The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-05-12
RETROSPECT OF THE PANIC
Local Spectators Tell of Alleged
Unfair Dealings.
Some of Them Claim 40 Have Been
Dipped Under Cover of the De-
moraIized Condition of the Market
Reports of Individual Losses Here

Now that the smoke of Thursday
great Wall Street battle has partially
cleared away. and local brokers and Gus
toners are beginning TO count up their
financial casualties, it is found that the
first estimates will fall far short of The
extent of the disaster. 1t is said by peo-
pie most familiar with the business of
the different brokers that the losses to
Washington spectators will easily
amount to more than million dollars for
the few brief minutes in which the crash
came and expended itself
The brokers. too. have lost heavily, in
being forced to sell out securities on
which customers had insufficient margins
to cover the break that occurred. These
losses will probably aggregate several
thousand dollars, and viii eat up a con-
siderable portion of the tremendous com
missions that have been received during
the past few weeks.
The customers of one house alone are
understood to have lost nearly $500, 900. A
third or more of them lost everything
they had in the market in margins. and
the average loss was probably in excess
of 5000. The losses in another house are
understood 10 have aggregated more than
100000.
The stories of individual reverses filled
the streets and the hotel Hobbies, and
were the chief topic of conversation in
the brokerage offices Friday. One young
lawyer said when the crash was over:
Il have just made out a check for
my broker for s.. 900 to cover the balance
due him in addition TO the 5000 / already
had up. The money is all that have. 1t
represents the savings Of seven years. 1t
Will take me a good many years to get
back to where l was a month ago, with
IS, 900 invested in dividend paying securi-
ties l have a good practice. though, and
/ have had the last of stock gambling"
another man said: u have dropped
5000. / arranged recently for the pur-
chase of an automobile with a part of
my recent winnings l have decided to
limit myself to n baby carriage for the
present"
An Alabama woman employed in the
Treasury Department lost $4,000 in the
slump nearly all that she had. \ prom
inent lawyer and capitalist had 500 shares
of stock a week ago, on slim margin
that would have been wiped out in a few
minutes. He sold the entire lot of stock
out at a good profit a week ago Friday
when the break Of that day began. An
other capitalist saved himself by selling
a large block of Brooklyn Rapid Transit
and other securities on Wednesday. and
taking a loss of two or three thousand
dollars.
The curious story is told of an official
I'm the War Department who had 500
shares of Northern Pacific stock which
he did not sell on Thursday when the
price went up to $1,000 a share. No ex-
PLANTATION of his remarkable failure to
make a fortune is given. Another local
investor had ten shares Of the stock and
was urged by his broker to sell it when
the price reached 500 a share. He failed
to do SO. stating that he wished to con-
suit his wife before taking any action.
The most moving chapter in the entire
comedy tragedy of Thursday is the au-
thentic story of an old Virginia farmer
who owns thirty-two shares of Northern
Pacific stock, but lives far from the mad
ding crowd, fifty miles down the Potomac,
where telephones and telegraphs are I'M
known and 1t is twenty miles to the rail-
way. The daily paper is one day lates
Friday morning he saw as how that
there Northern Pacific stock was selling
for $40 a share on Wednesday,
He got out the old wallet containing his
deed and his Northern Pacific stock and
put on his store clothes while his son har-
messed the sorrel mare. He drove twenty
miles to the railway in two hours and
caught the train. The train bore him
dlzziiy to Washington. but he arrived too
late to see the closing of the stock mar
ket for the day.
Then he saw Friday mornings papers
and learned that Northern Pacific had
reached $1,000 share on Thursday. He
got Friday afternoons papers and learn
ed that the price had dropped to $50.
Then he visited the office of The Times
and learned the latest news of the North
ern Pacific corner. He announced his in
tention of staying over until yesterday
and selling out at Sl50 If possible, ana was
greatly discouraged when he learned that
the market had been closed over yester-
day to allow the brokers to recover from
Northern Pacific at $1,000. He Will leave
his stock with broker for sale tomorrow
The stock cost him, with an assessment
OF SIS a share, Just 81 share IN all, or
S92 For-one brief moment he hoped 10
get ssa 900 for his stock and give up Vir-
ginia farming and come to Washington TO
live for the remainder of his Ire. Iheh
his hopes contented themselves with. say,
81 800 but at that figure they stl.i STUCK,
and they stand a fair chance OF being
There is much complaint among custo-
rners of local houses at the way they
were treated in the smash. The utterly
defaoralized condition Of the market, ana
the fact that the tapes ana tickers were
several minutes behind time, must be con-
sidered sufficient excuse for much OF the
disappointing execution Of orders, and the
entire failure to execute orders IN many
cases When Washington put in its or
ders to sell stocks the break had already
come.
The public invariably considers itself
ill-treai ed in such a break, where in most
cases brokers undoubtedly do the best
that human effort and excellent system
can accomplish 1t might be well for the
public TO remember, too, that at least Two
of the important local houses had been
advising strenuously the selling out OF
all long stock for many days before the
break occurred. letter of warning OF
the great danger of a break. and Of the
most vigorous advice TO get out, was seen
by all the customers of one of these
houses and the next day published In
The Times financial columns. week ago.
Another broker went out Into his Gus
them individually and collectively that
they were on exceedingly dangerous
ground. II the advice Of these houses
Had been followed there would have been
no losers in them when the break came
and hence no possible chance for COM
plant.
At the same time. it may do some good.
and can wrong no one to say that some
of the things that occurred look as If
they should be Investigated. Perhaps the
brokers concerned would be glad of such
an investigation TO clear them from the
bad light in which these stories place
them. Perhaps II there was any crook
eduess. or any carelessness that was in
excusable. the New York houses are TO
blame and not the local firms. More than
one customer is telling the story that his