The record-union., 1893-05-06
Special to the RrcoRn.uN1ox.

Special to the RECoRD-UNIoN.
New YORK, May 5.-There were lower
ing and portentous clouds over Wall
street this morning. Brokers and bank
ers hastened to that financial storm
center, knowing that the band would be-
gin to play at the drop of the gavel at the
Stock Exchange, and each was deter
mined to be as near as possible to the
head of the procession. Nobody could
tell before the opening what history lay
just the other side of 10 o'clock, when
pandemonium should be let loose. Those
in wore strained and anxious faces.
Those out hovered about from habit,
and were scarcely less anxious. Some,
perhaps, felt their toes over the edge of
the sheer precipice, not knowing but that
the developments OF the hour might push
them clean over the brink into the finan-
cial pit There was hurrying and sour
rying of men and boys. Diving in here,
darting out there; rushing into this and
hurrying out of that Office where their in
terests were centered; and so the calm
hands on old Trinity's grim clock dial
crept up to the hour when the turmoil
should begin and another day that wears
the flesh and nerve of men should be
ushered in.
Any fond optionist who imagined be
fore the opening that the market might
stiffen at the outset was disappointed.
Every eye was on cordage, and there was
movement enough within ten minutes
after the sounding of the gong to engage
every eye.
The appointment of receivers for
the National Cordage Company late last
night was the occasion for a further
break in the preferred stock this morn
ing. 1t closed yesterday at IS. In ten
minutes after opening it was fifteen points
lower, at 30. 1t hesitated there for mo-
ment, then tumbled to 10. Then came
perceptible lessening in the rush to sell
and more steadiness. Cordage common
opened at 19@2l.
Meanwhile. along the ragged declivity
OF alarm there were other interests
stumbling and grumbling against the
face of the situation. General Electric
was another weak spot, and in the first
few minutes it broke five points to 75.
The fact that certain officials have thought
1t necessary TO issue a statement that the
company was all right was viewed with
suspicion in some quarters. At 1915 the
price was %. Sugar was also attacked. 1t
broke to 76 and Chicago Gas dropped to
20. Manhattan Elevated broke 81 to 125.
Considering the panic in industrial
stocks the railroad list was held fairly
well. Manhattan Elevated went down
the toboggan-slide at a great rate, wiping
out all margins on a slump from l26 to
1l33. Progress was stayed at that point
and rally to l20 followed, but the stock
slid off again to ll6.
Soon after the opening there were re-
newals of yesterdays rumors that S. V.
White was in trouble in connection with
cordage. Before three-quarters of an
hour after the opening the slump in that
stock became too great for him to stand,
and he went down before the Storm The
fact of the failure of the great speculator.
whose going to the wall one year or so
ago IN grain deal on the Chicago Board
of Trade caused such a sensation, was
known on the street and found its way
into the Stock Exchange room before the
formal announcement was made therein.
According to his own statement, cordage
was the chief element in his failure, but
he was also interested in gas. Cordage
strangled him, and gas suffocated him.
He was unable to go on at present, though
he might get later on, he said.
Soon there came from Boston state
ment that Francis Henshaw " Company,
stock brokers', had failed. Nobody
seemed to know much about them. But
it made little difference: it was failure.
and that was enough to add to the fury of
the tempest; and SO passed the first hour.
When II o'clock chimed from Trinity
steeple the decline had been uncommonlv
heavy and the excitement had reached a
higher pitch than at any time since the
panic started, with the market still fe-
verish.
After IL o'clock the excitement in the
Stock Exchange abated somewhat, but
the fluctuations continued wide and fire.
quent. Buying orders appeared and
prices jumped three and four points at
time, but any pressure to sell was imme-
diately followed by break. The absence
of further failures had a reassuring effect.
At noon the market was firm and ad-
vancing.
In the afternoon the battle Stacked off
tritie in intensity. There were spasms of
riotous bidding and selling, however.
for time, and then the action again be-
came more rapid Rarely, if ever, in the
history of the Stock Exchange were such
wild fluctuations witnessed.
One of the largest houses on the street
is said to he in trouble and certain to fail.
While this condition existed dazed
brokers were throwing over stocks re-
gardless OF price, and foreign houses
were quietly picking up the dividend
payers. 1t is estimated that up to noon