Evening star., 1901-07-13
Thither Flock All Varieties of Men,
dicants.
MOST FRANKLY ''ON THE TOUCH"
Brokers Are Freehanded and Give
Generously.
BOYCOTT HAS BEEN STARTED


Written for The Evening star
In the higher ranks of beggardom !. has
long been saying that Wall street * the
best paying place in America for The prac-
tltloner of the art of touch and 90. The
Dunco steerers' 2djge. There's a sucker
born every minute" they have amended I,
read, And all of them get to Wall street
before they die Every form of begging
s&me hourishes there. and that form aeur-
lshes best which is the most genteel and
ingenious.
Inc financial district Of New York. or.
as some describe it. the financial crnter of
the world. has always been the Mecca for
those who believe that the world owes them
a living without any return for it. but OF
late there has been such a wholesale de-
scent of the begging fraternity thar .ba
brokers' are crying out for relief from the
nuisance. The sudden increase of business
IN wall street and the daily renorts of
immense sales of stocks, and the stories
real and fancifui. of the making of vas,
fortunes by a turn OF the wheel have con-
Slnced outsiders that the streets of the
hnanclal section are bestrewn with gold
ana brokers' are waiting only to be asked
" nanu out generous donations to any
possible charity
So long as the begging was do,a NTH
some degree Of fnesse. Wall street endured
IL cheerfully, and gave freely Iissome
eouHs "oIneH with soft voices and annp1l-
ing eyes VINO wished to sell tickets to Der
1ormances that were never intended to
take place found ready market; suave
gentlemen in silk hats who politely sug-
suiseu 80 SUBSCRIPTIONS to organiza tions which
existed chiefly within those hats, collected
an occasional bonus while the hard-luck
SLY, ouoyantly and genially presented. was
Always sure to be rewarded with the price of
drink But the plain unyarnished bum
with five days underground of whiskars
and too we'll ventilated clothing is NOT non
ular on Wall street and this kind has he
come very prevalent of late Along with
MIN have come a horde of subscrjntion
agents. who invade buildings like A swarm
VI roacnes> and are as little welcome. That
Is why Wall street is now in revolt
ne publication of illustrated volumes on
Na!A street and its prominent men has
faade 1t possible Tor the charity fend to
recognize a stock exchange man in the
street: ana It is quite a common thing for
enc OF the board members to be approached
by seedy stranger and addressed br
name. ~
knew His Victim.
MI Sie~s, begins the stranger. Il used
to Speculate in your office and had a run
OF luck, but L got on the wrong side of the
market and now l am up against it
want to ask you for a small loan until I
sell house own in the country When
get the cash for This place / shall be back
IN your office rolling up the money again. "
i'ihe many otner cases. the broker thinks
II" recognizes a casual customer in the an
parent stranger and the loan is forthcom-
ing. The ups and downs Of Wall street
me make 1t necessary for every one TO h,
uly KiIuly disposed 20 the man who is tempo
rarlly out at elbows. The borrower may
De the lender in few weeks time Rut
"hen the same broker Is approa ched a sec
ond time with the same tale of hard luck
1t begins to look like Queer street apa
of all people in thu world the Wall street
broker is the most resentful when victim
lied. ''''
At the same time the broker must be
cautious in his dealings with the stranger
who accosts and claims acquaintance with
hlm on the street. There are many va
rieties OF spectators. and some of those
VINO drlft In from the country districts
wearing clothes that would make a hit on
the variety stage are too good customers
To lose. A certain member of a big Wall
street firm had an unpleasant experience
In this line recently. AS he was going TO
the exchange an elderly man in shabby
clothes addressed him timidly:
Amt you Mr.. So-and-so?"
Yes, | am: but I'm in a great hurry"
just wanted to ask you eff you
couldn't
No. sir, I cannot" said the broker en-
phatically. scenting touch.
AS he stalked away he was dimly aware
OF some messenger boys laughing ar Tho
figure his interlocutor cut as he stood star
ing and discounted Half an hour later
the broker came Gut upon the street again
only to run into the seedy little man
just Wanted to know
Mr.. So-and-so.' began the little man
Il only wanted to ask you eff you
couldn't
Now, see here cried the outraged brok-
er. Il won't stand being held up this way
II you do it again I'll have you arrested
Then give me back my Saooo3," said The
little man. patiently.
.'What?'
I've got $4,000 with your ffrrs in COM
bined wheat, and | just wanted to ask YOU
If you couldn't tell me whether I'd better
hang on or SELL
The seedy little man was a country mill
IN THE FISH
From the Journal Amusan.