The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-05
DRUCKERT'S GREEK CONQUEST.
The Old Scrip Man Knows How to Put Life
Into the Dead Ones.

II was one of the dulest OF the many
dull days Wall Street has been having
lately. There was little more than a cor
poraPs guard on the floor OF the Stock
Exchange, and they didn't care a bawbee,
apparently. whether prices went UP or
down. or how far.
II was raining, Of course, and many OF
the heaviest Of the room traders had for
salen the exchange for convenient and
more inspiriting cafes At a table in one
of the most famous of those in the Wall
Street district half-dozen bankers and
brokers were sitting and with them sat
the Old Scrip Man. buyer and seller Of the
junk of the worlds securities.
Scrip" said one Of those az the table,
suddenly and apropos Of nothing in par
ticular. "these times are dull enough for
us who deal in live ones. How the devil
do you. who deal only in dead ones, manage
to keep clear of the blues?"
Easiest thing in the world, replied the
Old Scrip Man There's no call for mar
gins on dead ones and when the resurrec-
ton day comes I'm in for all that's handed
out. But say, if the situation in this coun-
try to-day was like It was in Greece in
1880, the Stock Exchange in time of a corner
would be a cemetery compared with my
morgue."
And now vel! have tale Of the cata-
combs" exclaimed one of the party.
Lets have it," said another; "a mouldy
one ought to go well with a wet day. What
happened in Greece in 1892"
well said the Old Scrip Man, some
time before 1880 the Government of Greece
issued some bonds to get money for some-
thing or other. A German banker named
Druckert of Frankfort-on-the-M Main bought
a big bunch of those bonds for personal
to speak Of and the venture looked like
the best thing the old German knew.
Finally the bonds matured. and after
backing and filling and fLssing around
for a while the Greek Government decided
to repudiate the bonds. II was concluded
that that was tina easiest way to pay EN-.
"But the Greek statesmen reckoned
without Druckert He heard of the re-
pudiation and he prov pity decided that
he wouldn't be repudated He thought the
matter over for a while, came to a decision
and sent to the Greek Chancellor Of the
Exchequer. or whatever the proper func-
tionary was called, in substance, the fol-
low ing message
"'Your Government has seen fit to repu-
diate the principal and interest of an issue
of bonds, a large part of which hold You
took my good money and l took what | sup
posed was your good bonds, Now l want
my money back, with interest. II don't
get it by 1.-THE date was mentioned Ill
enter the harbor of Athens on a ship of
war, and III blow hell out of your capital
"1he message was duly received and no
attention paid to il. But that didn't dis
turb old Druckert.
He bought ship somewhere and armed
! it from Do wsprit TO rudder pest At the
end Of he time set in his ultimatum, the
ship, fully armed, manned and equipped,
sailed fol- Athens and, in due time, anchored
in front OF the city.
This done, Druckert sent another ulti-
matum ashore, TO the effect that IL his
money wasn't paid to him within twenty
four hours he would open fire on the Greek
capital The German ship looked like it
meant business and, since Athens had about
as much in the way of defencas as Lonesome
hurst by-the-Sea, I'm damned if the Greeks
didn't pay up and old Druckert sailed home
with his dough"
AS a piece of unrecorded history" re-
marked one of the party, between sips of a
mint julep, that 8 the best ever; but how
could a situation like that in this country
put life into your morgue of securities?"
Your" denser'n hard rubber, replied the
Old Scrip Man. "You know, of course, that
great many Southern States, and some
Northern ones. issued bonds, some time
in their history, which they afterward re-
pudiated. l have a fine collection of those
bonds, including those Of Louisiana, Ar
kansas, Mississippi Florida, Georgia, North
Carolina, South Carolina and West Virginia,
as well as the Wabash and Erie canal bonds
Of Indiana, and the bonds issued to get money
TO pay the debt Of the State Of Michigan,
which were repudiated in 1858.
Now If | could only send a ship OF war
Il IaPr
up. there'd be a greater demand for those
bonds at my shop than there was for North
ern Pacific stock in those May days of 1901.
Times amt like they used TO be"