Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1886-08-15
NEW YORK LETTER.
vsn.st,sss xAttsrs-A curtvss Expert.
rie,ss- fiidsas wiil-uranatis
ussss -clss Gossip.

NEW York, August IA, 1886.
Wal street va 10 . great state o.
sxeilsusns OVER the crazy flucsustioni
& ths rate Of interest for money. Thu
rate iluctuated between aud 40 pei
cent. per annum, and although the ms
josity Of thsloans ssrs secured between
4 and Q per cent, the uncertainty OF the
rsas for renewal Of the loans next day
evsasly upset the brokers. OF course
de bulls argue that the high rsts fol
money means . business demsnd fol
fsnds, and consequently indicates q
general revival of commercial and Ia.
dustrial activity. But this 10 only
partially true, and any rate Of
interest exceeding s or 6 per
cent. 10 unnatural and indicates
. positive striDgspcy. Apart from this
whether tho general business rsvises or
not. il takes . great deal Of cash to
cary . mass Of non-dividsnd-psying
stocks, and o. lopg % funds are obtain
able 1t the rate Of II or 2 per cent. per
anuum, stock speculation is easy
enough; but Is soon as money begins
20 command more than per cent, the
largest bull houses turn bears, and In
duce their customers to sell out theil
holdings Just q eagerly ~ they induce
them to buy when money Is cheap.
The true fact il that most OF the
bullipg Of the low-priced non-divi'
dsnd-payipg stocks has its origin
IN the advantage which the broker de.
yives from the difference between the 9
per cent. which be charges his custom
err for carry ing stocks and the ] or z
Der cent, which be pays the banks for
doing tho sams for him. The exorbi.
tant commissions Of one eighth Of per
cent. for selling and one eighth Of per
cent. for buying, being added to the
extra charges Of 8 or 81 per cent. for
carrying, make quite handsome thing
for : broker who has the necessary
ksack Of making his customers jump
IN or ont on the strength Of decoy tips
or Chicago humbug dispatches.
Taking the situation as . whole, it
seems that the high prices at which
stocks are selling and the weak
hands in which they are held must ne
cessarily lead to considerable collapse
in prices, unless gold begins to come
from Europe, attracted by the large
rate Of interest here, or the Govern
mept makes new calls for bonds.
CURIOUS EXPERIENCE.
The sx.president Of the Louisville
and Nashville railroad and of tho
United States National Bank, Mr.. H..
Victor Newcomb, who has attracted 90
much public attention within the last
two years by his extremely successful
Wall.street operations, had . very cu-
rious experience with = burglar at New
port on Wednesday night last. Return
ing from the Casino, be remained for
some time in his library, when be saw
Q burglar peeping out Of . closet. In
stead Of shutting the door on him and
locking him in the closet, or. at all
events, in the library, he cried out
to his wife, who was coming Down
stairs, to call Q Mr.. Smith, who was in
the house, and to tell the butler to bring
q pistol. OF course the burglar didn't
wait for either Mr.. Smith, the butler,
or the pistol. He jumped out Of his re-
treat, grappled with Mr.. Newcomb,
oyerpowered him.. threw him insensible
on the floor Of the hall, aud escaped.
Mr.. Newcomb's natural pluck evidently
got the best Of him on this occasion,
for be is neither . large nor . strong
man, and is, besides, SO short-sighted
that IL the burglar had only knocked his
eyeglasses off Mr.. Newcomb would
have been unable to see him any more.
Senator John P. Jones, Of Nevada,
who is about twice as big and strong
q Mr.. Newcomb, said, upon hearing Of
the tussle: 81 am surprised at the
lack Of judgment on the part Of New
comb. / know never play the part
Of . policeman to expose myself to
have knife put in my belly or bull
let in my head. Whenever get into
contact with burglars or highwamen.
and this has happened more than once
TO me, / always surrender, and tell
them that am radical and believe in
everybody carrying on his natural vo'
cation without any opposition. ! fur.
ther explain to them that, being . 30.
cisty man.. my attention is absorbed
only by social events, and ! pay nc
attention to individual struggles fol
life." He added, however, subse'
quently, that Is he never wears any
jewelry, or q watch, and as be has sell
dom more than Q couple Of silver dol
lars in his pocket, he usually comes ou
Of such encounters first best.
TILpEN's WILL.
The will Of the late Samuel j. TildsI
gives cause for great many discus
sions, both in Wall street and in tn
clubs and other uptown resorts. TIT
prevailing opinion in regard to the vii
seems TO be somewhat different fgou
that expressed BY the New York press
Many men Of Intelligence, wealth, ant
end patriotism say that there was to-
bueh ffes- Library business in the will
that the millions left for the purpose o
s1isblishing free libraries in New York
Yopkers, and New Lebanon, and th
power given to the trustees, ar
upiustifiable. IL is argued tha
not only are books very Chez
on account of the existing stat
Of international copyright, bu
that there are plenty Of libraries il
New York. considering that they ar
patroaixsd mostly by women {; for th
avsrsgs American man hardly read
anything except the newspapers ate
u has once LETT school. These OF thsu
Who have the leisure and taste for read
Ing usually form their own libraries
II b argued that Mr.. Tildsn could hav
much better disposed Of his fortune !
scores Of other ways. among which ID
( endowment Of colleges and hospital
y, ofceurss, mentioned first OF oil. Som
people 20 svsp 90 far ~ to say that
could have conferred . great boon b
estsblhhipg free lunch-houssa for need
Democratic and frss soup.kitchens Il
nnewploved v0rkmen.