Evening Star Newspaper, July 22, 1931, Page 15

FINANCIAL. CURB ISSUES MOVE INNARROW RANGE 0il List Holds Firm—Utilities Inclined to Lower Levels. 7 BY JOHN A. CRO Bpecial Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, July 22—Stocks on the Curb Exchange ranged narrowly today after opening lower. as a result of the ;ouer tone in Paris and London mar- ets. Electric Bond & Share declined be- cause of its 1eport showing lower earn- ings. Cities Service also was a trifle be- low its previous close, though most of the oils were inclined to firmness. Declines of $4.234,65¢ in net income end $6,310,050 in gross from the pre- ceding 12-month period ended June 30 were in line with expectations for Elec- tric Bond & Share. Some forecast of this was givon by the earnings of its principal foreign operating subsidiary. American & Foreign Power, two weeks 0. Brazilian Traction eased here after softening in London, where its earnings report for June, showing net of $2,030. 226, against $2.471.239 in June, 1930, was first published. A feature of the Canadian utilities was a gain of nearly 2 points in Shawinigan Water. The rise of Copeland Products in the last two sessions merely forecast a favorable earning report. Net for the eight months ended June 30 was $265,- 628, or $5.10 a share on the common. Stutz Motor featured the downside of domestic motors with a drop of more than 2 points, despite reports of im- preved business. The Ford shares lead the foreign mo- tors. Ford Motor, Ltd., was partly as a rosult of overseas offerings in this market. Ford Motor cf France, which seldom appears on the tape here, was down % on its opening sale. Ford Motor of Canada was down a small fracticn. With the exception of Vacuum Oil in the Standard group and Gulf Oil in the miscellancous division. most of the active oils in the forenoon pointed higher as a result of higher prices for crude and improved weekiy statistics for both ofl and gasoline. Soft spots in various sections in- cluded declines of & point or more in Pure Oil preferred, Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea. American & Foreign Power warrants, American Gas & Electric and Singer Manufacturing, Ltd. Niagara Hudson Power, which con- templates grouping ity scattered units into three large divisions according to geographical location. for the purpose of reducing costs and financing more con- veniently, moved within a range of a half point. Although coppers remained dull and moved irregularly, owners of silver mine stock expressed considerable in- terest in Germany's issuance of a flood of silver money. In the higher-priced metals Aluminum Co. of America SWung through an arc of several points. The Curb Exchange admitted to trading today Railway & Utilitles Cor- poration. DIVIDENDS DECLARED Extrs, NEW YORK, July 22 (#).— Rea. bie, Ce any Rate. riod. al i Rn" 1 on Foe " aine 30 SiBnee pledIns 1% [ Aug. 1 Tnitial Tillman E P Wk AS0c 8 Resumed. PLILTS .. Aug. Reduced. A2ac @ July 18 Stock. Mid We St Ut A2'2% Oomfted. Clinchfi Coal pf..f1 Minn Honeyw Reg.S0c Hidrs. of record. Jure 10 July 21 July 24 July 20 1 July New Proce 7% Merchants Ine July Aug. 1 July Due Aug Due Aug. Blauners Tne pf 'y & Ca Diam Tee & Eastern Theat Lid. 50c First Sec Corp of Of- den A ..25¢ Do. B’ 25¢ Georz P&L 16 pf.$1:50 Group No. 1 Ol $100 Guelph Carpet M 0. 81570 D iils.25¢ $1.62! High S| B Oswego_ Falls Corp 8°¢ 1st b 3 Peninsuiar Te pf.§1.75 Pne Scale Cor pf 1 Spitz Prop 8% 58825 8t Invest Cor..... Sun Oil pf. Tavlor & Fenn 5000000000 POOLOOPH HOPOO OO T 8! 258 CHICAGO ST(.)CK MARKET By the Associated Press CHICAGO, July 22.—Following is the complete official list of transactions in stocks on the Chicago Stock Exchar‘.g':t Low. Close. 365 31'a rg-Warner . b & Sons: 150 Burnham Trad 100 Burnham Trad f . 400 Butler Bros Constriiction t Il Pub Ser pf il Sec Pub Serv Alllll & So West West Pub Ser A Investors ...... 2a8352,55088.8 50 Com with Ed! 300 Construct Mat pi Cor hica 1 i 200 Elec Househoid 100 Foote G & Mach Bros.. ... 000 Grigsby-Grunow . 100 Hall Print i 100 Houdallle-Her A.. + it will be widely regarded as one of the 50 Morgan Litho 50 Elec Pow AL 150 Nat Family Str 100 Nat Secur Inv 250 Nat-Standard N n_Radio 1 50 Parker Pen 50 Perfect Circle 50 Polyment ... 230 So Ui 130 Stand Tele nf Swift & 50U S Gyl 5550 U S Radio & 300 Util & Ind... 100 Vortex Cup.. G 100 Vortex: Cup ‘A 11l 50 Walgreen Co 10 Wayne Pump .. 