The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-01-24
INVESTIGATION OF THE ROCKING DEAL Stock Exchange Has Taken
 Action In.the Matter CRISS WILL SAY NOTHING The Broker Who Caused the Slump In Hooking Coal and Iron Will Be
 Held Responsible For the
 Furry.
CRISS WILL SAY NOTHING

New York, January 3-(Special.)-N until February 2, which is week from next Wednesday, will Wall street in par ticular and the public in general be n- formed as to what punishment, if any is to be meted out 10 those held responsible by the governors of the stock exchange for the manipulation of Hooking Coal and Iron stock, which dropped s points on Wednesday and as result left a trail of woe and much blasphemous language in its wake.
 The committee appointed by the govern ors to investigate the Hooking matter practically completed their investigation yesterday, but the delinquents, if any, will, under the rules of the exchange. have 10 days grace in which to present their defense. This is the same procedure as was taken in the matter of A O.. Brown &. Co.,, and more recently in the Rock Island affair. The subcommittee has to all intents and purposes made it's report, but on February the offenders will appear before the full board and plead extenuating circumstances in miti- gation of punishment
 It was generally conceded that the per- sons who were directly responsible for the Hooking trouble are completely with out the pale of stock exchange jurisdic- tion, just as was the case in the Rock Island incident, and the only manner in which these operators can be reached is by punishing the brokers who executed their orders.
 Pending the action to be taken Febr,l- ary the mouth of everyone concerned in the manipulation of Hooking Coal and Iron is tightly sealed. Fl. F. Criss of Roberts, Hall & Criss, whose firm failed for $S,000,0O0 because of his carrying out buying orders at the behest of members of the pool last Wednesday in fashion so plucky as to gain him the admiration and the sympathy of the street, has had his mouth closed securely by direction of the board of governors, who have ad- vised him not to talk or discuss the inci- dent until the stock exchange had dealt with the matter in it's own way.
 Secretary Ely of the stock exchange yesterday made the following official statement:
 ''The subcommittee made a report upon the matter of the failure of Lathrop, Has, ldns Co.,, and the circumstances sur rounding it, and the governing commit tee, in accordance with the constitution of the exchange, which provides for 10 days notice in the case of hearings, has set February as the day upon which action will be had"
 Lathrop, Haslcins & Co. failed for a.- oOo,oO0 on Wednesday following the col lapse of the Hooking pool The firm was the representative of the pool of which James R. Keene was the head and was the first to be forced to the wall when the slump came. Crfss claims to have gone to the post on Wednesday morning with buying orders from this firm. and that in accordance he got Hooking in 800 share lots at each quarter point recession until he had accumulated 11,000 shares, subsequently repudiated by some of his principals and which resulted in his ruin.
 It was learned today that powerful in terests are at work in Wall street in be- half of Criss, who declares he was made a goat"