The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-01-21
Odd Signs that
Mean Millions.
The Wonderful Silent Lam
guagc by Which the Brokers
of Wall Street DO Business.
'ssss..ssss.ss.e..ssss.eesss;


scratch OF a pen. The trading Is car
'lyd In BY means OF s.sAs ,h~de wat1 |
tDe handS anu nDg@l4. ~ rs not beber- 4
ANY feanztd thal men must Oe scaup-
elYusiy IOneat al .aese uedllLhs, more
nVneGt an TACT tafn In el.nosl any
= sbSI DusIness. lac tgnpsatiCn ald tne
V.kOrluIlty ~ De d4oIVnesl are 50
goa. tnat many ruies are IN operation
"nien ~Uuiu seem Curious indeed cay
wnefe out On kne loor OF the eXcndnKe.
iHe NisIlor VINO looks down uDJn the
moor OF tle exchange during all eXcit-
ins session concldues tnAt the nroheis
are an crazy toSeu1er. Inc layman
can sec n0thing Dut Il howllng moo.
AS matter of fact the activities be-
low nm are carried en according to
STRICT rules, but the action is so rapid
mat has eye can not follow H.
a considerable part OF The business OF
the country involving millions OF dol
iars daiiy, is transacted by Sign Ian
guage The scene OF these great tan
aaetlons is the floor of the stock eX-
change. Any one who has seen the
antics Of iphe brokers viii understand
that Vt Is always dif6cult and often I'm
possiDe for them to make themselves
heard. The confusion on the floor is
often so great that a broker can not
syen make himself heard by shouting in
the ear OF the man next him.
q
stock With his customer several feet
from him or perhaps across the room
conversation Is impossible. II the
broker uses megaphones the confusion
would be merely increased. To obyiate
this they have devised a sign lans0a4e
something like that used by the deai
ana dumb. With this vocabulary of
finance n man can buy or sell STOCK no
natter how great the turmoil.
Tho vocabulary nablcg man to bid
or make offers on a stock and dlnounce
the number OF shares and an exact
fractional price falner more qu.cnE
than he could speak.
single finger OF either hand held
horizontally signifies ten SHARES OF
ssock or 1000 bushels cf-%sheat. Two
hpgers together mean twenty shares or
1000 bushels of wheat, and so on Fifty
shares Is signlaed by an 20" formed
with the thumb and first finger. One
hundred shares or 100 900 buslels OF
wheat are indicated by the closed hand,
I When a broker wishes to purchase
stock or wheat he makes known his
want by rapidly extending his hand par
italy open and drawing NJ slowly toward
him. To signify that he is prepared to
sell he pushes his partially opened hand
from him.
The sign language does not attempt
to indicate the name OF any stock. The
brokers' dealing in each rally around
slgnboard on the floor of the exchange
which bears Its name.
1t sometimes happens that the crowd
VIII be pushed or win swirl away from
this center, but the frenZied shouts OF
the brokers always serve to identify it.
II will be seen ho'E a broker by Joining
one OF these bowling, struggling mobs
with the aid of his sons may make
known the number OF shares ne may
wish to buy or sell.
The price of Tho stock is also made
known by signs. One finger pointed
vertically and upward signifies that a
bid In offered at one eighth OF a point
Two fingers o-elghths, or one-qJar-
ter. and so on. The price Of the socks
40 uD or down, moving by eghths of a
point
All these signs are used so quickly
and the antics OF the brokers 20 at
tract attention are so violent that an
unframed eye can scarcely recognize
them. A man may be seen. for exam
pie, 10 rush eXcitedly to group Of
wildly shouting men and. after he has
attracted attention to himself by
shrleks move his olinched hst rapidly
up and down. as khcugh delivering a
series ot.~upper-cur blows to an mag
mary foe.
Instantly a dozen men start for hltn,
gestlculating wildly. In response he
tries to rush toward them, mean while
, appearing to beckon them on with his
partially closed hand.
AS soon as no has attracted che at
tention OF the crowd he waves his hand
rapidly back and FORTH with one or
, more fingers extended. He repeats
these menacag signs over and oyei
again ana just as "a free hght seems
inevitable, nc exchanges quick Jerk
OF the head with some one before him.
~ Oh hA nfnll La ,ff
, unmolested.
', non .le excited broker rushed into
, the struggling mob he was merely JONI
Ing the group trading iu some commo-
, dity like sugar. The upper-cut blows
, of his fist merely slgniiied that lie
wished TO trade in 100 shares OF the
, stock, When he appeared TO be beck
oaihg on US adyersaries he merely eN-
pressed desire to purchase this STOCK
, ana his excited jabhing of he air with
extended fnsers Indicated that II DC
{ prevailing quotation was SAY III 3-S,
, ne d9uid pay Ia. The gentlemen Nh.
, rushed at MN merely desired to attract
HIS attention, and the Jerk OF the head
, signihcd that the Offer was accepted
, aud the sale, which perhaps involved
/ hundreds OF thousands of dolhrs was
| complete.
/ Tho rules OF the exchange governing
all such transactions are very rigid
end yet Il Is surprising how many q 81
putcs arise. A committee OF half
dozen OF more men sR constantly pa
trolling the floor 10 enforce them. 4
man with authority 10 decide disputes
, also sits on seal overlooking the door
but these precautions are rarely need
, cd. a thousand disputes which it woult
! seem must Inevitably end in free fght
arise each day aud as quickly subside
Z IL sometimes happens that two mer
; VIII mi understand each other in quot
ing price, and that after the sale il
made each will have different quota
r tion in mind
|, The disposition OF these cases rs pc
Guitar. The disputants Immediately &
4 before fhH sces nR officer and stat
} the trouble, The friends OF both par
: ties crowd about them. The officer /,
j charge then calls for vote Of hand
I on the dispute, snd the majority rules.
. Late Candidate for Governor I<tliet
Salt Lake. Utah. january 2o.--A spe
4, c,al to the Tribune from George. Utal
{ says that Martin Wright. hate social;
candidate for governor Of Utsh, who wa
0 en- route TO Los Angeles with hts Nv
n sons. Was instantly killed by the DIS
E change Of "a revolver which accidental
,. fell from his pocket while he was pre-