380 West Grocer. . 100 West P & L & Tel A 430 Wis Bankshrs........ 5 100 Yates Mach. . 3 Stock sales today, 58.000 shares. Tei.. BONDS. flfl'o'?lmufl THil #s '40 85'% B84% 85'% nd sales today, $13,000, Note—All stocks are sold in exoepting those ~Prev, 1931~ Hish, Lew, 38 Stock ana Dividend Acme Steel (2% Affiliated Prod 1.6/ Alleg Gas. ... . Aluminum Co of Am Am Cit P&L B b10% . Am Com P A (b10%) Am Com Pr B(b10%) Am Invest Inc (B) Am Maracaibo. .. Am Superpow (40¢). Am Util&Gen (B)vte Anglo Chil Nitra Appalachian Ga Arkansas Nat G Arkans Nat ¢ Armstrong Cork (1 Asso G&EL (A) (al). Atl Fruit & Sugar. Atl Lobos pf.. Atias Ut Corp. Auto Vot M ev pf b Beneficial 1L (1%).. Bickford's Inc (1.20) Alue Ridge Corp. Blue Ridge cv nfal.. RBrazil Trac Lt&P(1) Bridgep Mach (25¢).. Brill Corp A (340). Buft N&EP pf (1.60). { Cable & Wire B ret: Cent West PS Aal Centrifug Pipe (60c) Chain Store Devel. Chain Stores Stock Citles Service (£30c Citles Serv pf (6). .. Clev El Illum (1.60). Colon O11. Col Ol & Gas vte Cmwlth & Sou wa Com Wat Ser g12%e Consol Anto Merch. . Con Gas Balto (3.60). Cont Shares conv pf. Copeland Pr Inc (n)« Cord Corp. . Cosden Ofl . Creole Petroleum. Crocker Wheele: Cross & Blk pf (3%) . Crown Cork Intl (A) Cuban Cane pr opt w. Curtiss Mfg Co (A).. Dayton Air & Eng... Deere & Co (1.20).... De Forest Radio. Delsel W Gilb (115). Detroit Afrcraft Cp. DressSRA (3%). Dubllier Cond & Rad Duquesne Gas Corp.. Durant Motors. . Fast States Pwr (B). East Util Assoc cv. . Rlec Bond&Sh (b6 % ) 4 Elec B & Sh cu pf b Elec B & Sh pf (6)... Elec Pow Assoc (1). Elec P & Lt op war... ¥1 fhareholdg (b6%) Kmp Corporation. . .. Evans Wallow Lead. Fin Cp Balt A (80c). Florida P & L pf (7). Ford M Can A (1.20) Ford Mot Fran 373 Ford Mot Ltd 36 3- Fox Theater ClA... Gen Aviation. 4 Gen Cable war. Gen Theat Eq cv pf Georgia Pow pf (6).. Globe Underwr (15 1 Golden Center..... Gold Seal Elec new Goldman Sach T C. Gt At&Pac Tea nv() Guif Ol of Pa (1%). Hambleton Corp pt Hamilton Gas ret; Hecla Mining (40¢c). Hoilinger Gold(65¢). Hudson Bay M & § Humble Oi! (12%). Hygrade Food Prod. Imp O1l of Can (50¢) Imp Tob Can (36c) Insull Inv (b6%). ... intercontinent Fetn. Int Petroleum (1). Int Utilities B. Interstate Equiti Italian Superpow A. ngs C L cum pf D5 Kolster-Br (Am Sh). Leonard Ot Lone Star Gas n 38¢c. Long Isld Lt pf (7) MacMarr Stores (1). | 12% % 101 McCord Radiator B.. Mavis Bottling (A).. | Rad & Telev(1). | 3 3 Mead Johnson(t4%) i Metal & Mining, Inc. i Mid Sts Pet vie A 22¢ one hundred-share designated by the létter s (80s) (350s. Sales— Add 00. Oven. Hign. Low. Close. 30 194 11 123 % .': h. Low. 30 19% 1% 126% kel 2% 30 ‘s 119 % 81% 7 12% 20 Nat N No Am Pander Pub Ut Sel Ind Shawin| Sin Solar Stock and o Dividend R 7 Mid W Bt Ut (1%). 14%% Mid West Ut (b8%). 14 Mid St Prod n (2) Midland Unit (b6%). Mo-Kan Pipe L (A). 10 Mountain Prod (1). 1 Mount St Pow pf (7 Received by Private Wire Direct to The Star Office SBales— Add 00. Open. 8 11 6 Low. Close. 10% 11% 104 11% 18% 18% 17% 17 18% 18% L] % 4 3 4 % 33 % 19% Nat Pub Sy A (1.60). Nat Service Co New Eng Fow pf (8). New'Mex & Ar Land. Newmont Mining, N Y Auction. .,.. N Y Steam n (2.60). N Y Tel pf (6%). Niag-Hud Pow (40c) « Niag-Hud Pow A w.. Nitrate Corp Chile B. Nordon Corp Ltd. . Nor Am Aviat A wi L&P (b8%). Nor Europ Oil Corp, Nor St Pow pf (8). Northw Yeast Co 12) Ohio Coppe: PacG &K 1 ot Pennroad Corp (40¢)., Perryman Electric. Petrol Corp war Philip Morris Inc. Pilot Rad T e Pitney Bowes (b1%) Plymouth O11 (1), Prod Roy Cp (b10%) Propper McCally Prudential Invest Pub Util Hold war. ., Pub Util Hold Cp be A Hold cu pf(3) Pure Ol pt (6)... Rainbow Lum Pr A Rainbow Lum Pr B Reiter-Foster Republic Gas C ReybarnCo......... Roch Gas&E pt D(6). St Anthony Geld St Regis Paper (60c) Salt Creek Pro(1.40). Segal L& H Selected Industrie 00) alctfs (5l). Sentry Safety Cont ign W&P 214 Shenandoah Corp. Shen Corp pf (a3) Silica Gel e1f; er Ltd re efining. . South Penn Ol (1). South Corp. ... Spleg May Stern pf..650s Stand Ofl of Ind (2).. Stand Oll of Ky 1.60.. Stand Pwr & Lt (2) Stand P& L (B) (2). Stand Silver Lead. .. Starrett Corp pf (3) Stutz Motor Car. . Sunray Swift&Co (2)...... Swift Internat (3). Syracuse W Mach B. Tampa Electric (32). Teck Hughes (60¢).. Tobacco Secur. Litd. . Tobacco Se. Tonopa Tran Con Air Tra Trans Lux DL P Tri-Cont Corp war, Tri-Utllities. . . Tung Sol Lamp (1) Tung-Sol L pf (3) Union Am Invest. . Unit Founders Unit Gas Corp. Unit Gas pf (7).... Unit Lt &Pwr A (1) U'S Elec Power ww U S Elec Pwr war U S Finishing. U S Fol U S & Inl Secur..... U S Inter Sec 1st pf.. Unit Verde Exten (1) Utah Aps Util PELt(a11.02%). Utlitty Ul Eq 1214 k) 2 3 9% 1 ) 17 110% 10% Venezu 8% Wal e 33% 124 12 9% 2% % Dividena nual payment. » Payable in cash or stock. | dividena. 