New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1885-12-02
James JOues Was 10 Fool.

Il is not always that q man is ruin
ed BY going to speculative markets, s
observed veteran produce exchange
broker the other day. sometimes he
wins, and when he docs he sometimes
has sense enough to let it alone in the
future. But it is rarely true
"A good MANY years ago-never
mind how many was broker on
the Chicago Board of Trade. One
day there came to the city tall, red
headed man from Minnesota. He
looked Ike well-to-do farmer, but
he talked like thoroughbred oper-
ator. He was business from the roots
of his hair to the toes of his boots. He
told me that he was part owner in
about thirty grain elevators along a
line of q Minnesota railroad. The
wheat crop in that section of the state
was dead failure that year, and his
chances OF business were very slim.
"'l talked with my partner said
he, and we made up our minds that
we couldn't come within $4,000 of
paying expenses. We didn't want to
let go, though, because we had in
vested al our money in the elevators,
and if we didn't operate them and pay
the railroad company a certain sum of
money we would lose our capital.
We have just $4,000 cash. I've got
it with me, and we concluded it would
be well for me to come down here and
make more or lose it all. Rather
risky? Yes, but we will fail anyway
ii we don't do something
"'What do you want to do?'
'''l want to put that in wheat or
corn, don't know which now, and
want you to handle it..
II was willing, and so we soon came
to terms. He waited around for a
couple of months without risking a
dollar. The markets were quiet, and
there was little chance to make any
large sums of money. Then he got
tired of watching my figures, so one
day he asked me how much a seat on
the board was worth.
81 told him, and the next day he
bought one for himself. 1t cost him
less than $4,000, and he could easily
save that in commissions in one week
after he began operating. Well,
things drifted along for month or SO
longer, until finally some Milwaukee
spectators, taking advantage of the
failure of the wheat crop, attempted
to corner that cereal. The Minnesota
man, who was about three-quarters
ears, heard all about it, and got it on
tie ground floor. When the deal was
over he had $35O,000 in cold cash.
s'The next week he sold his seat and
went back to Minnesota, whore he is
to-day. He IS the President of that
railroad now, though"
"Another instance of good fortune, -
continued the broker, occurred in
this city five or SIX years ago. There
are two men whom I'll call Jones, be-
cause that sounds something like their
name. One was John Jones and the
other James. They were twin BROTH
ers, and looked so much alike their
wives could hardly tell them apart.
For some strange reason they dressed
exactly alike, too. and would wager
| $40 against brass button that you
couldn't tell which was which when
you saw them standing side by side
Why, when a man who had been
drinking saw them together he would
generally think he saw double. Jollr
was petroleum broker and james
was an insurance agent. Both lived
in New York. Every once in u while
James would go down to the Exchange
to see his brother, and in that way
met good many business men, none
of whom ever knew him afterwards
from his brother. Ore day the mar
ket was going up like a rocket, when
James was to the pit looking for his
brother, who didn't happen to be il
at that moment. This, remember, was
the good old times in oil when the
market used to break loose like q
freshet.
'.James stood around minute or
two waiting for John to come in, wher
he noticed man ON the other side of
the pit he had been introduced to.
He nodded to him, and the man yelled
something back to him, but the noise
and confusion was so great he couldn'
understand what he said. So James
smiled pleasantly and nodded his
hand in reply. Then another mar
yelled something at him and Jane:
nodded again. Then lot of Other
brokers began yelling at him, and he
kept nodding like the head of little
Japanese until his neck ached.
''He thought they mistook him fol
his brother. and wondered what Johr
had done to make himself so extreme
! IN nOnnlar hut hofnro no hoI ,ooIo ~,