Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1907-11-19
THE FINANCIAL TROUBLE.

Causes Leading to the Financial Dis
turbanee-SampIe of Wall Street
Methods.
1.-The sensational, and in some Of its
results tragic, collapse of a corner In
United Copper last week might at first
thought seem to have affected profess
sional stock gamblers alone, and one
Is inclined to exclaim, who cares
whether copper bears or copper bulls
win? What one set of gamblers gains
another loses" But in fact no such
transaction can occur without wide
spread injury to the community and to
perfectly innocent investors-and that
of last week was described by bank
err as one Of the most fragrant ever at
tempted in the history of the stock ex-
change. What actually took place
stated in a few words, was this: A
notoriously speculative stock, long a
football for curb deals, suddenly shot
up in price from about 81 to Ga
plain attempt on the part Of insiders
to corner 1t. But this rise attracted
sellers in swarms; the stock fell al
most as fast as 1t had risen; Otto
Heinze & Co., the agents for the insid-
ers, refused to meet their buying con-
tracts, and a firm Of brokers who held
such dishonored contracts to the
amount of 100000 was forced to sus-
pend, while a movement was set on
foot to have Otto Heinze & Co. ex-
PEELED from the stock exchange. This
has not yet been carried out, but F,
Augustus HeinZe, a copper king and
brother of Otto Heinze, found 1t best
to retire from the presidency Of the
Metropolitan bank because Of his in
innate relations with the firm above
named Far more significant, however
was the announcement that the State
Savings Bank of Butte, Mont, Of which
Mr.. F. A. Heinze is director and
stockholder, had closed it's doors. This
bank was established in 1901 and had
paid up capital of 100000 with de-
posits of more than 100000. So the
poor people of Butte who had put
their modest savings for security in
savings bank are in danger of what
is to them a terrible disaster, because
gambling game in Wall street went
wrong. This is a direct consequence;
the indirect one is far more wide reach
ing: the collapse Of the Heinze corner
was instantly followed by heavy SELL
ing Of industrial stocks generally, by
rumors of panic and failure, and by a
general straining of financial resources
To be sure, owners Of stocks and bonds
held for bona fide investment, do moi
sell at such a time, if they have COO
heads and If they are not obliged tc
| by special circumstances. Both OF
these ifs, however, are large ones, and
the total loss endured was doubtless
serious. Such vicious and reckless
attempt to make a gambling hell ou
of what should be a place for fair and
Legitimate dealing in values disgust the
general public with all investment ir
securities. The good stocks suffer with
the bad; the investor distrusts all alike
The lamb will not always make an an
nual pilgrimage to be fleeced. In the
misconduct of Wall street deals, as ir
the Juggling with railway finance, wha
is needed is publicity and responsible
ity. Governor Hughes put the matter
in a nutshell when he said the othel
day, in advocating stricter insistenct
upon fiduciary responsibility, 1T is al
extraordinary perversion to suppose
that the owner of fifty-one per cen
of the capital stock Of corporation /:
free to wreak his pleasure in its man
agement. The officer or director occu
pies a position of trust. not for the
majority, but for the entire body o
stockholders. And while we may exc
cute the policy which the majority de-
sire, it must be a policy consistent will
good faith and fair dealing with ALL
THE Outlook.