1 Plus 8% stock. §Plus 3% in stock. n Plus 8% In Utll & Ind... Vacuum Ol (2) V Camp Milk pf ww Wenden Copper Wil-Low Cafaterl, Wil-low Cafe pf (4). Wiwor! “Y" Oll & Ga rates 1n dollars bay *Ex dividend. 19 ~ (Nathan) Ol (b5%) Ltd D h Belmont v PR [UTVPN - JOPRTOTSBIVEI - P - TR OTUPN JUPRPRre) I IO Uy 1 (B) (50¢)... ex. . 1 Equities. .... uity pt (53%). a Petrolm Vie Finan Corp(40e) (H) (50¢) U RS 3 2415 2415 1% 11w % 1% s d on Iast quarteriy or semi-an- 1Partly extra. 1Pius 4% in stotk. bPayable in stock. e Adjustment € Plus 6% in stock. hPius 1% in stock. k Plus 10% in stoek. m Plus 3% 1n stock. D Paid Iast year—no regular r th (FW) Lt in stock. WALL STREET AWAITS ACTION ON U. S. STEEL COMMON DIVIDEND { @ | steel industry, since it has become BY CLAUDE A. JAGGER, Associated Press Financial Editor. NEW YORK, July 22.—Directors of | the great United States Steel Corpora- | tion will meet next week in one of the | more important conclaves of industrial- | ists and financiers of this decade. Probably never in the history of this | major unit in American industry has| Wall street awaited a meeting of its board with more intense interest. i Directors will, at this meeting, deter- ' mine whether the annual dividend rate of $7 a share will be maintained for another three months. Whatever de- !cision they will make will be of decid edly more far-reaching influence than, the mere effect upon the cash return to ' , hc'ders of Steel common. ‘Will Influence Opinion. Financial and business opinion gener- ally will be profoundly influenced by the | decision of these dircctors. It would be | difficult to assemble a group of men . whose collective opinion bears greater prestige in the world of industry and | finance. If the dividend is maintained at its ‘current rate of $7, established in 1926, It | most favorable omens of the year. : | will be acceptsd as concrete “eviden of a belief in high financial quarters, that the worst of tnis depression— described by some obseivers as the most | | severs of this generation—is definitely | | past, or passing: that another new year | | may’ be depended upon to bring steady | improvement. i ‘t t the dividend is reduced, many will| rccept the action as a sign thoi further (important readjustments must he made | [in"the economic_structure before we, ! may be certain that the depre-sion has| reached bottom. Some may regard i |is an indication that the steel directors | feel that there are new and imponder- | | able forces at work in this depression, | * | already drl?glng on beyond the aver- . | age span 12 makes its probable duration, altogether of a cyclical slump, which . uncertain. Furthermore, others will see | a forerunner of wage reductions in the 8, fairly widely accepted principal that dividend reductions must precede wage cuts. ‘Whether the directors dividend action Jwill actually depend altogether upon | such considerations in the minds of the directors, is, of course, at ques- tionable. It is possible that's statement Decision of Directors at Meeting Next Week Will Have Far-Reaching Effect on Business World. may be issued with the dividend an-| nouncement, designed to forestall er- roneous or extreme interpretations. It is rare, however, that the steel directors make any comment along Wwith their dividend announcements. And in any case, the influence upon buriness senti- ment is bound to be mighty. ‘Wall Street is inclined to attach more significance to this meeting of the steel directors than to recently preceding ones. A corporation with a reputation for stability of its common dividend might be expected to maintain its dis- bursements largely from surplus for at least two successive quarters, as it has. But it is also well known that the cor- poration has carned little if anything toward its common dividend in the Ins: quarter, to be considered at next weck's meeting. It is felt that enough