The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-06-06
LUCK ON WALL STREET.
SIGNS WHICH BROKERS BELIEVE IN
DlCATlVE OF BAD FORTUNE.
Wall street Hotbed OF superss't'""'
How Hunchbacks AFFECT the Market
The Wrong Foot Forcmost-The' Num-
Der i3-Lueky Suits of Clothes

n prominent broker, ! CHANGED 10 asE him
about the stock market. Before the ques-
ton was out of my mouth his hand went
under the table like fash and three omi
nous raps greeted my inquiry
"Spiritsf said |. distrustfully eyeing
him.
Luck. =" lie answered, slipping his coffee.
Il raped for luck. as every sensible man
should when the market is referred TO IN
q restaurant.
Outside the circle of Spiritualists hun
dreds of prominent persons are suPers'i'
tious We consider ourselves at the me
ridian of civilization. but, as Emerson
saws we are only at the cock Growing ana
the morning star Hundreds OF people
consult swindlcrs who call themselves as
trologers. large proportion Of the pop.
ulation here believe in signs indicative OF
good luck or i'll luck, or else they believe
that certain persons are favored witn goou
look, while others are naturally unlucky'
The Rothschilds will have nothing to 90
with a man whom they consider unlucKy.
Commodore Vanderbilt, one Of the ablest
railroad fnanciers this country ever pro
duced, believed in luck
BAD LUCK on FRIDAY.
Hundreds Of intelligent persons nave a
superstitious reluctance to engage IN any
important enterprise on Friday. This IN
cludes as cool and matter OF fact man as
Jaw Gould. Under no circumstances VIII
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
larlv superstitious. They consider every
Friday a Black Friday The prejudice
against Friday probably dates back to the
Middle Ages, or to even a remoter perioG'
as the day on which Christ was executed
Ii is only one of innumerable old super
stitious which still survive.
Many investors and spectators in Wall
street are superstitous about dropping
things If they find themselves constantly
dropping articles which they happen to be
carving they take it as sign that they
must sell their bonds and stocks. Many
have n superstitious fear of holding stocks
over holiday.
Some firms will not display the ominous
10 if it happens to he tne number of their
places Of business
Il confess. said the manager of large
banking and brokerage house, that
have Il 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
number 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 II they can
touch the defornity it WI bring big
gains Such touch is also supposed to
cure headaches To see negro the first
thing in the morning is favorable sign
In the play Henrietta youth who
speculates in stocks when asked by his
broker whether he wishes - buy or sell
answers gravely Il will consider 1t.
Then he turns his back and losses cent
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 tho idea of tossing 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 FOREMOST.
Some persons Oh rising in the morning
have superstitious fear Of putting the
left foot out of bed first Others believe
in always putting Oh the left shoe first.
II they meet negro or cross eyes,
II. 60. l,,,l
body wants to pick up a horseshoe.
On the Cotton Exchange there is one
prominent member who consults TIE
'spirits" for points on the market On q
dark day. when the gas is lighted. some
of the brokers consider it sign that thC
market will advance. Others say it |:
good luck to meet Sister of Charity.
II shouldn't care, said popular OF
operator ITO be long of 1900 barrels o.
oil here and short that much in Oil City
would make it 1900 at all hazards. o.
course it is all nonsense, but should fee
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 iive times in tn
last three years. and it has already cos
me ten times what | gave for it. | Dor
rowed diamond ring from friend anC
thought 1t might give me luck. 1t wa
lust the reverse. AS sure as | wear tina
diamond ring the market breaks. An
other thing, never trade on Friday If
have seen that day ii cross eyed woman
or o red headed man.
One Of tho best known traders in thu
oil ring of the Consolidated Exchange vii
never cross a street diagonally, but al
ways at right angles Between Wal
street and Exchange place on narrow New
street. on which both Stock Exchange,
abut, the brokers walk in the middle o.
tho street about as much as they do OF
tho sidewalks; but the oil operator re
ferred to always keeps carefully to the
sidewalks. and if he has occasion TO eros.
at the intersection Of another street al
takes in each corner on the way rather
than cut across cata-cornered. he has
German coin that he could not be induced
e to sell 1t gives good luck.
Hundreds Of brokers on the two Stool
Exchanges consider that they have theii
lucky suits Of clothes
On the Consolidated Exchange. espe
cislly In the shouting .esticulating push
inc and rollickiup oil prOuD il IL cOnsid