Year: 1878

FRIDAY. Nov. SO r MI


For the greater part of the day the stock marke
was sluggish and dull with few marks that be
tokcned the presence of large operators and nothing
to enven proceedings beyond the skirmishing of thu
smallest of bulls and bears. What. however. com,
mcnced affair of pickets, ended in general en-
gagement before the day was and the entire
active list was wheeled into line. Western Union
pushed forward to receive the brunt of the attack
and got it-badly too if the bulls candid enough
to confess the truth. and, If not. quotations, like
sponsors in baptism. will answer for them Opening
at 97zs the price held suggishly about these figures
for the better part Of the morning. the stock being
voted dead cock in the pit as viewed from .
sportive and speculative standpoint After midday an
inclination to drop arrested by the appearance
Of Goulds brokers, who not only gave fresh hllip
to waning figures, but created belief in higher ones
to come Out of this clear sky the thunderbol
dropped. With the suddenness Of presto. pass the
price from being excessively strong became ex'
cessively weak. Goulds buyers yielded the pas to
Keenes sellers, and the quotation SO firmly estab.
lshed fell to pieces like house of cards. In twenty
minutes the price had declined from from 97< to 95;
in ten more it had rallied 96; next it fell. with
equal celebrity, to 03h and wound up at the end Of
the day at 04X. These perurbations and this calam
itous ending the natural sequence Of the recent
absurd advance Like the lager Of commerce, ther
maximum Of froth and minimum of found1
ton in the movement and holders Of the stock
at high prices have to-day realized the fact.
The gross absurdity Of marking up the value
of a property some fifteen points because it was
proposed its debt and Of promising to pay
six per cent per annum fifty millions of stock.
when with great dculty it has been only able to pay
six per cent on thrtyfve millions, is beginning to
strike the speculative mind well as the pockets Of
deluded stockholders. Until the lapse in Western
Union brought everything down by the run the
Northwestern and Lake Shore properties exhibited
considerable strength This too in spite of the very
probable belief that Mr. Gould has been liberal seller
of the first and Mr. Keene Of the second It does not
appear that Lake Shore will be injured as specula
tive fancy by the distribution of large block Of
stock. For the future it offers itself for specula
ton upon merits without the danger Of being
overwhelmed on the occasion Of any material riss
by an avalanche Of shares from any single quarter
Most of the specially active stocks recorded lowa
prices the end Of the day in sympathy with Weste
Union. Exception is to be made. however. in thu
case Of the Hannibal and st. Joseph shares, which
made bid for new lease of activity and ended bet
ter than they had begun. The market at the end
weak and feverish the consumption Of leeks by the
bulls had been especially thorough, and the fruits Of
the fall pretty well absorbed by such lucky bears
found themselves short when the break came


The opening highest. lowest and closing prices Of
gold and stocks at the New York Stock Exchange
TODAY were Is follows:-