has probably been paid from surplus so that directors m mlklnr further inroads for ihe sake of maintaining the undiminished divi- dend. It is argued that the steel direc- tors would probably want to foresee substantial improvement within the next six months ot so before diminish- ing ‘surplus further by declaring an- oll_}gl_l" dlvidend"lt L(hc recent rate, e more optimistic observers in Wa Street believe that because of the pro‘! found psychologicel influence of the directors’ action, of which they are well aware, they may be depended upon to rder ‘he reguiar disbursement for at least another quarter, in an effort to stimulate business sentiment, in ad- vance of the Autumn revival of trade. The \Ie‘w haz been expressed rather frequent!y in important circles of late that business seems be bumpin; along the bottom of the depression ready to turn_upward once confidence is restored. 1f ths directers of the teel corporation ars impressed with ;flnl vlev:'i“l; :ux'::u!fl seem reasonable to ppose ey might or e} dividend from e e costs the Steel corporation, rough! :}5:109;000 to pay a quarteriy dlvigerl:):i 75, on its approximately 8,690,000 share: common stock. In the last two q\ingf te:s reported it has earned only 75 cents a share, alf h it has paid common dividends totaling $3.50 a share, dipping into surplus to the extent of nearly $24,- 000,000. Of course, the corporation is in an ext strong position, and is well fe ith to continue paying dividends from surplus, if the now hesitate considerably before | or at the annual rate of $7, | directors felt justified in doing so. Cash and marketable securities, as shown in ’lhp annual balance sheet of December 31, totaled $197,807,000. Net working capital amounted to $469,500,000. European Crisis. It is pointed out that one factor tha may influence the Steel directors to- ward maintaining their dividend at the next meeting is the prospect that the | European financial crisis may be more | definitely dealt with before directors meet again in September. It is possible that they may decide 1o postpone any change in dividend pohcy pending more definite results of the international ef- forts to adjust the situation. STEEL PRODUCTION NOW AT 30 PER CENT Trade Reviews See Lowest Point of Depression, With Senti- ment Stronger. By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, July 22—The Weekly Steel Trade Reviews today estimated that production was down to 30 per cent of capacity, the lowest level of the depression, but sald sentiment was scmewhat stronger. Iron Age, reporting a 2-point drop In the operating ratio. said ‘hopefulness of a decided turn for the better by Sep- tember is spreading” among the pro- ducers and that there was a general belief present levels of output weuld continue through August without ma- | terial change. “Reduced requirements of the auto- mobile builders, the compietion of rail contracts l;ld the Jflcl'ldln:u?)gn:l‘.l'!; gas and oil line proje for the curtailment. The automobile industry will reach the low of the year in August. with !ogrdllcucm expected not to exceed 175,000 cars. Construction | enterprites are sustaining factor, such | as a fairly steady movement of brid and building work, road work and pub- ' lic_improvements. ‘Stee] said producers entertained “no | illusions of a genuinely encouraging up- | turn in demand before late August or September—in fact, somé will regard ! the sttainment of a 50 per cent operat- | ing rate by Fall a noteworthy achieve- | ment—yet the ingreasing attention be- ‘lngpmwpricub-numenthnt e industry is preparing for the long pall | teward improvement.’ iy | or August promotional sales co?&',fl'ea'w feature the order for men'’s wear placed by the large number of buyers visiting the New ‘York markets during the week, resident offices re- port. Price is essential factor in ht, and buyers are suitable goods, NEW YORK, July 22 ().—Stocks heavy; trading _extremely dull early decline. Bonds heavy; German issues sag. Curb heavy; slow decline. Forelgn exchanges easy; sterling rallies after early weakness. Cotton lower; | favorable weekly weather report. Sugar higher; firm spot market. Coffee easy; commission house selling. CHICAGO, July 22 (/) .