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Show MARKET 15 RECOVERING FROI . EFFECTS Or LABOR TROUBLES Banking Editor Reports Complete Elimination of Steel Strike as Factor in Financial Situation on Wall Street. By W. S. COUSINS, Editor National Acceptance JournaL NEW YORK, Oct. IS. The past week has" been signalized by further fur-ther additions to the ranks of dissatisfied dis-satisfied laborers In the eastern industrial in-dustrial centers, and by strikes Innumerable In-numerable for various causes. Thus far there has been little disposition on the part of either the industrial leaders or the important financial interests to become be-come alarmed over the situation, even though a great deal of loss and inconvenience incon-venience Is daily resulting from the idleness idle-ness of the workmen. Wall street has completely eliminated the steel strike as a factor In the general financial situation, since, while emphasizing empha-sizing their readiness to arbitrate, the strike leaders have long since lost their control over the steel workers, sufficient of whom have now returned to work to 1 insure the operation of most of the big j plants. It is admitted by the conservative conserva-tive leaders of labor, such as Mr. Gom-pers, Gom-pers, that the radical activities of its Bolshevik element have greatly injured j its prestige with that great body of peo-i peo-i pie usuaLy referred to as the "general ! public," who are in no mood to tolerate ' the repetition of some of the measures ; that have heretofore been taken to black-i black-i jack the country into submission. ! The Boston police strike was perhaps the most egregious blunder ever com-! com-! mitted in the name of labor, and its most , nonsensical was to attempt to seize con-I con-I trol of the railroads. It was the exhibi-i exhibi-i tion of thene tendencies in organized la- bor that called forth the wrath of that I "other 95 per cent'' of loyal Americans, reminding them that they, too, have rights t as well as the organized minority. Situation Is Speculative Almost every grade and classification , of investment security has been gaining ; consistently and persistently for the last two or three months, and there seems to 1 be no diminution in the public appetite 1 for speculative stocks. The high-grade rails, motor stocks and industrials have been absorbed as rapidly as they could be supplied, and the excess of the demand over the supply in recent weeks has accounted ac-counted for the swiftly mounting quota- tions. j The calculations of many traders were, however, somewhat ups-t by the unfavorable unfavor-able developments of the latter part of the week, especially in the discouraging aspect of affairs at Washington. Advices Ad-vices from th nationai capital showed that the authorities there ure far from feeling enco'.i raged owr the trr.era! out- I look, while the apparent inability of the industrial conference to make any progress prog-ress in the solution of their problems coti-, coti-, firmed The discouraging tendency. Th- bears have naturally made the most of every unfavorable development, confining con-fining their attacks chiefly upon tne prominent industrial".. United St;;t:n Steel and Bethlehem bteel yielded to these attacks, at-tacks, but with com para ti vely litt.e loss, considering the magnitude of the dealings In stock of the b.g corporations. The investing public is now employing wait.ng tactics, and has been especially concerned with the condition of the president. presi-dent. In doing this, it ims upset the calculations cal-culations of the professionals, and thereby made things easy for the b-ars. Tho market has b-en hearing reprts of vari-1 vari-1 o'l.s kindn about the pres dent almost from the first day of his illness, and there l,as be-m nothing more certain than that ! th-j news has been fully discounted by the professionals. ! Tho fact that the market has been j moving forward In the face of these reports re-ports is i tid icative of a hopeful aspect ' of tho news. Railroad Shares Uncertain. I Railroad p hares as a group have, bo ad I reflecting the uncertainty surrounding the 1 freight i ate question. It Meerned for a ! ti me that the market was d isap pointed when the. meeting of the Association of 1 Rail way LxenuM v-h adjourned Monday. J without a more definite expression of i sentiment than was handed out. I In addition, there have been rumors In some quarters that legislation for tho return re-turn of the roads to private control may not bo go i rig as a moot hjy as hoped for. and the:ne havo served to frighten timid holders of some of the rails. That nuch talk is entirely pre mat ure fa genera lly understood In railroad circles, where the belief He ems to be that temporary legls-j legls-j lat.ion will be framed and enacted which will make the return of tho roads to their owners a safe and sane step on January Janu-ary i. The violent fluctuation of call money, which has again been in evidence, reaching reach-ing 15 