Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-08-26
WALL STREET SHADOWS
MEN WHO TELL TALES OF GREAT
GAINS AND BIG LOSSES
Types Of old-Time Spectators Now
Known Among Stock Brokers
as Ghosts.


From the Brooklyn Eagle.
Saddest of all the many types OF char
acters to be seen in the financial district
is the old-time speculator. Generally aged
and white haired. feeble and broken In
frame and finances, he haunts the district
where he was once a welcome and sought
after visitor. In the pariance Of the pro-
fessional he is known as the Wall Street
Ghost" Generally he has made and lost
or only lost. his fortune in speculation. He
still clings to the hope of q future big deal
that will not only put him on his feet again
but will place him among the rich ones OF
the earth and permit him to retire and en-
JOY its pleasures and luxuries. Repeated
and constant failures do not shake this be-
lief. and after funds for a small speculation
have been accumulated how not even his
intimates can guess, ventured and again
lost the old timer with the speculative
mania starts all over again.
The distinctive characteristic Of the most
prominent type of Wall Street Ghosts Is
In the magnifyfng Of all speculative opera
tons in which they have ever been en-
gagged. A true ghost. would scorn to tell
tales of operations or losses that did not
run into the tens and even the hundreds OF
thousands of dollars. This Is particularly
so when he talks Of past successes and
failures, and there Is not one of them who
has not had the opportunity-alas! invaria-
bly, neglected-to have retired with large
fortune at several past periods in their
lives. Even at the present time when he
has bought small ten or twenty shares
lot, this Is his limit of listed stock, and
which he has secured on a margin through
a house which executes the order through
sympathy or for old association sake and
would much prefer to do without his buSi-
ness, he will talk rather carelessly and
with studied air of nonchalance of the
small lot OF stock he secured at the mar
ket at the opening" and intimate some-
q In, ha rncf-
ly informed by the controlling interest"
Friend Of Magnates.
In fact. he will speak of the financier in
control of the property in question with an
air OF familiarity that will convey to the
inexperienced nearer the impression that
the millionaire In question and the speaker
are bosom friends. If the bearer betrays no
incredulity. he will relate, with great de-
tail. the actual conversation which will
be punctuated by EXPLANATIONS Of friend
ship and in which each party will be addict
ed to the sole use Of the others Christian
name. Many lamb, young in Wall street
fields, has been led to follow a tip from
ghost" by. as Poo-Bah, In THE Mikado,'
says, "the air of verisimilitude given to an
otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative
In the use of the first name of the big bank
ers and operators, or such statements as Il
tell you, old man, have 1t straight from
George Gould that Missouri Pacific will
cross 40 before the first of the month.
There is something big on. George told me
SO himself and told me to play it for all
had. You see. George knows me for years.
You have heard how I once helped Jay
Gould out of hole? No? That's funny!
You can't be well acquainted with the
street But l can't tell you that now. You
go buy that NJ P. before 1t gets away from
you. It's straight goods, and when you
cash in you think Of me-" And If m. p"
should go up that ghost" will haunt that
lamb for a gratuity if the tip was followed,
r,nfa Nd n,
every chance of the second tip being fol-
lowed. owing to the prestige of the first.
The ghost's' personal operations are
generally surrounded with an air of mys-
terry. His converse ton is all In whispers
When he talks to person 1t Is in the but
hole style, and he will Invariably try
to lead his nearer off to a corner where
they cannot be heard or Interrupted. Some
ghosts are practically nothing more or
less than touts, and. like their horse-racinR
brethren, have been known to give exactly
opposite tips to different people and then
wait on the winner and dodge the loser"
The Martyr Ghost.
All the GHOSTS" however, are by no
means Of this variety, The type described
above is the, most striking and offensive,
and therefore attracts the most attention.
General Opinion among 'old-timers in the
street IS that the long suffering, patient,
accomplishing martyr ghost is in the
majority. He is the soul of delicacy and
politeness, His black garb. If thread-worn.
glistening and antiquated. is clean and
neat He shuns notice; never engages in
conversation Of his own seeking His
glances at the stock ticker or the quotation
board are of the unobtrusive sort. He
never boasts Of his old-time big deals or of
the big money he has lost or won in specu-
Iauon- Generally, however, If the truth
can be ascertained. It Is shown that the
martyr ghost has lost more money than
the tout ghost ever saw. He is taking
his medicine without the "squeaI' of the
tout and despises the latter as he does
the latter's methods Of securing funds for
another try.
brokerage or banking firms have their par
ticular ghosts" Some have two or three
with type Of the martyr and tout"
ana VINO are never on speaking terms in
contradiction to the saying that misery
loves company" The same mystery that
attends the speculation Of all true ghosts
Is also feature Of their life The onIy
common phase of their lives Is their regular
habits and their daily appearance during
stock exchange hours, which they pass
watching the course Of the market With
out any known means of support, it is one
OF the problems Of the street as vet I'M
solved as to how they manage to devote
all their time to apparently fruitless scru-
tiny OF the ticker records. Their specu-
la 1--WE flights are few and far between and
generally mark an epoch in their lives.
modest as such ventures generally are
In Tact, the regular ghost of one we'll
known house has. according to one of its
members. been brown to visit this firms
offices every Gay for nearly two years.
watch the market carefully throughout
zach day.. make mere or less illuminating
criticisms and predictions as to the specI,. |
lation and IN al that period never engage
In one single venture