—Wheat steady; bullish Government weather re- port. Corn easy: bearish Oklahoma ad- v'l::ld Cattle strong to higher, Hogs, L y. S ON THE CURB MARKET. DOMESTIC BONDS. High r Rad 4148 Roll Mill 55 ‘48 84 o5 5§ 2As50 G & 23 Asso GAE 4'as 7 Asso Gas & 40 Atso Gas & 1 Ass E 25353sgs220 i 43 Cent Pub Ser 5'ys 20 Cent. Stat Elec 5 - ities Service 55 S Cit Serv Gas 5iys ' 1Cit Ser Gas P Se: UL 655 A w A'es 5 38Cont G & E 55 A 4 Crucible Sieel 55 21 Cudahy Pkg 5'25 1Dela El Pow 5038 G [ ns 55 B 2 Det Inter Brdg 7s 's2 16 East Tt Inv 55 '54 ww 16 Feq at 1 Pirestone Tire 6 Fisk Rubber 51,8 11 Florids P & L 8 &L ndependt Oil ndnap P&L 5 5 Kentucky Ut 8s H 11 Kopper G&C 5las 1Laclede Gas 3135 '3 4Lehigh P S 65 20; 1 Nevada Calif S5 '56 Eng GE &5 47 c 5y 48, &P 4158 A ‘67 9 haw W&P 4158 D 10 Snider Pack As 6 Shaw W. 4 Shaw s 139 2 Super of Tllin 4ias ‘68 913, 13 8Witt Go 85" 40 wios 1021 2 Swift Co Sv '44.". " 1035 1 10 Tenn Eiec Pow 8¢ '58 10333 2Tenn Pub Serv 55 '70 9911 3Tex City Gas 58 '48. 63, 14 Texas Elec 55 ‘60 wi100'3 t 65 '45. 50 L 5s '36. 102 1 A 205 163w < 1830 1023, & 2 Texas P&L 6s 27Tri Ul 85 79 2Ulen & Co 1 bmion B % £'sy B 34 Union_Gul § 1Unit P & FOREIGN BONDS. 2 Aer Mtg Bank 7s i 1 alen"Af 0508 48 70 5Terni Soc 6 With warrants. Without warrants. n—New. wi—When jssued. —-e. BALTIMORE STOCKS. Bpecial Dispatch to The Star. BALTIMORE, July 22.— Bales. STOCKS. 50'Arundel Corporation 60 Baltimore Tr! 0. . one Bal redit ptd. s com. ... ... 8RY, - cum pfd Al 107 1 com. .. 3 12 25 Consoli Cor 2. . Mills com. . A 40 Consolidated Co: 30 Eastern Rolling 200 Finance ‘Service com 35 First Netio) k. i i 20 Maryland Casualty Co... 336 Mtg Bond & Ti 20 Merchants & Miners Trans 138 New Amsterdam_Cas Co. 50 U 8 Fidelity & Guaranty 10 Western Maryland Dairy pfd 4900 United 20000 W B & Tests t; an airplane fitted with a heavy oil engine are being made in Germany. 4 'BONDS. Rwy & Elec lst 4s A Railway 1st 55 PINANCI STOCK AND BOND AVERAGES By the Associated Press, 'WEDNESDAY, JULY 22. STOCKS. 50 Industrials, Month ago. Year ago. Two years ago. Low, 1229. 90 T BONDS. Today. . Previous day. .. High, 1931. Low, 1931 High, 1930. Low, 1930. High, 1929 Low, 1929. NEW YORK, Jul world yesterday was a London conference to volume of credit to Germany, and national Settlements, or a appoint a committee to devise a converting short-ter: term issues. This ste| structive, witl was interpreted activity and strength. ly of a professional nature. lic following will develop until confirmed optimists. reaching in character. to 6 cents a pound. Will Aid British Canners. American enterprises engaged in the canning and distributing of fruits ma: [ recetve serious corpetition from Brit- | ish concerns, at least in th> British markets. According to a statement by Tom Johnston in the House of Com- mons, Great Britain proposss to take selected areas, with a view to supplant- ing California canned fruits with Brit- | ish products. For the time being. how- ever, America's industry has lttle to fear. U. S. to Draw Money. Uncle Sam is about to draw down his bank deposits over the entire coun- try tomorrow to the extent of $13.911.- 800. The Treasury Department will withdraw $4.977.900 from banks in the | New York Federal Reserve district After this call for funds, the United States will still have a sizable bank 2| account, since $94,579.000 will remain on deposit in New York and $264,323, 400 in the entire country. The money called by the Treasury | Department represents 5 per cent of the | amount remaining on deposit for the account of the recently ficated 3's per cent Treasury bonds of 1946-1949. Better Business Reported. Some lines of business indicate a turn | for the better. This seems especially true of clothing manufacturers. many | of whom are reported to be increasing operations. _ A large concern in Rochester, N. Y. has placed all its| plants on full time for tge first time in 18 months. [ (Copyright, 1931, Standard Statistics Co.) 