The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-09
MARGINS AND "IDIOTS."
Is Speculation i'm the Stock Market
Ever Worth While.
New York Commercial.

New York Commercial.
On Wednesday last there appeared among the
Notes and Queries on this page of the Com
mercial the following communication, presumably
from woman:
What method should she pursue to acquire the
requisite information? Why should this domain
of business be forbidden TO women? After /
have pretty well mastered the fluctuations of
half a dozen leading railroad stocks and after
whom 1 repose confidence. suppose / buy ten
shares Of New York Central or Pennsylvania or
fair chance TO make profit? l know you are
chary of advice to a woman about stock opera
woman can become a lawyer or a physician
and pursue many other vacations Are there
stock boards in New York set apart for women
and, II so, where can they DC round!
Pursuing its established policy in such matters
the Commercial replied that il could not give
the writer advice on speculation" for the cues
tons in general appeared to fail under that ban
out the following from Washington subscriber,
TO which we readily give place: AIT.
to our prospective female stock broker is to the
effect that she is aboard the wrong train. When
SELF on the train for Denver ne would get off at
the first stop This short letter is the signal.
our reader had oer.eF gS.nef up re
turn back to the avenues open when the specula-
ton thought was first suggested to her She is
step into sinking sand Any man woman who
plays the stock market margins is idiot.
The money that she has for the purpose indicated
in her letter to the Commercial she had better
tuition. PROSPERITY
our correspondent assumes entirely too much.
of course. There is nothing in the woman's in
quiry which to base conclusion that she is
going into the stock market any way; and If she
IS II does not follow that she is bound to lose
all that she risks there. perfectly reasonable
inference would be that she is not going into
speculation at all until she has learned the bust
ness or taken good advice in some quarter. We
hope she will do both-but much prefer not
to be her instructor or her adviser.
on the other hand. ''Prosperity's'' assertion
that anybody who plays the stock market on
margins is idiot deserves some attention.
IL is TO nearer the truth than TO say anybody
who plays" the stock market at all is idiot.
Both modes Of buying and selling stocks per-
fectly legitimate. and both equally comprehen-
sye OF success or failure. The plan OF trading Is
not 1.-THE whole thing by any means 1t is the
trader himself herself. Fortunes have been
made BY both methods. Stock trading is bust
noes by itself. Just is trading in coffee or in
iron or in shoes in gold or in -four. One
trader makes success in any one OF these
fields and another a failure. thousand and
one considerations are involved. No rule or set
OF rules can be laid down in either
III as many persons absolutely ignorant OF the
cotton goods trade should take chances in il ev-
cry year ION margin as there are persons ignor-
ant OF stock trading who venture into Ii. we
should just many filings at their
traders In stocks. But the lambs all seem 20
run to stocks instead of TO coal or to beans OF
10 water pals when they want TO risk little
money ION the outside. SO the stock market
has TO bear the odum Of their failures.
But the successes common cough. Thou
/ more hy stock trading right here in New York
! Who never owned n share outright in their lives
But they happen TO know their bus.ness-that is
all