Evening star., 1933-11-30
PROGRESS HAILED |
| DURING LAST YEAR,
Substantial Advance in Stock
and Commodity Values
Is Outlined.
BY GEORGE T. HUGHES.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, November 3o.-The de-
gree Of holiday cheer to be derived from
q comparison of the financial situation
this Thanksgiving and that Of year
ago depends largely on the individual
point Of view; but, all things considered,
1t ought to be substantial for any
Of US.
In the first place, prices are higher
for stocks and staples. It is true tney
are not much higher. II one insists on
using their gold values instead OF ex-
pressing them in paper dollars, but
inssmuch as all our debts are calcu.
lated in paper dollars we may as well
compute our assets on the same basis.
Taking a few quotations at random,
on the Gay before Thanksgiving IN 1882
Union Pacific was selling around $72
share; a year later it is over 35 points
higher. Then Norfolk & Western was
around 104, and now it is so points
higher. Or II we select a lower-priced
issue, as New York Central. the COM
parison Is between $23 and $34 share
or not much under so per cent advance.
Observe that these are all stocks not
popularly associated with imitation In
fluence.
Looking at typical industrials. Allied
Chemical is up from $75 to Sl40, Air
Reduction up from $55 to 500, j. I.
Case up from $40 to $40, General
Motors UP from s13 to S32. or more
than 145 per cent; United States Steel
up from S34 to s45 and National Bis
cult from $37 to $46. The reader may
make any number Of similar COMPARE
sons for himself.
Metal Gains Larger.
If he selects metal stocks the gains
| are much larger; If he takes public
| utilities, on the other hand. he will find
| many declines. The market as whole,
however, has made great progress dur
ing the IL months.
Now considering a few commodities.
December wheat in Chicago sold around
| ~ cents a bushel Just before Thanks
giving, 1882, and it is now 100 per
cent higher Spot cotton in New York
| the day before Thanksgiving a year
ago sold at 500 cents pound and now
is over 10 cents a pound. This Is
progress, even if we translate present
quotations into their gold equivalents.
; A year ago the dividend news was
extremely gloomy. American Locomo-
tive had just omitted the quarterly pay
! ment on its preferred stock and Stand
ard Brands had Just reduced the rate
on the common.
This week International Silver re-
sumed payments on its preferred,
Johns -Manville is paying up accumu-
lations on its preferred, and United
Carbon has increased its rate, all fol-
lowing a long series of favorable de-
csions by many other boards Of di-
rectOrS.
A year ago the Iron Age estimated
that steel operations were down to 16
per cent of capacity, with little prospect
of improvement, and today the same
authority puts the rate at around %
| Der cent, with the outlook for an In
crease contrary to the seasonal trend.
-- Worries Different.
There was plenty OF anxiety about
the future on Thanksgiving day, 1882
and there is much today, but it is on
| different scores. A year ago the Com
| mercial and Financial Chronicle de-
voted its leading article to decussion
| of the war debt situation following a
statement on the subject by President
! Hoover.
This well-known Wall Street author
| ity declared then that 1.-The business
community regards with great disfavor
| the agitation anew of the subject OF
these payments, and wants the whole
subject disposed of without delay or
circumlocution, and can see no merit
| in the proposition that the payments
should be either Cancelled or reduced
or that there shall be any deferral OF
| the amounts due on December Is"
| The Journal added that everywhere
| one meets with the statement that busi-
ness haltS pending the removal of the
issue"
Well, the debts are not being paid
and If business is hesitant now 1t is
not on that account. As matter OF