The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-07-02
var GOULD AND WESTERLY UNION.
Playing Bsttiesere nnd shuuieccck with the
stock Of Great Cervorstien.


the early months Of the present year Western
Union stock, BY the manipulation Of a bull
clique, was worked up to about W. Jay Gould.
who had finally recovered from the effects OF
his serious illness, believing that the Telegraph
Company had attempted a task beyond Its
power in paying eight per cent. dividend, put
out large line OF short stock and went TO work
seaiously to bear the market BY reason OF
his Immense load of Union Pacific, which had
absorbed nearly his entire cash capital, be was
obliged to seek assistance to provide suitable
margins on bis short sales Of estern Union.
He obtained loan from q heavy operator 10
william street on Union Pacific, and was thus
enabled TO begin the campaign.
From eighty down TO seventy-two the price
yielded easily. because the directors Of Western
Union knew that the coming dividend In all
probability would be passed. Gould was right
In his surmise ss TO the failure Of the com pany
to pay the dividend, and might have covered
bis stock at handsome profit when the execu-
tive committee announced the condition OF the
treasury. He did not see at to do this, how
ever. but kept on bearing the stock with the
utmost pertinacity, and used the TftJIne TO
carry out his designs. The stock has been down
~ umes TO about sixty. and at such seasons
the Tribune has , most urgently advised
selves from ruin. Strange to say, the sd-
vice In every instance was wrong, and
~ Gould had operated a. the money article Of
the Tribune indicated. long before this he must
have lost every dollar OF his money. Every lew
days the Tribune would note a reduction in the
rates of teleRraphing by Atlantic end Pacific
Telegraph. and predict ruin to Western Union.
just as surely as these notices OF destruction
vanced, and people have become used to the
remark that the Tribune and Its young editor
a-e Gould's cappers" to yictimize investors
During the Last few days the course Of the
market and the utterances OF the Tribune have
with emptied pockets and dissipated fortunes
curse the day In which they needed the advice
of Jay Gould 10 chronicled In his stock. jobbing
journal. Whatever the Tribune could DO TO
shake people out OF their stock has been done,
and IN view OF the fact that Gould has tried
twice to Obtain control Of Western Union, 1t Is
not unreasonable To suppose that he may have
been making "A third trial. The price was ad.
yAnced. In spite OF the dismal predictio OF the
Tribune and tue editorial announcement of tue
stool pigeon, until II Is ten per cent. above the
quotations OF few weeks ago.
IL Is interesting TO watch the course OF the
Tribune during this prolonged b. ar campaign OF
Gould's. and to notice how completely anY one
must hays beam duned VINO paid the least at
On May the Tribune money article contained
the following:
The continued reduction Of rates oy its rival the At
lantc and Pacific Company. uegins TO suggest 10 the
mlnus OF specuiators and holder OF the tocN western
per cent dividend 10 JAY and the stock
rvrnrr asp5 'ra soas by wnch n1ds be
81 vac e. sss 81 me ssS,
e.p 5 saS bcucs seBs ~
graph experts can be depenaed on thus line The control
Of hich has cos, III wcstern Union about s2oo.oo9
for sSsn ssosoo Taxing a. these store. for as
sss ,' whistle. .ss1 " be clear case OF paying idea. for
Having sold heavily before this was brought
out. Gould generously gave the public informa.
ton OF the desperate condition OF the comp nv.
Tue parti,s who sold out and went short the
next day found somebody willing to take their
adv nee took place In the face OF very dam ging
money articles IN the stock jobbiDg journal. II
Il said tn I while putting out seller sixties 4"
Gould took the stock OF people expecting the
bankruptcy and dissolution Of Western Union
AMI dictated the articles appearing dsily in tue
On May ., little more than a week aftorward,
the money article Of the Tribune contained the
following:
Western Union was the princips, feature of the
s 81 o Ss r' a..
