Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1907-04-25
always got the priIe and he got len
But I would have none Of it.

cnleuy 10 my business eS USUAL
now that the Ez SzsDrest asa
in fact crowded the things down town
far into the background, had impaired
my judgment, had suspended my COM
mon sense; but l had nc inkling of
this then. The most important mat
ter that was occupying me down town
was pushing textile up toward par.
Langdon's doubts, little though they
influenced me, still made enough of an
impression to cause me to test the
market. l sold for him at ninety, as
he had directed; l sold in quantity
every day. But no matter how much
1 unloaded, the price showed no ten
deney to break.
This" said l to myself, "is a testt.
monial to the skill with which l pre-
pared for my bull campaign" And
that seemed to me-all u~nsuspicious
as l then was-a sufficient explanation
Of the steadiness of the stock which
l had worked to establish in the public
confidence.
I felt that, if my matrimonial plans
should turn out as l confidently ex'
pected, | should need a much larger
fortune than l had-for l was deter
mined that my wife should have an
establishment second to none. Ac
cordingly, l enlarged my original
plan. l had intended to keep close tc
Langdon in that plunge; l believed
controlled the market, but l hadn't
been in Wall street twenty years with
out learning that the worst thunder
bolts fall from cloudless skies. With
out being in the least suspicious o.
Langdon, and simply acting on the
general principle that surprise anC
treachery are part of the code of higl
finance, l had prepared to guard, first
against being taken in the rear by
secret change of plan on L~angdon'i
part, and second, against being in
volved and overwhelmed by a suddel
secret attack on him from some assC
ciate of his who might think he hat
laid himself open to successful raid
ing.
The market is especially dangerou
toward Christmas and in the spring
toward Christmas the big fellows off
en- juggle the stocks to get the none,
for their big Christmas gifts an
aims; toward spring the motive is, o
course, the extra summer expenses Q
their families and the commencement
gifts to colleges. 1t was now late
the spring.
l say, | had intended to be cautious
l abandoned caution and rushed i
boldly, feeling that the market wal
in general, safe and that textile wa
under my control-and that was on
of the kings of high finance, with m
lucky star in the zenith. l decided t
continue my bull campaign on my ow
account for two weeks after l had Ill
loaded for Langdon, to continue 1t III
til the stock was at par. l had 4
difficulty in pushing it to ninety-sevel
and ] wes not alarmed when | foun
myself loaded up with it, quoted
n~inety-eight for the preferred an
thirty for the common. | assume
that | was practically its only su
porter and that it would slowly sett
back as l slowly withdrew my su
port.
To my surprise, the stock did NJ
yield Immediately under my efforts
depress it. l sold more heavily; tie
tile continued to show a tendency
rise. | sold still more heavily;
broke a point or two, then steadit
and rose again. Instead of sendir
out along my secret lines for insit
information, as l should have don
and would have done had | not BET
in a state of hypnotized Judgment
went to Langdon! l who had BEE
studying those s%coundrels for twent
odd years, and dealing directly wi
and for them for ten years!
He wasn't at his office; they to
me there that they didn't knc
whether he was at his town house
at his place in the country-"prc
ably in the country" said his doV
town secretary, with elaborate cal
lessness. HE wouldn't be likely
stay away from the office or not
send for me, if he were in town, won
he?"
1t takes an uncommon good liar
lie to me when I'm on the alert. AS
was determined to e Langdon, W
in so far on the alert. And | felt t
fellow was lying. That's reasonable
said l. Call me up, If you hear fro
him. l want to see him-importa
but not immediate" And | went aw;
having left the impression that
would make no further effort.
went up to his house. You,
doubt, have often seen and often
mired its beautiful facade, so SIM
that it hides it's own magnificen
from all but experienced eyes, SO p
feet in it's proportions that it hid
the yastness of the palace Of which
s. is the face. l have heard men sa
h I'D like to have a house-a modera
# sized house-one about the size
e Mowbray Langdon's-though perha
g a little more elegant, not SO plain
g "Mr. Langdon isn't at home" 81
the servant.
" Ito be continued.)