'm obligations into long- 1 benefit | turbances. | Latin_America 10 Industrials, 100.8 96.0 Everybody’s Business The Public Is Not Likely to Return to the Securities Markets Until Definite Plans Are Made to Bolster Foreign Credit. NKLER. y 22—The outstending event in the financial recommendation made by Washington to the he effect that banks do not disturb the present that later on the Bank for Inter- imilar body, plan of as con- the result that the securi- ties markets displayed considerably greater Prices were uni- formly higher, but trading continued large- It is doubtful whether any large pub- there is mbre concrete evidence of an agreement regarding the European situation. problems confronting the powers are so varied and numerous that an early solu- tion cannot be looked for, even by the most The What we can hope for at best is the creation of a more cheerful atmosphere, | which will permit the leaders of the nations to work out and put into effect such meas- ures as will prove constructive and far- Dr. Max Winkler. Protective Duty in France. While the United States is generally accused of being the most | | rigidly protective nation, prohibitive measures put into effect by other countries are often overlooked. France has just authorized an in- crease of 100 per cent in the import duty on sugar. this decree, the rate on refined sugar from the United States has been | increased from 170 to 340 francs per 100 kilos, or from about 3 cents | As a result of of many American who hold Chilean obligations. Consequently, the board of the Na- tional City Co. Shrewsberry a resident vice president domiciled in South America. Mr Shrewsberry will start immediately for Santiago, Chile, where he has served before, investors Gain in Sugar Price. It is generally true that political diffi- culties-are the result of economic dis- to No one 3 cxampie, that most of the troubles of the republics south of the Rio Grande can be traced to the downward trend | in the price of their principal commodi- | ties. One may. therefore. look with confi- | dence to some improvement in the po tion of Cuba due to the very gratifying rise in sugar, the island’s principal standby. Since the going into effect of the so-called Chadbourne plan, sugar has scored a rise of more than 50 per | cent. In addition to tHe plan, which is perhaps responsible for most of the Tise, other factors have also played a parf. Among these are the scasonal demand for the commodity, this being | the canning season; a decrease of more | than 8 per cent as compared with last | ear in the acreage of American beets | to be harvested; expscted reduction in | the European crop; the larger demand | for refined sugar due to the warm weather, and last, but not least, the technical position of the market. On account of low prices, Cuban pro- | ducers have withheld sugar for sale and | has elected Willard | Protection for Investors. | with the amount of duty-free sugar at For some time past the National City | a minimum, and with refiners low cn| Co. of New York has been identified raw stocks, the Cuban producer is in a With Chilean finances. The recent in- | position to demand better prices. | terruption in the country’s debt service L i ! requires constant watching for the (Copyrisht. Newspaper Alliance. Inc.) # EARLY ACTION IN RATE PLEA URGED BY EXPERT BY J. R. BRACKETT. Associated Press Business Writer. PHILADELPHIA, July 22—Dr. Ed-| | ward S. Mead of the University of Pennsylvania believes the Interstate | Commerce Commission should reach a| decision quickly, pro or con, on the railroads’ request for a 15 per cent in- crease in freight rates. i “Unless the commission gives its de- cision .earlier than the time usuall taken for hearings and consideration, said Dr. Mead, who has made a study of the rail problem, “1931 will be gonec. “And most proponents of the increase | contend nearly $5.700,000.000 of high- grade rail bonds will be illegal for New York savings bank and trustee invest- ment, because railroad earnings have fallen below the legal requirements. “While other States have less stringent bank requirements, and though life insurance companies work under more lenient rules, their invest: ing policy, they admit, is greatly in- fluenced by New York's policy. It is influenced so much that if the bonds should become illegal by cause of too slight earnings, the result would be, in the words of the Security Holders Committee, ‘a collapse of prices com- parable to the worst panic days. Might Suspend Law. “The commission can hardly work | faster, since it must give audience to | all parties and make a thorough study of an exceedingly inyolved problem. “Even so, the situation may not be so bad. The New York Legislature can act in February to alter the law and make 1931 a breathing spell. Then, if in 1932 the 15 per cent in- crease, assuming it is granted, pro- duced enough revenue, or, if there should be a good