Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1865-01-12
From the N. Y. Independent.
A Glance at tho Gold Market,

On Monday we sat by the window of
building which commands a view of the
room where the spectators in gold have
operated 80 extensively of late.
The place was packed from desk to door,
and from floor to ceiling, with brokers,
merchants, manufacturers, spectators,
agents, clerks, aud messengers. There
were present old men, young men, fast men,
rich men, poor men, and men of every
class, color, and creed. They stood on the
floor, on the counter, on the desks, on the
chairs, on the windoW-sills, and hour after
hour they continued to buy aud sell gold.
Their flushed faces aud flashing eyes told
plainly the state of their minds. Fortunes
were made and lost in minute. Sellers
were more numerous than buy ers, and
they resorted to their usual tricks to slim
ulRte purchasers. When teleRraphio
message favorable to our arms was read,
the uninH men gave cheers, bnt thay
sounded !yeDly. II was 1fkU tue music
of lutte lost amid the roaring
OF bulls and the growing of bears. Men
who are polite in their drawing
rooms, cordial in their greeting, and quiet
in their offices; men who sit demurelY in
church, and who dare not open their lips
to speak in a Christian assembly, or at a
public meeting, throw off all restraint in
the presence of the golden image which
they have set up, and shout frantically.
A stranger UnAcquainted with the language,
and unused to such scenes, would be i'm
pressed with the idea that Bedlam had
broke loose. They cried out at the top of
their voices, and with great rapidly of
utterauCe, gesticulatiug violently the price
they would take for the shining dust A
| score or more of them would speak at the
same time, each endeaYOriug to out shout
his neighbOr. Almost every man had
book in his hand, in which, with convul-
siVe fingers, notes were written. He who
| had plenty of brass as we'll as gold, and
could make more noise than others,
| commanded the most attention and seemed
to do the most business
AT about half past three the gong sound
ed for the open Board to commence oper.
| atoms 10 the street-drectly in front of
the Gold Room. For several minutes
there was contest between the gong
heater and gold bidders Their time was
up, but they continued their cries regard
less OF the rules. The more noise the
gong made-the louder they shouted. The
former was in danger of being battered to
pieces-the latter ran the risk of bursting
their lungs. Finally, brass or copper col
the better of gold, and there was general
rush toward the street. Out they came
like bees swarmiug, some red and soma
pale with excitement. Not few of them
resorted to the stimulus of tobacco-lipbt.
Ing their cigars or crowding the quid into |
their mouths and rolling it as a sweet
morsel under their tongues. Some has
tened to the nearest restaurants. where
they sought to keep their spirits nm bv
pouring spirits down. In the meantime
the bidding commenced. Sellers were
PLENTIFUL but purchasers were scarce
tall maH, wearing white hat, exhibited
Geographic dispatch, and the news Gre.
ated considerable excitement, giving mo.
mentary Vigor to the market An energetic
man, with round head, surmountin0
broad shoulders, offered to sell one him.
urea thousand dollars for certain prioe
on the dollar, but be could not inspire an
acceptable Did. Several men, wearing a
1e"lsn cast oil couutenance, offered sums
varying from hVe thousand to fifty thous-
ana dollars but the buyers were shy, and
wished TO Waituntilthe morning Altho1ob
they did but little business, thew MAIDS a
good deal of noise, and the uewsbovs in the
vicinity endeaVored to sell their paper to
men who deal chiefly in specie, by scream
ing out the nature of the news they had
tor sale. There was also pedlar on the
corner, who offered wagon load of sour
oranges to the men whose teeth had been
set on edge by their misadventures in
the money market. The only quiet ores.
ture there was the pedlar's horss.-E
The poor beast had lost one of his ears,
and fortunately the deaf side of his
head was turned toward the mob of
spectators. Unlike the animal men
toned in the fable of Midas, the other ear
did not turn into gold. In the boisterous
gathering were many substantial men, rep.
Eesenting almost every phase of business.
There were also Rebel agents from the
Southern States-refugees who came here
by way of Canada, without the protection
of our Gag graduates of Fort Lafayette,
Copperheads, who would like
to see the head Of JEFF. Davis stamped on
every American coin Euglishmeu, Cana
dams, Frenchmen, SPaniards, Italians, and
others. Here and there might be seen
milliOpaiHea A yonpD n,an ~.