Flight From Bonds to Stocks 209 
the Federal Reserve System codperating with busi- 
ness in the control of credit. A dangerous surplus 
of gold has been redistributed among the central 
banks of the world in aid of the post-war resumption 
of the gold standard. This has steadied the levels 
of commodity prices in foreign countries and en- 
couraged international trade. The comparative 
stabilization of gold in terms of goods has given 
reassurance to the bond market as well as to stock 
investments. The investment trusts and counsel have 
led investors to put their eggs in three baskets— 
common stocks, preferred stocks, and bonds. 
The high plateau on which the stock market now 
moves—still far above previous plateaus, despite 
the panic of 1929—is, therefore, a result of im- 
proved order and efficiency in the investment market 
as well as in American business. 
Post-Panic Increase of Shareholders 
While the stock market was falling to its low level 
during November, 1929—proving the tragic excep- 
tion to the case for stocks as against investment in 
bonds—many observers were surprised at the 
increase of the number of shareholders reported 
by several large corporations as a result of the 
break. Of course, there was the taking up of 
margin accounts for which the shares were previously 
carried in brokers’ loans, and this explains in a 
measure the increases in shareholders. But there 
was an increase of more than fifty thousand share- 
holders of the Cities Service Company during that