Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1884-01-29
Aanrasier .N,trlligentcr.
TUES oAy EVENING. JAN. 90. 1884,
A Failing Fashion,

A Failing Fashion.
The capitalists who blindly went into !
the pool to advance Northern Pacific |
stocks seem to be very blind set Of peo
ple indeed. Drexel & Co have not added |
20 their repute for financial sagacity and
soundness in their intimate connection
with the Willard scheme. 1t seems that
further great fall in the prices of these
securities has only been avoided by the
assistance of Jay Gould and his friends
who furnished the money which enabled
the Oregon Trans continental company
to avoid a sale OF its stocks in open
market to pay loan falling due. One
would think that the strong parties in
terested in the Northern Pacific should
have had the cash, courage and faith TO
have put up as much money on their Sc.
curities az Jay Gould found. His interest
In the matter ia supposed to have been TO
avoid further decline in the stock mar
ket which he is believed to be heavily
interested in sustaining. The advertise
ment hefurnishes, however, that fall
IA prices Of stocks is only to be prevent
ed by preventing call on the companies
to pay their debts Is not calculated TO
encourage the public to step in with
eagerness to buy stocks. Investors are
not very wise, but they can hardly fail
to take notice when heavy capitalists
interested in certain railroad stocks fail
to sustain them and other capitalists have
to step in to give show of strength TO
the market. 1t is clear enough that
there is a lack of inherent value in stocks
which cannot command the support of
their friends and need to embrace the
staff offered by their foes Northern
Pacific stock could not be per
manently benefited by the help of Gould,
There seems to be no good reason to ex.
pect an early advance in railroad securi-
ties. Investors have had 50 much reason
to distrust them that the good will con
tinue to suffer with the bad. II is really !
shameful that the innocent public should |
have been deluded rs they have been. OF |
course 1t is mainly its own fault. Those |
who buy without knowing the intrinsic |
value of what they buy should have |
guardians to buy for them. But such
guardians would need to be very acute
and wide awake to be able to tell the
wheat from the chaff in stock market !
securities ; and il they were thus acute
the probability is that they woull be
too smart to deal fairly with their
wards. Our laws must recognize the fact
that people generally act blindly and ig-
nDrantly, and they should give them all
the enlightenment possible. 1t should
not be possible, for instance, for rail
roads TO be built as they now nearly
always are, upon the proceeds Of bonds
which represent more than the money
actually expended upon the work the
stock being the perquisite Of the pro
moters, who realize a liberal profic fur
thermore Out of the bonds It IS most
singular that people who will not lend
tNeIr money save TO man of good char
&C e. ana upon real estate security tLat
has an intrinsic value at least third era
fourth greater than the amount Of tie
loan, aud which IS not adequately pro
lecleu Dy insurance policies, will never
theless buy the railroad bonds printed b,
theream 10y Tom, Dick and Harry, whose
security is right of way aud a railroad |
Nne-the track not even laid or the
Buildings ouilt-in new country, where
the prospect of profitable busi
ness is problematical and its hope
wholly in the future. But of |
such are the men and women who in
vest and suffer in times like these they
are intelligent people, generally, who act
blindly when they buy stocks apparently
only because they think everyone else
does, and that it is the correct thing to
do. They know better now; and for a
while ssccks will be out of fashion.