Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1882-11-17
Stock SpecuIatlOns.


Persons who are not familiar with the
business of stock gambling have little
idea of the vast sums of money annually
squandered, not only by the professional
gamblers of New York but BY thousands
upon thousands of silly persons in the
rural districts, who seem to imagine that
they can play cards successfully with a
deck that is marked, and BY investing
money with the professional gamblers
gain large winnings. New Haven has a
very considerable number of this ver-
dant class of would-be- -stock-specula-
tors, but who are, in fact, only innocent
"lambS," who lay down their financial
wool in Wall street without any reason
able hope of receiving any compensation
therefor. To these iunocents the Follow
ing timely words from the New York
,Iou1tal Of Commerce may be of lasting
value if carefully read and thoroughly
digested: We receive almost daily
from some part of the country one or
more letters of inquiry concerning the
best method of gambling in stocks.
Most of these communications incloSe q
circular or advertisement sent to the
writers from some firm in this city,
offering to undertake the speculation in
behalf of all who will intruSt the adver-
tiser with funds for that purpose. These
seductive mlSsiveS are full of promises
dccked in rainbow hues. "FOr $500 de-
posted with us we can almost insure
the depoSitor a small fortune within n
reasonable time" "We have the inside
IL l.
any o.her firm on the stock market
The sum of 800 deposited with us will
often grow to $500 in the course of n
single season; and larger sums, enabling
us to operate on g more liberal scale,
are certain under our careful maninula-
ton to yield a manifold profit to the in
veStOr."
These and many other similar devices
are scattered broadcast through the
city, and in all the rural districts, and
draw Il continual stream of offerings
from those who are dupes of their own
desires to be become suddenly rich.
The risk would he far more than any
reasonable person ought to encounter,
if the advertiser was honest and really
sought to invest the money thus in
trusted to him to the best advantage.
The stock brokers who manage fairly
live upon the business, many of them
most eytravagantly, and the chances
therefore at the very best are against
the investors, the majority of whom must
supply these resources. The bulk of
business is taxed to support the entire
body of brokers and to pay all the ex-
al, a,,I
hence the money invested as Il whole is
Handicapped with the load which it
nrGst pay before it can make an average
return to the owner.
1t is certain, therefore. that the money
put in by outside parties, as it goes first
to support the dealers and paw all the
cost of the establishment, must suffer
n large aggregate loss equivalent To this
amount. The chances, therefore, if the
whole operations were squarely con-
Quoted, must be that each person who
invests will in the end draw out leas
than he puts in, and thus pay his share
of the tribute. But the fleecing of the
simple ones is not left to chance. The
bulk OF those who send their money to
the stock market in the hope of draw
ing prize pay more their regular av-
erage share of the cost of tho opera
ton.
The authors of most of these seductive
advertisements sent out to solicit busi-
ness have no intention of dealing fairly
with their correspondents. IL is n skin
ming game, and is so designed from the
outset. They may play their victim n
little until they have seen the bottom of
his purse, and then they wipe out his
little store as clean rs q whistle They
expect that each patron whom they rob
will keep still for his own sake, but
they leave him no legal redress, even if
he is disposed to make trouble.
If the dupes who send this money for
gambling venture will think for mo-
ment what it is they undertake, they
will see that they have really little cause
to complain. They have gone ont for
wool and they have come home shorn.
They know very well that it is not a
business where it is possible for both
parties to any bargain to make q profit
All that one gains the other must lose,
and in addition the loser must pay the
expenses of the operator. If our inno-
cent rural friend who grumbles so much
over the "robbery" of which he has
been the victim had really gained his
desire, he would simply have robbed to
that amount some other woOl-hunter
who had gone into the market on the
same errand. When there is square
deal this is the result; one lucky fool
gains what the unlucky fool loses, less
the cost of maintaining the one who
throws the dice. But in the class of
business under notice the enterprising
advertiser, for the most part, robs both
the fools, and keeps the entire pool as
his own winnings.
There is no method by which better
returns can be insured from this class of
operations. The way to accumulate
money is to save it, not to invest it in
stock gambling. There is hardly a
workingman in the country who does
not absolutely waste, that is, spend for
that which does him no good, money
enough to produce him competency il
he would practice the required self
denial and lay it by in a savings bank
intact for the necessary term of years
1t is not the earning of large sums, hut
the saving of small ones, that laws the
foundation of fortune. We do
not speak of money as the chief
good. There are things more desirable
than n fortune. But the only proper
method of laying up money is to save it
from ones legitimate earnings. To
speculate with a hope of gaining it, is to
seek to appropriate the earnings of an
other, with the chances in favor of los
ing ones own fleece while in search of
the other mans wool. ."-NeW Hayen
Register.
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