National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-01-06
ABOJT THE OLD AND YOUNG BLACK
LEGS OF WALL STREET.

LEGS OF WALL STREET.
COMMODORE VANDERBILT AND HIS MIL
LIoNS-s.UNCLE DANIEL" AND HIS ''PEo-
PIES LINEm-INCIDENTs- JAY GOULD
AND JIM FISK, Rufus HATCH, STOCK
WELL, AND JAY COOKE CO.
The New York wall-street gossips, who have
been industriously circulating reports OF ruinous
losses by the panic the part OF the great stock
gamblers of that locality, are now changing their
tune. The presumption is that the original out
cry was made to assist these cormorants to an easy
settlement of differences. These having been ef
sscted the next move is to re-establsh the credit
n the .lame Gucks," so that they may commence
their "bulling" and 'bearing" again. Conse-
.uentIy the story of the Wall street organ now
runs somewhat in tho following style:
CORNELIUS VANDERBILT,
fnstead Of losing five or ten millions, has not only
held his own but has purchased 50 largely It the
oppressed prices that he expects to win ten mill
Hons BY It, and this will make him worth sixty
nilIicns He expects to make 1t round hundred
millions in i've years more. Does he never ex-
Dect to diet No, indeed not under . hundred,
ANYHOW. He will bet you on that. ~
Daniel Drew, who had himself advertised -
broken in order to obtain easy settlement, is now
proclaimed ss having lost only half million, and
having the nice little nest egg Of eight millions
On hand to set the ball in motion with again. He
also expects to live till the beginning Of the next
century. ar-- .. ..
-E A EFT OF HISTORY. 80
Both of these old chaps were born about the
year 1900. They have lived long enough to
be better. Tiey both commenced life like honest
men, laboring with their hands for support for
themselves and families. Then they got to steam
al. and pnY
elided into the railway era, and now they care
little what road earns If they can but control
the stocks for gambling purposes. Dividends are
an object to them only as the means Of sending
the stocks up or down.
rRN-MILLIoN OPERATION.
When Vanderbilt obtained the act Of Legisia-
ture consolidating the Hudson River and New
York Central lines their stocks were much de-
pressed, and had been carefully gathered in the
few hands of the Commodore and such friends as
he chose to admit into the 'ring." OF course, he
knew in advance what the report Of the commit
tee would be, and that the consolidation bill
would pass. When all was prepared and every
thing under control the report was made public,
and the stocks jumped from below seventy 70 one
hundred and twenty six, and badly watered at
that. The .ringn sold out and cleared over fifty
dollars on every share, the green" ones being
the dupes This was purely . gambling transac-
ton. The intrinsic value of the stock was but
little increased by the consolidation and the earn
Ing capacity of the lines was but slightly aug
64ntsd, VILE the additions to their stock &c
counts far more than counterbalanced all such
advantages. So it will be seen that these stock
operators, as they style themselves, Of Wall
street, are non producers living upon what they
can win from each other and such unwary out
aiders a. they can ''rope In" Like the
INDIANS on THE PLAINS,
who subsist by stealing stock from each other and
the unprotected emigrants and travellers, they
are utterly useless in social and business circles
Worse than this, the tendency of these illegiti-
nate operations is to unsettle business affairs by
. disturbance Of the money market. Currency
end coin are locked up or set suddenly afoat by
these gamblers for the purpose of affecting values
in favor of their speculations; and the party who
has the largest 1.pfle'' comes of winner, for the
time being, just as he would in game Of 'poker."
UNCLE DANIELS SHARP TRICK.