~ S % sssss :;
n: s to Sc e pre E oS In
sIslien frs,n sllsn all u those q l,sh pu Sea- and
wosid perhaps do well to refrain from engaging.
Here Gould evidently wanted the market him
self either o buy or sell on, and having sincere
gave them the benef Of his mature experience.
IL will be observed that tue parties VINO
dropped" their holdings a week before sold
them about four per cent. below the quot tions
ruling Il che appearance Of the second article.
Up to May 30 the fluctuations In Western Union
carried IL Gown to TO- and back to e6t and 81
several times. Gould had the market pretty
much To- himself. owing t. a continuance Of bear
articles In the Tribune, and ON the part of the
puOlic u Is safe To say that more selling than
buying occurred.
On Aay 30 tue following appeared In the Trib-
une as explanatory OF "A sudden adv nee in tho
price OF western Union on the preceding uay:
Perhaps queer moyem ut that OCCURRED in Western
= D. %
Ibis stock wa oSa.. at which price ouly 700 shares
Sasi when The price PASSED 90. on 5000 shares had
Ssss pSS y ree S aS ana s ns e s
CO.'S aud COS The rapid advance M Western UnlOn
ordef gwen to two different brokers oy a nr.n 10
The street TO buy rt-in number Of shares without
limiting the price. and the brokers, each anxious 10
MAKE ~ commission BIO the market up ON each other
somewhat 10 the detrlnent Of tneir principal.
Almost anybody would have drawn the infer
ence that the climax had been reached In the
Western Union advance after read ,ng tins IN
terestin2 DIT OF Ia telli2ence. IL they sud out OF
went short on II. the result must nave been OF
the m ost SUI prlsng nature. for from the closing
price to which The Tribune slludes, steady ad-
vance. with hardy any edction for several DAYS,
took place, and on June the Stock Exchange
quotation was 20
The Western Union directors declared diyi-
dend Of one and one-hslf per cent. for the cur.
rent quarter, which the Tribune deprecated ex-
ceedineiy, and submitted 10 the most rigorous
snort Is Obliged to hand over the dividend to
the owner, " may tasiy tie conceived how
pledshuliy Tue people Who bad b...c an, Il
~ their stock, ana Oh. - VINO Lad sold II short
,gt toward Gould, his stool-pigeon, aud the
Tribune.
Inc stock reacted under the pressure of heavy
sales from 70, and the II Dune kept up The
pound ing process.
On June l5, Gould seemed to see something
singular In the course Of the STOCK for ths
money article Of the Tribune contain, d the fol.
lowing, evidently designed to make holders get
out as quickly AS possible:
Western Union started e77s and sold AZ oseaasss
ubseguenty uecnnlng t. d13s, aud thea IA. ug To-
oeteosSs. The course o. This STOCK smcp the dee ara.
non oi the dividend has proved disa pontuent To
many holders. aud the policy Of haN declared II
that he surplus gu hand argey reduced ana mat
purchases OF new material were made LIST of
MAJ that DO not appear IN The recent report
The eject of this was to put Western UnIon
up to co. on June ~, and IL closed at on ex
dividend Of one and one-half per cent For
sever DAYS Gould kept begging away at Tue
stock by bearish sales Of seller sixties and
through his stock jobOing Tribune. On June 70
he succeeded IN getting the price down to G6t,
or ~ with dividend on, and the next muruing
the Tribune contained the following:
Wes ern MON was the most sciye stock o. the day.
hut Il declining figures The nrst price, 67il wss HE
what stated by cont tmporary that certain bank
had purchased QuAntly u TINS stock TO MAKE the
dividend 10 true, II may become OF Interest to De.
posiors To know the name of the banK IN question.
This was good. ANYBODY holding Western
Union and not dumping II Ola such an Insinua-
ton deserved To lose his name. The dhv Of this
publication Western Union closed at 66. The
succeeding morning the Tribune announced an
extension or Atlantic and Pacific Telegraph
nj ~.