Evening star., 1909-08-22

lated by statute. The Stringency or the
act had hampered legitimate purchases of
gold for commercial purposes. and in the
face of such adverse results from legisla-
tion Congress repealed the act July =.
Gold was quoted around 2S5 July /. but
the news that the act would be repealed
had caused the price to react TO 20
July the gold room reopened and the
former activity was resumed. The bulls
who were operating corner began an
active campaign. and July ii the price
again touched 2S5. the highest point in
the history of the gold room up TO that
date. After adjournment of the session
on the same day outside trading kept the
price soaring and a Missouri banker paid
80 for gold to the amount of 100000, be-
lieving that the country was going to ruin
and that he must turn what currency he
possessed into gold to save any of his
! fortune. But the high price of gold was
due to a corner and reactions in the mar
ket followed. Before October the quo
tation was 19l. but by November 9 260
had been recorded. The beginning of
Shermans march to the sea. the cutting
off of Lees supplies and the generally
regained confidence in the success OF the
Union brought recession in the price
Of gold. However. the activity In the
gold market did not cease. and the fall
of 1864 and the winter following wit
messed a period of startling gold specu-
lation which made fortunes for several
market plungers.
Great Sacks of Gold.
While the official trading hours of the
gold room were from 10 O'Clock In the
morning until 3 pm, the closing hour was
changed to a later time when excitement
ran high and the brokers found it ex-
pedient. The system of gold delivery was
both crude and inadequate at that time.
Deliveries were made by messengers. in
sacks. each containing 5000 in coin. A
| messenger of average strength could
carry two of these sacks, man of SUI
perior strength could carry four There
were many disadvantages in such de-
livery, with no redeeming features De-
/ liveries were necessarily slow and fire.
quently delayed. there was danger of loss
| and the temptation offered to robbers was
| great. The final solution OF the problem
came when the Bank of New York opened
gold accounts in December. 1854. Any
broker who paid a bonus of $1,000 had
| the privilege of depositing gold with the
check, across the face of which in bronze
! letters In old English type the word
"Gold" was printed These checks when
| signed by the drawer and certified by the
bank We're accepted as good deliveries in
| the gold room and were available as col
| lateral for loans. The messenger with
his sacks of gold vanished as soon as the
new system of checks got into easy
| working order.
| The government taxed all sales of gold
| in March, 1863 At first the tax was one
| tenth OF per cent. but it was reduced
| later to one-hundredth of l per cent. The
method of payment of this tax was by
| affixing revenue stamps to the sales tick
| cts. Fluctuations in the price of gold
were at their widest range and a move
ment of ten points up or down during
single days trading was not unusual. In
| front of the gold room was an indicator
which showed the hangers-on each price
as 1t was recorded. The movement of the
| Indicator afforded the outside crowd an
| opportunity to speculate. and continuous
bets were made on the possible direction
and extent Of the movement of the indi-
Gator on its next change. When there
| was a lull In the trading the outside
crowd would indulge In other forms of
gambling. After hours one of the leading
| sports of the outside element would some
times give a cock fight. and IN this way
| recoup some Of his losses incurred by
wrong guessing.
| In August. 1865, the gold exchange oc-
cupied pretentious quarters at Nos. 12-4-
18 New street. having an entrance
| through IA Broad street. Although the
rental for the first five years was $4,000
| year. strange to say for the second five
years it was fixed at only $4,000 year
indicating that the wiser of the leaders
| in gold speculation believed that the be-
/ ginning of the end of gold trading was
at hand. In 1886 the membership OF the
gold exchange comprised 437 active and
| Iii associate members. about half of
4
Stock Exchange.
We Of the present day look upon the
| operations on change during an active
market as being intense and nerve
racking, but market sessions now are
mild in comparison with those of the
period of the civil war. The broker of
| the sixties was a slave to the market
Journeying up and down Broadway then
| was slow. but II was healthful. and the
| daily routine of the broker was suffi-
/ ri tpfiiOuS
cess Of travel. AS soon as he could
swallow his early breakfast the broker
| mounted the stage, morning paper in
| hand, and started on his voyage down
| town. He would arrive about the time
| the exchange opened, trade until noon.
then eat a few mouthfuls in a rush and
| return to the mad market, where he
stayed until nearly O'Clock in the even
| ing. Then came ride uptown on the
| stage and an exchange of market gossip
with other brokers. a hurried dinner and
a return to the night session of the ex-
change. When once the broker did get
to bed his dreams depicted scenes OF
struggling, crazy men endeavoring to cut
each others throats and he would awake
in the morning with an aching head and
fevered brow to enter again the race that
knew no end except death.
The old Fifth Avenue Hotel, recently
demolished, was then rendezvous for
brokers, the reading room and lower halls
being the scene of spirited trading In
gold and securities, creating much dis
turbance, very objectionable TO regular
guests not particularly interested in stock
exchange matters. The nuisance con-
tnued to grow more Objectionable as the
volume of trading increased, until even
tually the proprietors of the hotel were
obliged to post a notice which ended the
custom. The brokers then secured a
basement on the corner OF 9TH avenue and
23d street and an evening market was
continued there until March 1864, when
dana "A
and 23d street. In addition to this place
of trading there were several other even
ing exchanges, so that speculation was
kept at high pitch every day and even
ing. except Sunday, and some brokers
utilized even that day.
FOREIGN MARKETS.