upturn in business, the bonds would not be disturbed. “But will the increase provide the New York State legal earnings of one and one-half times certain regular ex- penses? Applied to the revenue of 1930, 1t would be sufficient, provided the ad- vance in rates did not stimulate the competition with the railroads or trucks, pipe lines, boats, central power stations, all of which are constantly gnawing at railway traffic, and provided | decline in passenger traffic due Itc the competition of private automo- |must be given, if the calamities which RAIL FREIGHT | however, the rate increase, even if fully productive of expected revenue, would fall short of restoring the credit of those roads whose credit is endan- gered. “For the earnings of 1931 are not real earnings, because the railroads admit- tedly did not account for deferred main- tenance costs in their published earn- ings. They admit their 1931 earnings are overstated. Effective Relief Needed. “This deficiency must carry over o 1931, and it must be made up, for it is a physical deficiency—in ties, rails, cars and_locomotives. the regular 1932 maintenance are, as they must be to keep up efficiency, de- ducted from the $400,000,000 estimated ain from the rate increase, some of the largest railroads could not make the re- quired earnings even in 1932. “Evidently some more effective relief | insurance companies and savings banks | envisage are to be averted.” O i T e th l HOARDING OF CASH IHAS BEEN RESUMED PR, Reserve Board Finds Much Mcney Is Deposited in Side- boards and Socks. BY WILLIAM BRUCKERT. Bpecial Dispatch to The Star. The Federal Reserve Board thought in the early months of 1931 that the hoarding habit of that part of the American public given to such things was about broken, but it now says that developments of the months of April, May and June show & consid- erable amount of cash was taken out of banks for re-deposit in sideboards jor_socks. In fact, the withdrawals of money have grown so great in some instances that the board says in its latest dis- cussion of the situation today that they constitute a considerable factor in the general credit position and the relation of the Federal Reserve system to it. In other words. here is an old problem that under present conditions has become decidedly new, and it is ! just one more cause for worry among those whose responsibility it Is to see that things financial move along in & course that is least disturbing to all concerned. No Accurate Figure. There is no accurate figure obtain- able on the amount of cash so hoarded, according to the Federal Reserve au- thorities, yet they have a feeling that the sum runs into hundreds of mil- lions, perhaps even a billion dollars. It is so great, in any event, that fur- ther study will be given it by experts on the subject of currency circulaticn. Undoubtedly, it was expiained, bank- ing troubles, like those which occurred in" Chicago a month ago, contribute to the hoarding. both among the banks and individuals, but the amount of cash which banks store in vaults is traceable to an extent and may be | calculated. As to this part of the cur- rency. it is well known that the banks increase their stores of reserve cash somewhat whenever rumors are afloat that may cause runs. That is solely a precautionary proposition. Continuation of the increase in gold stocks of this country, now at the high- est_point in history and very near to $5,000,000,000, has had no effect on the demand for Federal Reserve Bank credit as a result of the currency hoard- ing that has been going on, the board explained. There has been a return flow of currency to the banks twice since the first of the current year, when by all the rules of the game there should have been no such return. These came when there were temporary lulls in l}:‘n: fear held by those who hide their cas Money in circulation. which. in this country, is used only for a relatively small proportion of the total payments, fluctuates usually in accordance with changes in tie volume of retail trade, factory pay rolls and changes in the cost of living. Since 1926, however, there has been a gradual decrease in the volume of money in circulation. U to the Autumn of 1929, a period of active business, this was due chiefly to Increased use of checks and to a return flow of American currency from for- €ign countriet after