Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-05-11
Willy WIRE WORKERS.
Telegraph Operators Stand in and
Beat Bucket Shop Proprietors.
SCHEME. THAT WORKED SMOOTHLY
Quotations Held Back Until the Market
Was Favorable.
MANY MEN LEFT OUT IN THE COLD

Telegraph operators are advising their
friends in other cities to steer clear of Pitts
burg if they are out of work and want
positions. There are at present about 25
men seeking places here, in conse-
quence of the recent failures in the bucket
shops" About Is of them were employed
with the Pittsburg Commission Company.
A telegraph operator is quite an import
ant medium through which the brokers con-
duct their business OF stock speculations
with other brokers throughout the State. It
is optional with the operator whether orders
for stock, grain or oil should be filed on
existing market quotations or on future
figures. 1t can readily be seen
that the operators hold very respon-
sible positions. Much trust is imposed
in them, as they have every opportunity to
defraud the people for whom they work.
Such was the condition of affairs that exist
ed in large house in this city short time
ago. The operators employed there were
Systematically robbing their employers for a
year or more, and the latter knew nothing
of 1t until it began to dawn upon them that
something was radically wrong, as another
brokers' profits always exceeded his losses.
ONE OF THE SCHEMES,
The operator working the wire of his part
ner in the scheme had control of the stock
sheets. on which was kept record OF all
transactions made by the correspondent.
When the market declined or advanced and
would scoop" the transaction, the
operator would quietly transfer the deal
to the other side of the sheet. as he chose.
BY doing this he gave a profit in the deals
xuha bo- .lo hop
the trades closed the operators and the cor
respondent would divide the profits.
The suspicion of the proprietor OF the
"shop" was aroused, and ne quietly dis
missed the operator from his employment.
So nicely was the scheme worked that the
broker knew nothing of it until one of the
men confessed to having done the crooked
work. The broker did not prosecute the
operators for the reason that he could get no
conclusive evidence on which to convict
them.
ANOTHER WAY TO WORK IT.
In another establishment the operators
had secretly connected a wire TO a stock
quotation wire that passed near their office.
Their employer, who ran a 'bucket shop,
was in the habit of taking transactions from
his operators. The operators. in turn, would
receive stock quotations from the wire, which
was two or three minutes ahead OF the regu-
lar stock ticker. This was a great ad-
vantage. In three minutes the market
would likely be dollar or so higher than
the figures quoted on the tickers, thus en-
abling the operators to make sure "plays. !"
This continued ior some time, when the pro-
prietor of the establishment found it out.
He discharged the operators at once, but
would not prosecute them as they were only
acting on previous information. They were
also dismissed from the service of the West
ern Union Com pany, where they were en-
ployed at night.
The Western Union Company has all the
operators in its employ who were left out in
the cold by the bucket shop failures that it
can use, but there are many others who have
not yet found positions. The Western
Union Company. in employing men, favors
married men, to the disadvantage of single
men.