Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-11-30
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30. 1907.
TO REGULATE GAMBLING IN
STOCKS.

Ono OF the phases OF finance which
Congress will tako cognizance OF dur
Ing tho coming session, will be gamb,
ling IN stocks. food stuifs and cotton.
. u 10 perhaps too much to expect that
Congress- Will speedily solve this ire
raenious problem. but It must DO evil.
don't TO all. that sooner or later, this
form OF gambling muat be stopped.
Lotteries, card playing, faro. roulette.
horae racing, policy and all other
forms of gambling pale into insisn!n-
cameo when compared with specula,
t!on In stocks. cereals md cotton, MS
for % the effect upon tho genera!
welfare ia concerned. Congress and
Tho Supreme Court stretched the con.
stitution TO suppress tho lotteriea;
many legislatures have prohibited
horee racing. while tho gambler who
( uses cards. the wheel or the faro box,
10 an outcast amos everywhere. Yet
nothing has becn done to even die
courage tho greatoH gambling game
OF all except against tho bucket
shops, which occupy about the same
positlon toward tho New York Stock
exchange 40 n cheap crap game does
to Canfelds. Suppresalng the bucket
Gnop without rentrlcting tho opera
ilona OF tho Stock Exchange. "a like
closlng the pool rooms and letting the
tracks run Wide open. 1t Ia snid TINT
INC people will gamble. and that oil
oualpesa Is gamble. sppcloug argu.
ments these. constituting weak dc.
Tense, Tho fact that all other forms
OF gambling are being prosecuted and
ariyen out OF existence vastly In.
crease the ser.ousness OF tho s,tua
uon' Tor the gamblers are steadily
being confined to but ono channel IN
which they find opportunity to graft.
~ their passion.
Ordinary forms OF gambling affect
3 hut the limited few. A man who
avoida cards. horae racing and the
gambling table is not likely to suffer
s much from them. But every person
II tho United States is affected nv
gambling in stocks, wheat anc cot.
Ion, That is a sweeping statement
but nevertheless, II is a true one Tbe
prise of wheat is fixed, to all ,nton.
o purposes, in the Chicago pit: the
3 Price OF stocks on the New YorL ~.
change No fault can be found when
tfese prices nro legitimate and bnsed
on tho actuol value of tho stocks mud
commodities. Tho trouble Is thai
many tines they are fixed by peonle
9no nave nothing to sell and no do
sire to guy, but merely bet with each
p amer q man invests his money Z, q
certain stock ana awakes tho nex,
\ ~eea to ind that owing to forces hay.
inB no bearing whatever On the bus,
ness protits of the industry bis
stock has shrunk twenty.five .,
4 lifty per cent in its market
value. This Is made poss;bls
ny the penicious custom OF "bor
rowing stocks. for it ia the shor,
saiea that do the damage in pur,
specniatlon, When downward
4 increment In a stock becomes per
cspsiSlc, hundreds rush in to "soll'
what they do not possess. expect!n,
g buy II back at lower figure
ihsir Weight added to the natura
oyeuient creates terrible pressur.
alld itus Prices Of stocks In the hand
q Thousands of Investors are deprecl
sssSiaiseds BY men who own mono. VINE,
spsh downward movements are do
4 ''asTatSly erected by professional ma
4 it1 stI slpn the act a priminal moth