The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1901-05-10

Panic Sweeps the New York Stock Ex>
change. Northern Pacific Bid Up
$1,000 by Frantic Shorts.


New York, May 10.-Bitter stress de-
veloped in Wall street by the second
hour of trading on the Stock exchange
yesterday. The violence of the commo-
ton had spent much of its force, at
least for the time being, when the
chairman's gavel fell announcing the
close of the days proceedings. The
casualties were great and the field of
battle was strewn with the wounded,
and may be with the dying.
Late in the day the principal banks
in the financial district agreed to form
a pool and raise Il fund to loan the
money rate down to 6 per cent on the
Stock exchange The bid for money
had been run up to go per cent and
was threatening to keep alive the
panic.
The state of excitement was very ap-
parent all through the financial dis
trict during the period of the panic,
but there We're few sensational scenes.
Now and then white faced woman
would peer from a cab outside a
brokers' office and would be driven off
in a fainting condition after receiving
message from the interior. Where
ever any near approach could be made
to ticker or to a board on which quo
tations were posted, there We're great
throngs of excited spectators scram
bling for view of the market. In
the brokers' offices many men sat who
We're reduced to absolute ruin as a re-
suit of Is minutes proceedings on the
Stock exchange. Some of these have
been made opulent within a few weeks
past as result of the unparalleled
rise in prices. With the true gambling
spirit they have replaced all their
winnings i'll new ventures on each
successful turn. Yesterdays drop
therefore wiped them all out. The
glittering attraction of this market has
brought into it constantly increas-
ing assortment OF more staid and in
experienced spectators, men and
women who have brought long-stand-
ing boards from secret places and from
savings bank deposits with the deter
mination to make one successful
stroke and then retire with the pro-
ceeds. The demonstrations from this
class, which includes many women
spectators, furnished the hysterical
scenes and sensations of the day.
Squeeze Shorts to the Limit.
There was a strong feeling before
proceedings had commenced on the
Stock exchange that panic could be
averted only by the strongest meas
ures and with the greatest difficulty.
The fact was apparent that the corner
in Northern Pacific was still unbroken.
The first steps to avert the panic
We're devoted to circulating reports
that the conferences between the con
which continued in one form or an
other throughout the night had result
ed in compromise which would free
the shorts in that stock from their
compromised positions. These efforts
proved utterly ineffective in face of the
first quotations for Northern Pacific
on the tape. The price paid for the
and then to $500. to $500 and even to
500 per share on regular transactions
and $1,000 per share for cash. The
cash price paid meant that unfortunate
| shorts who We're unable to borrow
the stock had to pay whatever cash
price the engineers of the corner chose
to ask for it. The figures indicated
ruin for very large outstanding in
terest in the stock The perception of
this fact was the principal impellne
cause III producin" the decentralization
III the stock market The concert
effort to support the market by buy
all stocks which might be offered
| which was undertaken by some of the
most powerful capitalists in the
country, was swept away like whirI
| pool under the deluge of offerings
which came upon the market Such q
shoyeling out of stocks as occurred
during the second hour of yesterday
stock market was never seen before
| After Il sale had been made at a fixed
| price, broker would throw in an ad
ditional block at anywhere from 5 te
10 points lower without stopping tc
| demand any intermediate price fol
his Offering. The extent of the de
cline during the half hour was as great
in some cases as has taken weeks tt
attain on the advance, although all oh
servers have agreed that the rate al
which prices have been going up has
exceeded any previous experience
The. figures alone suffice to indicate
the proportions of the drop. In Della
ware and Hudson the extreme decline
was 50 points, Rock Island 351s, Uniol
Pacific 3S, Atchison 3411a, Atchison pre-
ferred 2Sla, st. Paul 3O1a, Missouri Pa
citic 80, Southern Pacific 29A, United
States Steel preferred 26k, while ,
ss..- =" y 80 IS :3'3;..a Co !.