The Jennings daily record., 1902-05-29
SEATS ON THE CHANGES
BROKERS' PRIVILEGES SOMETIMES
BRING FABULOUS PRICES.

! ESxCn0nR00s
i That the privilege of owning seat
within that charmed circle known as
the New York Stock Exchange should
be valued at $4,000 is not to be ex-
planned by the fact that the number
of these seats to be owned is inflex-
IDLY limited to 100, says the New
York Times. In the first place, it is
not a "seat'' at all that this $50, 900
buys. but the opportunity to stand for
| five hours of every business day and
trade with such of the 1899 members
as may be about in those, elusive COM
modities known as stocks. bonds, bull
| lion, and loans. And the reasons why
| the privilege Of buying and selling
with these other 1899 members is so
| valuable is that more money is poured
| into the hands of these same members
| for purposes of trading than is fur
nished to ten times that number of
men anywhere else in the United
States.
| That such countless dollars should
| be poured into the hands of the HOO
| members of this Institution must be
| explained also in the fact that on the
| floor of the New York Stock Exchange
Is to be found the greatest opportu-
nifty for speculate this side of Lon
don. 1t is one of the paradoXes of
Wall Street that the Stock Exchange
should be the greatest speculative
mart in the United States. while one
OF the great laws of the Exchange is
that there shall be no betting or of
fers to bet made upon the floors of |
the Exchange
1t was only year ago that seats
on the New York Stock Exchange |
We're selling for half their present |
hgure. The unprecedented .'bull'' |
market sent the prices for seats climb
ing from $4,000. Up, up. and still |
up they went until a few days before
the collapse of May Q, 1901. when they
We're bringing more than $4,000
The public came and went however.
with no diminution in the price of an
Exchange seat. Wall Street felt that
prosperity would continue and the
privilege of doing business on the ey.
change would be ever more precious |
And so there has been n steady ap-
probation OF the value of seats until
the hlgh-water mark of $4,000 was
reached few days ago This sum
really Slgnitied that the seat cost the
buyer SS2. 600. for in addition to the
sum he had to pay to the previous
owner of the seat, he had TO pay an
initiation fee of $4,000.
Ihe privilege of trading upon the
New York Stock Exchange is not the
only exchange privilege in New York
or the United States which is consid-
cred of money value. There is the
New York Consolidated Stock and
Petroleum Exchange, known in the
Street as 1.-The little board"
Next in Importance for amount of
business done is the New York Pro
1uce Exchange. Here the same gen
aral advantages apply as on other ex-
changes, for dealings i'll wheat, corn |
pats, pork. flour and similar products. 5
II Is on this exchange that most of
the trading in wheat is done.
Ihe New York Cotton EXCHANGE
lhS 4oo members and is strictly linn d
tea to that number. 1t has its own 1
'ulidlnS, and its own pit around c
which the trading is done Go there L
'n most days and you will find per- V
laps two dozen men sitting near n
'rass railing around small amphi- $
heatre III the middle of the board :
oom. They seem liStIess and unoc- $
'upled. Yet from this small centre is u
moved the cotton crop of the United
'tates n membership on this eX-
mango sold recently for $4,000 and d
ne buyer paid the transfer fee of d
20 t
one important exchange in New "
ork handles product which is
carcely grown at all i'll the United
'tateS-the Coffee Exchange. Its quo
ations largely rest upon the coffee y
hipments from Brazil. and the very "
inaccurate and unsatisfactory reports
ihlch come from. Brazil accounts for
he apparently violent fluctuations in
rice daily seen upon this floor. The u
latlstlcal department maintained by Id
MS exchange is of necessity very i'm
ortant, and some effort is made to q
ccnrateiy forecast the coffee situa-
Oh OF the future. 1t is the most diff .,
cult problem that confronts any ex- -"
mango, even if not the most momep- ~
'uS. The membership of the Coffee VI
Schange is limited to little over
W members. \ seat sold recently for
100 OF
The Metal Exchange has principally p'
do with iron and connar So 49,. Ii.
lrrently valued at about 5000. al ~
Tough members say that intrinsically " al
ley are worth more. The average ~
amber of active traders on the floor
about twenty-five--one-t the to- re
/ membership
The Churches of Rome ~