The Minneapolis journal., 1903-10-10
RICH men HARD HIT
What the Great Decline in the Stock
Market Has Meant to
Capitalists.
Two Instances Of Gilt Edge Stocks
Slaughtered in Forced
Sales.
4 New York Commercial.

The difficulty of marketing any large
amount of standard investment securities,
when the stock market is in a nervous
state, has been again shown during the
last few weeks. A prominent Philadel-
phia capitalist, who was forced a little
over a week ago to raise large amount Of
capital TO meet his obligations, had held
as an investment for number Of years
5000 shares Of Standard Oil stock. He
was forced TO sell this block Of stock for
whatever price it would bring. 1t was
impossible to sell the stock in the open
market. Standard Oil is practically never
traded in to any extent, only an average
of about twenty or thirty shares changing
ownership each day. An attempt to sell
even 500 shares would probably cause the
price to break violently. without much
of the stock being disposed Of The result
was that theN Philadelphia capitalist was
forced to dispose of the Standard Oil
stock at private sale. There was only one
group of financial interests who were will
Ing to purchase such a huge block of
stock In this close corporation.
....- Lost 5000 Share. s.
These interests offered $40O share for
the stock, as compared with the last sale
delphia capitalist was forced to accept this
offer. IT he had not he would have been
unable to meet his obligations, and the
banks would have thrown the Standard
Oh stock. on which he had borrowed heav-
lily, on the. market for whatever price it
would bring. In such an event the block
of stock might not have brought as much
as s4o0 a share. The difference between
400, the price at which the stock was
transferred privately, and 600 the market
price. represented loss of sl2, 900, 900 to
the Philadelphia capitalist. .1 .sT".'
Another Big Loser.
Only few days ago another capitalist
was forced to dispose Of a block Of 10000
shares of another investment stock at pri-
vate sale. The stock Is understood to be
General Electric The demand for this
stock is limited to such small number Of
wealthy investors, and the stock market
was in such a nervous state that it IS s
recognized 1t would be impossible to dis
pose OF such a large block Of the stock
IN the open market without causing a
violent decline in it's price. The capitalist
in question was forced to dispose of the
forced to accept price 25 points below
the market. If either of these capitalists,
on the other hand, had held much larger
blocks Of stock as actively traded in as
Pennsylvania or United States Steel, they
could have disposed OF them in the open
market. Such a large lot Of stock dumped
on the market at one time would naturally
cause decline, but there would be no
difficulty in marketing all Of the stock.
During two days several weeks ago nearly
10000 shares Of Steel preferred was sold
in the open market for single capitalist.
It caused g. decline of 5 points, but all
OF the stock was sold. Even when there
is no public buying in the market there is
always large demand for a stock active
ly traded in, by the short interest which
desires to cover at a profit. T 5.,..t -