This could not be confirmed either.
1t was, however, significant that at
this stage of the decline the rumorS
were buIlish. instead OF bearish, as they
generally are NOWADAYS