The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-07-22
sTOCx BROKERS sUPERSTITIONS.
Lack Of q Man who stepped On . Crack Goinl
to his once.

to his once.
The man who was watching the tape anx-
iously suddenly snapped IL on and turning
to the brokers standing near him said:
That last sale has probably cost me $1,000
and | am through buckine my superstition
Lost a rabbit foot?" asked a broker.
NO, nothing Of that sort. | don't believe
In rabbits feet. opals and ali that sort Of thing
! have a little superstition Of my own. however.
which is Just "A foolish. II Is really absolutely
silly. hut have never known il to fail. come
downtown in a Broadway car every morning.
Experienoe has taught me that If | step on a
crack IA I walk from Broadway down Wall
and Broad to my Office luck will &c against
Inc all day, | hrst noticed this ten years ago.
II came to me like an inspiration, | tried to
fight il down. On days when i had stepped
on q crack in going 10 my ofice In the morning
] would trade only in the most conservative
stocks and on what seemed u be sure tips.
In nine cases out Of ten. however. the market
OF course t IS foolish, but I'll venture
TO say that eight broker. ont 81 ten down here
have some pet superstition IKE 1t, have
tried in every way to take the hoodoo away
me that Il ia useless. stepped on a crack
this morning Just as ] was thinking about
buying 200 shares Of y ' z, had straight
Information that II was 70 be bulled and Us
last report warranted a price better than 81.
When I stepped on the crack thought TO my
self There Ia my hoodoo. II buy that stock
now II will go down. III Just take the curse
of that hoodoo by selling no shares and that
was what / did. ] ordered my short stock
covered at 76. Five points was oil the profit
] expected The stock began TO sag "a soon
a. | sold. and then came q rally and it's boon
going up ever since. My stock has just been
covered at a five point loss. That convinces
me that ! can't get the better, Of my hoodoo
and hereafter | am going to yield to H."
Several Of the other brokers admitted In
turn their pct superstitions, and ono OF them
told a story about the death Of a well-known
governor OF the Stock Exchange a few years
ago. The governor may be called Brown.
The broker said:
There was not q more level headed mar
on the Exchange than Brown, and you proba-
bly, all Of you knew him. lie had ono super
stition which he confided 10 his friends. He
always said that he felt sure that II II ever BE-
ber's death that his own death would come
very shortly afterthat. We all guyed him about
It and Brown himself didn't seem TO be very
serious. II so happened one morning. how
ever, that the other officers Of the Exchange
were i'll and Brown was called upon TO an
nounce the death Of a member. | heard him
do Il and thought to myself that this was a
good opportunity to prove the foollshnese
Of his superstition. Brown looked to be IN
perfect health. After announcing this death
he stepped down. walked across the floor and
never recovered consciousness You all know
that he dice in that way and there are a dozen
other mon besides myself who can volch for
his having that superstition. My experience
leads me u believe that stock brokers are the
most superstitious OF me2."