, 1888-10-04
LUCK ON WALL STREET.
SIGNS WHICH BROKERS BELIEVE IN
DlCATfxE OF BAD FORTUNE.

" AAlO SolAAk AAA~- Az SSAS S"J "AbA
a prominent broker. | CHANGED to ask him
about the stock market. Before the ques-
ton was ont of my mouth his hand went
under the table like a fash and three omi.
nous raps greeted my inquiry
''Spirtsf' said |. distrustfully cycling
him.
Luck, he answered. slipping his coffee.
II raped for luck, as every sensible man
should when the market is referred to in
a restaurant"
Outside the circle of ~Spiritualists hun
dreds of prominent persons are supersti-
tious. We consider ourselves at the me-
ridian of civilization, but, as Emerson
says. we are only at the cock growing and
the morning star Hundreds of people
consult swindlers who call themselves as
trologers A large proportion of the pop
ulation here believe in signs Indicative of
good luck or Ill luck, or else they believe
that certain persons are favored with good
look, while others are naturally unlucky
The Rothschilds will nave nothing to do
with a man whom they consider unlucky.
Commodore Vanderbilt, one of the ablest
railroad inanciers this country ever pro
duced, believed in luck.
IA LUCK ON FRIDAY
Hundreds of intelligent persons have a
superstitious reluctance to engage in any
important enterprise on Friday This in.
cludes as cool and matter of fact a man as
Jay Gould Under no circumstances will
he use an elevator The late Jesse Hoyt,
the millionaire grain merchant. would
never engage in any important business
undertaking on Friday. and many of the
spectators on the big exchanges are SINH
larly superstitious They consider every
Friday a Black Friday The prejudice
against Friday probably dates back to the
Middle Ages, or to even a remoteI period.
as the day on which Christ was executed.
1t is only one of innumerable old super
~stitions which still survive.
Many investors and spectators in Wall
street are superstitious about dropping
things If they find themselves constantly
dropping articles which they happen to he
carrying they take it as a sign that they
must sell their bonds and stocks Many
have a superstitious fear of holding stocks
over a holiday
Some firms will not display the ominous
ID If it happens to be the number of their
places of business
II confess, said the manager of a large
banking and brokerage house, that |
have a superstition about the 18th day of
the month 1t Is not generally a lucky
day One unlucky instance | remember,
too, about Friday A big lake steamer
that piled between Buffalo and Chicago a
numbe of years ago was launched on
Friday. sailed on Friday and sank on Fri.
day
Some stock brokers think it is very good
luck to see a hunchback. If they can
touch the deformity it will bring big
gains Such a touch is also supposed to
cure headaches To see a negro the first
thing in the morning is o favorable sign.
In the play Henrietta" a youth who
speculates in stocks when asked by his
broker whether be wishes to buy or sell
answers gravely. a will consider it,"
Than he frrDa HE hack md tpSSas a cont
to determine his course, This is really
founded partly on fact A person in the
habit of specializing in stocks found he
was losing steadily At length he hit
upon the idea of tossing a half dollar
which he always carried for luck. and if it
proved to be head" he bought the first
stock that came out on the tape. if it was
tail" he sold. For a time at least he
was far more successful by this method
than he had ever been through the exer
else of common sense.
THE WRONG FOOT
Some persons on rising in the morning
nave a superstitious fear of putting the
left foot out of bed first. Others believe
in always putting on the left shoe first.
If they meet a negro or a cross eyed
woman they spit for good luck. Every
body wants to pick up a horseshoe.
On the Cotton Exchange there is one
prominent member who consults the
spirits" for points on The market. On a
dark day. when the gas is lighted, some
of the brokers consider it a sign that the
market will advance, Others say it is
good luck to meet a Sister of Charity.
Il shouldn't care" said a popular Oh
operator. Ito be long Of $4,000 barrels OF
oil here and short that much in Oil City
| would make it IA, 900 at all hazards OF
ourse it is all nonsense, but ! should feel
better to change the figures at once
Then | have an unlucky suit of clothes.
1t may sound ~laughable. but it is so.
have a fine gray suit at home which |
have only worn four or five times in the
last three years, and it has already cost
me ten times what | gave for it | Dor
rowed a diamond ring from a friend and
thought it might give me luck. 1t was
just the reverse As sure as | wear that
diamond ring the market breaks. An.
other thing, ! never trade on Friday if |
have seen that day a cross eyed woman
or a red headed man"
One of the best known traders In the
oil ring of the Consolidated Exchange will
never cross a street diagonally, but al
ways at right angles Between Wall
street and Exchange place on narrow New
street, on which both Stock Exchanges
abut. the brokers walk in the middle of
the street about as much as they do on
the sidewalks; but the oil operator re-
ferred to always keeps carefully to the
sidewalks, and If he has occasion to cross
at the intersection Of another street al,
takes In each corner on the way rather
han cut across cata- cornered. he has a
German coin that he could not be induced
to sell 1t gives good luck
Hundreds of brokers on the two Stock
Exchanges consider hat they have their
lucky suits Of clothes.
On the Consolidated Exchange. espe-
cially in the shouting, gesticulating. push
ing and rollicking oil group, it is consid-
cred a very bad omen to open an umbrella
and raise it over the head. Putting up
an umbrella in a board room would seem
under all circumstances to be unnecessary.
1t Is worse. 1t brings bad luck. There