The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-02-04
25c. for box of BEECHAM's PILLS worth
q guinea
THE WHISKY STOCK POOL.

TX W17IONI 0IOSfN TOO-'
NEW YORK, Feb. 3.-The Evening Sun
| today says that the history OF the recent
dealings in whisky trust shares is now
made public for the first time. 1t shows,
continues the paper, how some western
men attempted to play James r. keene,
| manager of the pool, false; how keene de-
tected them, but progressed to accept their
denials, and how be turned around and
made cool million out of the western
men. It appears however, SO far as the
pool is concerned, that those of its mem
| bers who played fair and trusted in the
ability OF its manager, James h, keene,
have lost nothing. On the contrary, al
though the pool for the most of the time
operated on the bull side and the price of
the stock was cut in two, dividend OF 81
per share IS awaiting its members. The
pool in Distllling was bnll pool ana be-
gan its operations when the stock was sell
ing at so 1t was understood that 100 600
shares were to be bought and the stock
advanced TO point commensurate with
its stated dividend earning capacity.
James K. Keene WAS made manager OF the
pool, with full power to operate as he W
fit. The members of the pool were the
company's directors and number OF
Wall street men.
Very little stock was acquired by the bull
pool on the stocks rise from so TO 81, but
the buying was continued, and by the
time the different pool memb bers had taken
up 135, COOS hares the stock WAS quoted at
70. The last $1,000 shares were then being
acquired when keene detected a look
about the selling which he did not like,
Some certificates, it is said, were traced
directly to the western clique. He sent
for them and told of his suspicious. One
of the parties protested his iunocecne and
offered to put up s., ,500,0 000 in government
bonds to guarantee dividends on the stock
for two years. He assured Keene that the
condition of the company was all it should
be- The sstock crept up to 7211, and
more suspicious certificates appeared.
From that time the pool holdings began
to be liquidated. As fast as the market
would absorb the stock kseue sold 1t.
When the break began, it is said, the
western people, who had been steadily
sell ling short on the rise above II, thought
the decline was due to their sales. On the
break down TO GO the bear crowd began to
cover. They then began to buy the very
stock that was pouring out of the pool
The holdings of the pool were lquidated
finally at about GO, but, as most OF the
stock had been acquired at about that
figurethere was an ugly loss staring the
pool the face.
Then came Keene's chance to recoup.
The western members of the pool we've
loaded with stock, confident that the pool
was still working on the bull side. In a
day or two the street was startled by tre-
mendous sales of Distilliug. The dealings
became enormous and the price began to
weaken. Around IS tremendous fight
took place. The western people rallied
again and the stock crept back TO SO, but
did not stay there. Gu volume of bus
mess rarely seen in Wall street the slump
came, aud continued, until on Wednesday
the stock grounded at 81. the lowest price
at which it had ever sold. The capital
stock of the company was dealt in on We'd
nesday. OF the 1913, 400 shares which had
been sold 5000 were bought by Keene. 1t
was short stock. too, and it had been sold
| around 60. The purchase price averaged
80 The profits on the turn were cool
million dollars, or enough to wipe out the
losses incurred by the pool on the bull side.
That is where the 4 per cent dividend will
come from. The westerners now find
| themselves the owners of the property they
brought on to sell.