The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-08-15

onds they form the center of an cage
mob, which circles about them like
whirlwind. In the middle of the foo
another demonstration is in progress
A score of animated brokers appear Il
be having May dance around a tai
staff. On top of the staff is framed
placard bearing the words ''Denver
Rio Grande." A little further along
another staff holds aloft the legend
wabash" A couple of rods distant
from this Is a third post labeled .'Lou.
isville & Nashville. and in other places
similar stats display conspicuous in
scriptions. Each of these Stalls has its
cluster of men. and the larger clusters
are linked together BY smaller ones,
forming an almost unbroken chain OF
| surging, roaring humanity, extending
from one end OF the room to the other.
The three young ladies gazed with
speeches. cagerness upon the turbulent
scene until their bright eyes grew round
with wonder. The youngest, a fair
haired miss scarcely out of her teens,
turned to the broker after while, and
said: "FOr mercy's sake, what are they
doing down thereP"
The young man smiled as he replied:
| s'Why. that's business"
Graciousr' said the little lady, with
a pretty frown. Il don't see how any
body can do business in such hub
bub.'' =---
THAT is what all strangers. and es-
pecially ladies, say when they come
here" said the young man with an i'm
portant air Nevertheless, in all of
this seeming chaos, business proceeds
Systematically, rapidly, and with de-
gree of accuracy that knows no parallel
in ordinary mercantile transactions.
The men who trade here seldom have
disputes, yet they buy and sell millions
of dollars worth of securities every
day. They have no time for written
contracts. With them minutes are as
precious as diamonds, ard seconds are
golden. A shake of the finger, a nod
of the head. or perhaps only wink.
are frequently the only signs that
pass between them in the bargains
involving thousands of shares of stocks.
You see quickness and absolute integ-
rity are essential 10 the kind of business
that is done here. When the market is
lively and stocks are changing in value
every minute, there can be no hesi;at-
ing and no repudiating of bad bargains.
A brokers' I'll take it, is as binding
as the most formidable legal document
ever written, and after seller has said:
It's your stock, the bargain is closed.
Occasionally | have known the price of
a stock to go up two points within half
a minute after q seller had nodded
affirmatively to buyer, who was but
one of a score of brokers scrambling
for the stock. BY simply contending
that no sale had been intended at such
times the seller might have realized
an advance of ten thousand dollars or
twelve thousand dollars on his stock.
But do you think that any member of
the Stock Exchange would dare do such
a thing? No, indeed! No member
would dare
(Which is Mr.. Vanderbilt" queried
one of the ladies' with charming in
difference to her chaperon's earnest
ness.
"Mr. Vanderbilt never comes here"
the young broker, somewhat
CURLY. '.He is not even a member of
the Stock Exchange.
''Well, which is Mr. Gould?"
Neither is Mr.. Gould a member of
the Exchange"
"Why, l am sure that read in the
short time ago that Mr..
Vanderbilt and Mr.. Gould were sup
porting the stock Market" persisted
the lady.
sand that was true" replied the
young man. laughing softly at his fair
earnestness. Those two
men have separately and unitedly en-
deavored to do the atlas act with the
stock market upon various occasions,
but in all their manipulations they are
here by brokers. There are
certain firms in Wall street which are
looked upon as Mr. Vanderblt's bro
kers, and certain other firms which are
spoken of as MIR. Gould's
brokers, but each of these great tinan-
ciers does business secretly through
firms that are often MT suspected of
the association. When big operator
desires to make an important turn in
the market he can not afford 10 let the
street know through whom he is OPP
Grating. Spectators in stocks watch
the regular brokers OF Vanderbilt and
Gould as closely as the mice in a
kitchen watch the family cat. MANY a
smart broker has had his neck twisted
in trying to nibble Mr.. Gould's cheese.
Ibid you ever try to get any of MIR.
Gou'd's cheese@ asked one of the
rougishly. a.ig i...
'Well, if l have tried / certainly
have never succeeded" was the am
bigUous reply.
For few minutes every member of
the quintet remained silent. Suddenly
a pair of rowing eyes, under the brim
Of saucy pink hat, espied a lot of
white numbers on the black front of
the gallery at the other end of the
room. ....
'.Look! look. girls" she exclaimed.
See those numbers change over there.
The figures '52' nave just faded away
and "a is coming out. Now number
% up in the corner has gone, and, see,
'lg and 30 have Just appeared on the |
same row. How funny. l wonder if |
the same thing is being done on the |
front of our gallery Looking down |
'rci tho aiLuS III iIout Vi Her, Sne /
added: .'IeS, it is just the same. What |
are these numbers for. Mr.. c.? ?"
These are the signs by which men,
oers on the floor are notified that some |
body at the door wants to see them.
IN SO grea. a crowd. and with so much |
noise, it Is extremely difficult for a |
nessenger-poy to find any particular
person. and it is impossible for the
ioorkeepers, in shouting the names, to
make themselves heard more than ten
eet away. Each member of the Ex-
;hange. therefore, has number, and
whenever an inoIlirv iS made al tba