Los Angeles herald., 1907-08-22

On an average of once in every dec
ade the vested interests in Wall street
are guilty of blunder that pares mil
lions from the swollen fortunes OF the
country in a single day of trading.
Perhaps once in a blue moon there is
evolved a scheme sufficiently astute to
escape the vigilance of the System"
with its unsleeping eyes and its count
less feelers for information of value to
the street. And like thunder clap
that induces sudden consciousness 1t
has become evident, during the past
twenty-four hours, that the tremen-
dous assault upon the already stagger-
ing values in the financial center of the
two Americas was a gigantic coup, en-
gineered by the national administra-
ton in retaliation for the persistent
efforts to induce Theodore Roosevelt to
call a truce in his war upon illegal ana
criminal combinations of capital.
To realize the manner of its accom-
plishment 1t is necessary to explain the
manner in which each significant dec
laration of the president is prepared
for publicity. 1t Is the custom when
addresses of this character are to be
delivered upon q given day and ocea-
sion, for the great newsgatherins
association of the country to obtain,
under guarantee of complete Sec
recy, advance copies of such
speech, which are then mailed to the
Individual newspapers whose memper-
ship give them the right to publish II,
AS a rule such matter is received by
the papers four or five days in advance
of actual delivery of the address in
question and is released upon tele-
graphic order flashed from the city
where it may chance to be made. In
the meantime the men who have the
privilege of reading the advance copies
are pledged to secrecy regarding thel
text of every speech, and 1t is current
newspaper history that such pledges
have been srarely violated
Wall Street Hard Hit
This was the course taken with the
speech of President Roosevelt deliy-
cred at Provincetown. Mass, last Tues
day, upon the occasion of laying the
cornerstone of the Pilgrim memorial
monument That it was a speech salts
factory to the general public Is evil
denced by the hearty Endorsement y
was accorded by such editors as do not
bear corporation yoke. AS 20 ths
manner in which Wall street received
the emphatic and specific declaration
by the president of the United States
that his administrator would, for the
ensuing eighteen months, prosecute
every del ected violation of federal law,
1t is probably easiest to refer 10 the
sudden slump in securities controlled
by men who were prominently men
toned several months ago as supscrip-
ers to a fund of several million dollars
which was to be devoted to the pur-
nose of defeating not only Roosevelt,
Il - a
of his followers who might enter the
race with an avowed purpose of fol-
lowing his policies.
Fully a week ago copies of the
presidents speech were delivered 10 al
the newspapers composing the Asso-
ciated Press. 1t is regarded as prac-
tically certain that papers pupllsned on
the Atlantic coast, and especlally III
New York, received their copies even
earlier. At any rate agents OF wan
street were aware of the date or deilv-
ery. and 1t was from this date that the
stock market began to dance to the
nreliminary strains of the tune that
Mr. Roosevent was to render, Win
crashing staccato and gentle dimin-
uendo, on last Tuesday
From the first the tickers carried
cheering news. Men of unquestloheo
integrity in business affairs leo tnelF
equally irreprOacnaDle lolioNStS ~ ~
lieve that President Roosevelt, wnhe
dealing liberal quantities of warning
and advice to corporation interests
would stop there, pointing the way 70
more honest methods of accomplish
ing the same ends and aceepting the
plaudits of the populace without den-
mite promise of relentless activity on
the part Of the "big stick II was felt
that with the fine of s2s,ooo,ooo I'M
pos ed upon the Standard Oil company,
the limit in trust batting had been
reached and that the president, in prep.
aration for the coming campaign,
would step gracefully out of the arena
where he has laid about to such GOOD
purpose
Confidence Restored
like leaves carried by whirlwind, the
news of restored confidence in Wall
street was carried to all parts Of the
world. 1t steadied values on the Paris
bourse, in Berlin. in London and through
out the United States. Financiers shook
off the dull weight that has pressed
down their shoulders these many weeks
past and railroad presidents renewed
their planning OF new and amazing COM