per cent, pointed to the scarcity of speculative loan funds for use in "supporting'' "sup-porting'' the market. This was associated associ-ated with the declining reserve percentage percen-tage of the Federal Reserve system and the relative loss of gold by the banks, notwithstanding the transfer of some German holdings to the system. Last week's statement showed that there has been no letting up in the disposition of member banks to help themselves through the rediscounting process, and this week there was a renewal of demand for an advance in the rediscount rates, in order thereby to exert a more powerful restraining re-straining influence upon purely speculative specula-tive operations. Government Aid Needed. There are strong considerations of public pub-lic finance, according to well-informed bankers, which militate against such an advance at this time a situation apparently ap-parently leaves the control of raters dependent de-pendent upon a general understanding or community of action on the part of the ; financial public, independent of the policy ! of the reserve Institutions. This influence will continue in the 1 money market for some time to come. There is a growing conviction that gov- ; ernment cooperation will be necessary in j order to inaugurate any acceptable plan ! that will enable the countries of Kurope ; to make necessary purchases in this conn- i try, and at the same time make possible ! the continuance of American export : trade. Testimony of a large number of international bankers is available to this effect, the decision having been reached after several months of intermittent discussion dis-cussion and negotiation, during which action has been impeded by a failure of the adm!n!stration to announce Its policy and finally by almost unparalleled dullness dull-ness In the bond market. This viewpoint is in marked contrast to the enthusiasm with which bankers returning from abroad In the early sum. mr. and perhaps prejudiced by the confidence con-fidence of Kuropo in unstinted hHp from America, set about the creation of an organization for granting foreign credits on a wholesale scale. Discussions to this end hnve met with little- success to date and their failure is generally attributed to lack of eovcrnment support. The slight evidence of initiative has now pansen to Washington, where It appears in the Kdge bill and one or two other measures that are- being pushd In congress. Rankers point out that the Vlay In ratification of the pea) treaty has been the chief obstacle to the granting of for: elgn credits. It Is stated that ther are a number of credits negotiations covering cover-ing which would be pushed to a con-Husion con-Husion if the treaty wr out of the way. Tnt the plans now under consideration do not Involve any broad financing scheme, but rather credits apportioned In plce-meal fashion, which it Is admitted ad-mitted will not go a long way to meet the needs of the situation. Sentiment Eliminated. Sentiment has now been almost entir-v entir-v eliminated from the discussions of foreign financing. Rankers realize that an v credits which may be allowed here will have to be on a purely business basis, and this has proved an obstacle in several sev-eral Instances where countries seeking accommodations have balked at the terms off-red. There hH been a sharp downward down-ward revision of estimates as to the bond - absorpt i ve powvr of t he America n people, of which It is now recognized the success of the Liberty loans arid foreign Issues offered hpre during the war, when the patriotic fervor ran high, furnishes iittlo index. The months which havo been spont In discussion ra'her than action on tho foreign for-eign credit situation have not altogether been wasted, In that an opportunity has be.-n provided for gaining a line on the position of the Kuronean nations. The outlook out-look for the various belligerents may be briefly sii mrned up as fy'lows : K tight nd apparently do-n not dY, ire new credit here, but Is In a favorable position to command It. Belgium's progress toward a normal and hearty financial situation Is regarded as making that country a good rb:k. Respecting France, bankers feel that she Is relying too much on the United stateR and that her people should be taxed more heavily before foreign loans are granted In large amount. Italy's posit Ion Is, perhaps, the least desirable of any of the allien, from the standpoint of cons Id era tlon here, her f Ina nc ial and economic situation still being regarded as uncertain. Germany can probably get credit here In limited amounts as soon as tho treaty Is ratified, provided certain Internal f ina no lal rtwvistireq, t ending to Ft rengt hen her posl I Ion, nre ra rrled out . The new countrieH of central Kurope, with few except ions, are not expected to obtain ob-tain credits except thi-Ji action by tho government, per hn ps u ,oiif? linen situ I la r to that contemplated by the export rredltH department of tho British government. |