stabilization of their own currencies, as well as to & ~ | gradual decline in the cost of living and to some economies in the use of cash by banks. Shrinkage in Circulation. | October, 1929, the volume of {money in_circulation was $200,000,000 |lower than for the same month of 1926, | There was a_decline of about $300. /000,000 from October, 1929, to October, 1930, because the circulation shrank i Tesponze to the business decline. Beginning with November, 1930. how- |ever, there was a rapid increase in | circulation, far in excess of the holiday | requirements. due. in part, to the bank- ing disturbances in Kentucky and Ten- nessee, along with scattered failures among financial institutions elsewhere. This non-seasonal increase apparently carried over into January as a result of important bank closings in New York and Philadelphia Around the first of February. the confidence was re-estab- lished, and a considerable amount of currency was redeposited with the banks and pessed along to the Federal Re- serve banks. so that in February and March the return flow of currency was far in excess of the seasonal volume. During those months the normal volume of curren~y in circulation is larger than in January in normal vears. This year, however, there was no chang: of conse- quence, and so the board judged that the seasonal demand had been largely | By | offset by money coming out from its hiding places in the households of hoarders. (Copyright. 1931). Grain Market By the Associnted Press. CHICAGO. Juiy 22.—Indications that ort business in United States wheat by way of the Gulf of Mexico had been rger than acknowledged gave firmness to prices late today. Domestic primary receipts of wheat were smaller, totaling | 4.445.000 bushels, compared with 5.682.- 000 a year ago. Buying of wheat | against simultaneous equal sales of corn | was a feature Wheat closed steady, unchanged to 1, cant off, corn varying from ': de- cline to % advance. oats !g to 33 down rovisions unchanged to 12 cents uly - 5 September 11 December CORN— Julz ; September December OATS TR September December RYE— R September | December .. “If this deferred maintenance lndl New York Cotton Special Dispatch to The Star. NEW YORK, July 22.—A further | feeling of anxiety over the outcome of the London Conference disturbed all markets today and cotton prices broke PARLEY ON SILVER. By the Associated Press. The world's silver problem will be discussed at the fourth Pan-American | Commercial Conference which will meet in Washington October 5 to 12,/ under the auspices of the Pan- American Union, bringing together commercial leaders from 21 American republics. With Mexico, the United States and Peru accounting for 70 per cent of the world luction last year, considera- tion of the question by representatives of these three nations at the forth- coming commercial confererice is ex- pected to have an important effect on any future negotiations on the silver situation. ~ Scrap Steel Prices. NEW YORK, July 22 (#).—The Iron Age composite price for steel melting scrap has made the second advance since its 30-year low, $9.08, was reached late in June. It is now $9.25 a gross ton. The pig iron. composite dropped 2 cents to $15.54, a few iow since late I biles and motor busses did not continue its ting effects on passenger revenues. “Applied 1915, and the finished steel composite has receded to 2.11 cents a pzund from the 2.137-cent level held for three the earnings of 1931, weeks, another quarter of a cent, making & decline of half a cent in two days. After maintaining a fairly steady range around 940 for October for | several hours, continued weakness in the stock market brought the list under | pressure the last hour and cl | quotations at the bottom. Spots were reduced 25 points to 9.15. Cotton range: Cle 29 28 38 U: 8. TREASURY BALANCE. ‘The United States Treasury balance, announced today as of close of business July 20, was $328,064,295.52. Customs receipts for the month to date were $20,884.312. Total ordinary expendi-' tures, $15,999,523.30. COTTON SPINNING. By the Associated Press. The cotton spinning rted by the Census | have been operated during June at 87 | per “cent capacity, on a single shift basis, compared with 89.9 per cent in. myw year, and 1763 per cent in year. B July QOctober December | Jenuary arch May . industry was re- Bureau toZay t) | !