Daniel Drew and his old partner, Isaac New
ton, played sharp trick many years ago-about
lsl2-in peoples Line" stock, that acted as an
eye-opener to some of their acquaintances, who
had previously imagined that such pillars Of the
Methodist and Baptist churches could be nothing
Less than square In their dealings. The business
Of the Peoples Line was rapidly increasing on
the Hudson, and. its old boats, Utica" and
q" North America," were getting little passe as
the Troy line were getting out the Empire !" and
"Swallow," two rapid and magnificent boats. So
Drew and Newton conceived the idea Of getting
some of the Albany and other up-the-river mer-
chants to unite with them and take stock enough
to enable the company to build two magnificent
new steamers. By showing the profits realized
by the old boats which were enormous for those
days. they had little difficulty in getting in quite
Q number of
rKN-rHoUsAND-DoLLAR MIN,
with Tom Schuyler at their head. Two floating
palsces were put on the river the next spring and
ran crowded all the season. The business was
immense The new stockholders were in high
elee The new boats had reimbursed their cost
In . single season. The praises Of the skillful
of Drew and Newton were Of the
most laudatory character.
THE ANNUAL MEETING
was held. and the report of the managers was
most gratifying. A very large cash dividend was
expected. Finally new stakeholder moved that
the profits be divided. Uncle Daniel objected that
Duch proceeding would be highly improper Sn.e-
cedent to the taking Of an account Of the stock on
hand, and he moved that in order to ascertain the
cash value of the company's boats they should be
put up at auction at the highest bidder,
TERMS CASH.
The small fry objected to this as unnecessary.
The company wanted the boats to use the next
season. There was no use in selling. But as
Drew and Newton held the majority Of the stock
Mr.. Drew's motion carried. The new boats were
put up first and Drew bid in one at his own price,
and Newton the other. They were the only par
ties present who could command the cashreQuiEte
to make the purchase. Having the custody Of all
the company's money, they were able to plank
down the amount of their bids. The whole prop
erty of the company sold at nominal prices these
sharks taking what was desirable and letting the
balance go-to outsiders. When the sale was over
the pool was found to realize only just enough to
pay the companys bills, Drew and Newton being
the largest creditors next to the contractors who
built the new boats and engines. There was
MUCH TALL SWEARING
In those days and tearing Of hair ard stamping Of
feet and gnashing Of teeth and VOWS Of ven
geance-but there were 10 dividends, and the
affairs of that company were closed. Schuyler
attempted vengeance by building the "Rip Vdn
Winkle,- gay and swirl little steamer, which
he ran in opposition to Drew and Newton rs long
rs he lived. But the peoples Line" prospcred
from necessity. The Western railways, then last
opening and extending. were admirable feeders,
and all the boats found ample employment. The
little folks had their eyes opened, and would
never have cny more stock operations with
s'Uncle Daniel" The latter only chuckled over
his good fortune, and went about connecting new
schemes.
THIS WAS THIRTY YEARS AGO,
and most Of his river compeers have passed
away; but he has graduated from stesmboating
into rsiirosding in which he is now we'll up in the
senior class. 1t is nip and tuck whether he or
Vanderbilt viii take the valedictory honors.
JAY GOLD, -'
another Of the pretended "lame ducks" Of the
late panic, who is now said to be retiring upon .
hlthy ten millions, first began to attain proni-
nsnce in The rail road world about twenty yesrs
ago He assisted in manipulating the Michigan
Southern and Chicago and Rock Island railways
sn those days, and moved with exceeding caution,
but great shrewdness. As he advanced he grew
more bold, but never reached the climax Of sue
Dess until ne united with his own great gifts the
:heek, dash, and brilliant execution Of the
LATE jim FISK.
From that moment he passed to the front with
giant strides Neither laws, courts nor prisons had
any terrors for this "Paul Clifford" firm Of the
s.street." At the death Of Fisk poor Gould lost
heart, but, like . skillful general, withdrew his
forces in good order ard is reported a. about re:
firing with infirm health and paltry fortune Of
zen millions. -
WESTERN BLOOD. -
Rufus Hatch and A. B. St0ckwell are younger
men from the West, who started out in life upon
grain speculations, but naturally erayitated to
We'll street as water runs to the sea. Twenty
years ago Hatch was clerk in . freight and grain
-~rohonae At RocEford IIlinois and afferw rds