Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-04-02
Lack of Information About
Stocks Makes Puzzle.
PRESENT MARKET NOT UNDERSTOOD FOR
THIS REASON-WHAT SOME LEADING
FINANCIERS BELIEVE-BIG MEMS
PHILOSOPHY OF TRADING.

pressing some doubts as to whether pre-
Naillng securites-prices have not fully
discounted the present prosperity a year
ana half ago, when the depression in the
stock market was at its worst the same
people wanted to know not If stocks were
going lower but how much lower they
would go! 1t was ut about that time that
Mr.. Rockefeller, like many other men who
are cranks on facts. began To buy stocks
because they had reason to think prices
mas discounted all the hard times In sight
Because of such buying people gradually
ceased 10 look for stupendous panic and
gradually prices rose. When the active
stocks had advanced on an average ten
points. the street enjoyed a bull market
without any public Purchasers of stock
like Union Pacific, United States Steel pre-
ferred, Pennsylvania, st. Paul, New York
central were on an enormous scale But
there was no public" The merchants.
BARRIERS, manufacturers, Waldorf walters
and Others who made fabulous fortunes on
paper in 1901 were working for a living else
where. Now, Mr.. Rockefeller is not in the
habit of proclaiming his business from the
housetops. So many other people do IL
for him that perhaps he thinks it superfiu-
Gus. He did not announce through a mega
phone that he hau bought huge blocks OF
divers stocks, but 1t became known in the
end as it was known that other big men"
had done the same thing. Whereupon the
newspaper writers. myself included wrote
many columns on the obvious bull manipu-
lation by the strong interests" BY infer
ence the public was advised to be conserva-
tive. But the depression of 1903 was not
part of a conspiracy to bludgeon the pub
lie into selling its stocks at n low price.
nor were the big mems purchases of 1904
part of a conspiracy to separate the same
suffering public from a billion Of dollars.
That is very plain now.
Mr.. Rockefeller Not Over-Garrulous.
1t cannot, since Mr. Rockefeller is not
rig rrulDuS he stated a
is doubtful whether any individual capital
list purchased as much stock for a long
pull" in the spring of 1904 as did Mr. VIII
liam Rockefeller. Hints of this leaked out
and one of the inveterate watchers of the
tape told me in strict confidence at the
time that Mr.. Rockefeller was beyond all
question the greatest plunger the world ever
saw. The worst crash in the history Of
finance was imminent because Mr.. Rookie
Teller was long a million shares OF stock.
and there was no public In the market to
take the load off his hands. / mentioned
this to a friend Of Mr.. Rockefellers. His
comment was: I'm sure the crash won't
come. But I'm not sure your cheerful
friend hasn't guessed fairly close in the
million-share matter
Altogether apart from the magnitude of
his stock operat tons, which obviously cam
not be ascertaned for publication, ii is
obvious that Mr.. Rockefeller, like many
others sure generally business would
improve and that improvement in business
must make a corresponding Improvement In
the stock market What we then thought
Mr.. Rockefeller thought turns out to be what
Mr. Rockefeller knew. He argued logically
from the facts in his possession. So did
Mr.. Schiff, did many others, big and
little who discount hard times good
while before the less-informed publI begins
even to think of it. 1t is facts and logical
thinking that does the trick every time. A
banker said this, not II stock gambler.