The New York herald., 1869-02-20

Bowles is to suffer on his own turf The fol-
lowing must therefore be added to the list OF
assets of the Erie Railroad, for the benefit OF
stockholders, to wit-one country newspaper.
Wall Street and the Financial Rcportors.
For three or four days stocks went down
with q rush in Wall street, In which Of course
there is nothing strange. Some of the sharp
ers were damaged In the downward move
ment, which Is common enough and thing
that no one regrets, 80 far a. it affects the
sharpers. But 1t affects some one else. 1t is
. grave public injury that legitimate values
cannot be placed on the market In our great
financial centre without being submitted to
the possibilities Of the gaming table. No
especial harm is done when the Prince street
sharpers play faro and cheat one another
but harm is done when they inveigle simple
minded outsider, who, with some excusable
faith In his skill ct cards, has q confidence in
the game. Now, In Wall street the so-called
''outsider" Is the legitimate man who has
right there. He ID the owner of property
seeking investment and development, and, act
ing with natural purpose, he finds that where
he ought to be in fair market he Is In fact in
gamblers den. Instead of being In the hands
Of brokers he is In the hands Of thieves. This
is an injury to the community. Why is 1t that
widows, heirs or other owners Of invested
money, though the investment be in what is
confessedly good, are never safe in anything
that is on Wall streeta Why is railroad pro-
perty not good investment for the mass
of the people here, as it is in Franoe9
There is particularly one fundamentally in
some cases, we fear, accessory to the swindling
of the sharpers. This is the financial column.
The financial editors Of the several journals
are much howled over on the street, and the
opinion prevails that in order to set this or that
stock all right in public estimation it is only
necessary to hand certain number Of shares
to the gentlemen whose duty it is to write for
the various papers respectively true history
Of the daily occurrences in that financial
centre. 1t is assumed, either on general prin
ciples or on special experiences, that these
gentlemen, caring more for their own interests
than for the interests of the public, will not
hesitate to deceive the readers they are en-
ployed to enlighten in order that they may
pocket part Of the money thus extorted from
they know not whom. In such hands the
financial report becomes q dangerous machine;
but it must not be In such hands, for it is
capable of being great benefit to the public
The daily financial report was begun by us
when we started the HERALD. We made it
personally. Getting through that part Of our
varied labors that could be done at an early
hour we went to Wall street, saw for ourselves
what was in progress there and returned with
our report sketched out in fragmentary notes on
the fly leaves of letters or other handy scraps
of paper. We told the truth, for we were in
the interesto Of the public; and the truth Of that
locality was not complimentary in those
days any more than it would be now. War
was made upon us right and left by the men
whose little games were spoiled whenever the
public came to know what they were at; and,
strangest Of all things for war originating
in that quarter, it was "moral war;" We
lived through It, however.
Compelled to delegate our labor in the pre-
paration Of q financial report, we have always
meant and still mean to keep that report as
honest as it was in its origin; to constitute 1t
legitimate and exact record Of what is hon
estly done in Wall street, and an exposure
laying bare to the eyes of the public Of what
is dishonesty done there. We will compound
none of the villanies with the fellows who
trade on public credulity to abuse public con-
fdence. One journal shall tell what Wall
street really is and what is done there. We
have had certain amount of difficulty in keep
ing our financial report to this standard, and
have been compelled frequently to change our
reporter. We have seen the benefits Of this
plan and shall not relinquish 1t, and no man
commissioned as financial reporter for the
HERALD can ever feel that he is safe in his
place for moment after he has abused 1t.
II our present man should happen to be as
others have been our plan will always be to
put another in his place.
The Ocean Yacht Race.
When the cable telegram told US Of Mr..
Ashburys acceptance of a challenge from the
ownor of tho Sauuho vva vvara rathar astou-