The morning call., 1890-10-30
THE SILVER SPECULATION.

Eastern spectators who faneied they had
discovered in thu Silver Act short cut to
fortune are realizing that, like other short
cuts. it is not smooth nor facile. The first
game in the rubber passed off pleasantly
enough. The New York bankers bought
silver at % to 9S, and sold it to the Gov
eminent and to spectators at 115 to 100.
When the white metal then reacted to 100,
the circumstance created no surprise; the re-
action seemed a natural part of the pro-
gramme. But when the operators who had
sold out at rs loaded up alrrSh at 10S to 109,
and, instead of Tesuming lis upward Hight
silver con inued to decline until the last OF
the Government purchases for October were
effected at 105 and under blank dismay fell
upon Wall street, and the bTavest held their
breath for Il time. There was something
wrong, the infallible Gale ulati0n had failed
to work.
New York papers, reasoning on the sur
prise that is felt in the silver market, ac-
count for the facts by saying that the West
ern product of silver has been vastly in
creased since the act passed, and that the in
visible supply of the metal proves larger
than WIS expected. There may be some
truth in these assertions, but not much. 1t
is always difficult TO reckon up the invisible
supply which sudden advance IN the avail
able quantity of a commodity Will bring to
light. But the quantity of silver in banks
and in private hands is pretty accurately
known. No boards containing millions eX-
list anywhere. As to the product of the mines
if that has increased in the past two months
the fact is not generally known. There has
certainly been no increase OF any conSe-
quence in the output of the mines on the
ComStoc6 or in Lake County, Colo. In these
districts the mines have been worked for
long period OF time for all that was in them
An advance of even twenty points in silver
could not avail to swell their product very
much. And what is true of them is prob
ably true of other silver producing localities
There is a much simpler way OF account
ing for the continued decline in silver, and
that is the manipulation of the market by
leading operators. If silver after dropping
to 100 had turned about and resumed its up
ward flight toward 129 everybody would have
been buyer of the metal, and there would
have been but one deal in the whole game
Tom, Dick and Harry would have stood on
the same footing as the RothschildS and the
MOrganS ana the DreXelS, and the profit of
the general operation would have been
equally divided among them all. That Is
not the way they order things in Wall street.
1t was not the way our bonanza kings or
dered things in the days Of the mining boom
here. A great operator wants few partners
or none at all. he wants all the profits OF
the game for himself. To secure that he
must satisfy operators who would interfere
with him that they are more likely TO lose
than to make by operating il what they sup
pose to be his wake.
In this instance the bankers found that
when silver began to move they had more
company than was convenient. Therefore,
after realizing on a few millions at 11S to
100 they dumped so much silver on the mar
ket that it receded to los and 1G9. At those
figures the margins of many operators who
had bought at rs and 1lS were exhausted,
and they had to let go. But others who had
bought under 100 held on, and TO shake them
out it became necessary to continue the ope-
ration of oversupplying the market. The
scheme was aided by stories of an invisible
supply of large proportions and of an in
creased yield from the mines. At some
point or other everybody except the inside
manipulators will be disguised. and will
throw their silver overheard. Then the
ringsters will load up again and proceed to
cinch the Government as they did a few
weeks ago.
Judiciously handled the silver speculation
can be made to last couple OF years, dur
ing which time there will be series OF
booms and reactions. Those who are in the
ring will realize far more than the difference
once told between the price Of silver when
| the Silver Act paSSed-say % or 9S-and the
| price at which the Secretary must stop his
| purchases, say 129. They Will make that
! difference several times over, and the public
as usual will buy when silver is up and sell
| out when it drops again.