Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1875-06-02
RUSSELL SAGE.

RUSSELL SAGE.
a spicy Description of the Great Stock On
erntor-How the Sc Boys, on Change Once
Handled Him.
From the N. Y. Sun.
Among the leading Wall street manip-
ulators there is one whose name is not
so frequently before the public as that
of Jay Gould or Daniel Drew. but
whose influence is, on that account, not
less powerful, and that is the thin, dry,
angular Russell Sage. Truly speaking,
he IS even stronger man than Gould or
Drew. for be has neither party nor
even friends, and is much more mistrust-
ed by the public at large than either
Gould or Drew. Consequently the
business success he achieves is due solely
to the efforts of his own person; and q
very characteristic person is Mr.. Sage.
He has been occasionally and some
what disrespectfully described as Ca
cadaverous reptile, caught at the head
OF the Hudson river navigation" mean
ing at Troy, where he used to hold,
years ago, the post of Aldermen or
something of that sort. How much
money he made there no one knows,
but the whole of Wall street is perfectly
aware that at the present moment
Russell Sage is the man who has more
available cash than any other person
down town. His fortune is estimated at
five or six millions; and it has been
made chiefly in selling e'puts " and
'calls." He will sell them on any
stock, and to any amount; but when
the time comes to take them in, there is
no man SO particular as he with reference
to the details of the transactions. in re-
gard to the day, hour, and terms,
especially if he happens to be the losing
person. The small dealers trading in
"puts " and "calls " complain of hav
ing to look out very sharply in dealing
with him. and to be very stringent with
reference to the signature of the great
manipulation, for SO long as he has not
appended his name to contract he
does not consider it binding.
A person very different in his habits
from both Gould and Drew, he does
nearly all the Office work himself. He
is his own confidential clerk, hookkeep-
er, and cashier; and is one Of the first
men to appear at the Office in the morn
ing; while Daniel Drew and Jay Gould
carry on their operations much in the
fashion of powerful potentates, tele.
graping orders to their cabinet minis
ters from their private residences. In
the appearance of Mr.. Sage there is
nothing that would give the slightest
indication of his wealth. Dan Drew
wears at least a gorgeous seal skin coat
In winter time: Jay Gould neverappears
without whole staff of his orderly off
GERS, beaded by his General
d-de-Camp, Charley Osborne;
while Russell Sage is never to
be seen outside Of the Office, where he
has not even a private room, and sits by
the side of his solitary clerk. He has
even no Office of his own, for the room
he occupies belongs to the Milwaukee
and st. Paul Railroad Company, of
which he is Vice President. A circular
lately issued by an opponent of his
Alexander referred to this
fact III terms of reproach, saying that it
was not proper for an official to use the
office of his company for private specu-
lations, and especially for specializing
in the stock of the concern itself. But
Russell Sage does not seem to take
much notice of the complaint, and re-
fers to kind of statute Of antiquity,
Saying that he has dealt in stocks for
years and years on these premises, and
that he means to continue to do so.
Another branch of Mr.. Sage's occu-
patton is the lending of money at a
more Or less comfortable rate of inter
est, amounting sometimes-as was the
case during the panic-to one-half per
cent. day. The oldest dealers in We'll
street do not remember time when
Russell Sage had not loose cash to lend,
when applied for with good securities
and readiness to pay high rate of in
terest. But he never likes to lend less
than 500, 900, apparently considering1t
beneath his dignity.
Until very lately Mr.. Sage dealt on
the Exchange through brokers, some
of whom he induced to do his bust
ness for much smaller commission
than is established by law. One of
these brokers, who had been discov-
cred in doing this, was expelled from
the Exchange, aud Mr.. Sage resolved,
for the sake of economy, to become
himself a member of the Board. He
paid some $4,000 for his seat, under
went some difficulty in getting elect
led, but overcome all that, and has now
the privilege of either doing business
himself or of paying only one-thirty-
second per cent. commission, instead
of one-eighth per cent, to his broth
er brokers-through which economy he
realizes an immense saving in the long
run.
His election took place about year
ago, but he never appeared on Change
until last Monday, when the election of
new President took place, and he had
to give his vote. The Stock Exchange,
as is well known, preserves the laudable
custom Of hazing new members, and
Mr.. Sage had to pass the usual ordeal.
The moment he appeared in the hall the
air was rent with cries of Here's Old
Honesty p ''Look out for your pocket
books and watchesp' "Knock his skull
in - and so on. His hat was smashed;
be was chased all around the Exchange