Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1911-06-02
BY LOUIS JOSEPH VANCE.
Copyright, by Street & Smith.

about 5000 out of the 100000 shares
to carry control. I've made some pretty
careful inquiries and calculations as
to where and how the ST. Louis stock
is held, and jotted down the facts"
Barr took from his desk memoran-
dunn and read the tabulated figures
slowly:
In investors hands. -. $4,000 shares
| In the street. 10000 shares
In London ............ 10000 shares
In Willis, Barr & Co.. 10000 shares
In Bowman & Co., and
friends .210, 900 shares
| Total .............40 400, 900 shares
"Of course" Barr continued, hand
Ing the memorandum to Pierce, the
figures are approximate, except the
nest-egg I've picked up here and there
in the last few days.
How to get what we want of these
holdings is, of course, for you to say
[ presume you've got to hammer St
Louis down to scare out stock from
! the investors, and the street and Lon.
don, but know you've got to put it up
to get that $4,000 shares from the
roads management If you put it
from 500 a share, where it is now, to
$110, it will mean ten dollars a share,
or 100000 in their treasury, If they
sell. They'll sell quick They'll do
it, too, for fear it'll go down again.
They'll sell it before it's listed on
the exchange for that takes 80
days.
You know what that means They'll
have sold something they haven't got
until the 80 days are up. In the mean
time, they'll borrow, without knowing
1t, our stock, the stock we've corralled,
and when We call on them for it they
won't have it to give us and we can
make 'em settle for any figure we're
kind enough to name"
Pierce nodded appreciation of this
mine that was being laid for the I'M
wary management.
What about Bowman & Co.'S
stock?" he queried. They've got the
control"
He knew the answer before he ask
ed the question.
Barr got up from his chair and
walked over to the screened window.
He looked out on the hurrying Wall
street crowd, hopping his face with the
handkerchief ends.
Pierce" he said, facing the manip-
ulator with quick movement, ''the
banking house of Bowman & Co. will
sell that stock for the road. They'll
sell short a big block of their own
stock at the price we'll put it to, ex-
pecting to get it back lower"
These and other essentials worked
out, Pierce sent for his personal
broker, William Hathaway, whose
standing in the street was of the high
ton with Pierce was absolutely I'M
known. To him Pierce told as little
as might be Of the business in hand,
and personally assumed all response
bility for the deal
I've got some information on
crops" Pierce explained, confiden-
TALLY. They're bad il the southwest,
and We'll sell the granger roads in
that territory, as they depend on crops
| III col 81. LOUIS OOuLuCIu
ought to feel it most. This is Thurs
day; you sell $4,000 shares of the
other three southwest roads and 10000
of st. Louis. Well buy back our short
| stock when st. Louis reaches SO, seven
points under its present price. If you
| have to sell more to break the market
| down, go ahead, but be careful about
raising suspicion"
The broker hurried away, proud of
his supposed possession of the "old
mans" confidence, and Pierce ar
ranged through other brokers for the
purchase Of the bulk of the stock
Hathaway sold and all the ST. Louis
| Southern that frightened holders
might throw over on the break.
The well-planned attack had imme-
date effect. The grangers, including
st. Louis Southern, had broken IL
| points at the close and on Friday,
i when the bears had joined the move
| ment, they broke still further, big stop
| loss orders having been reached at 81
in st. Louis, which closed at 96A. On
Saturday sales of 10000 shares of ST.
Louis for London account and a bad
statement by the banks, whose re-
sources had been depleted through
cash Withdrawals by Bars Chicago
banking friends, offset dispatches from
the maligned west telling of bumper
crops. The financial writer's ascribed
the weakness to a bear raid for quick
profits, so skilfully had Pierce con-
cealed its real object
ST. Louis Southern touched SO
shortly after the bank statement was
issued, but rallied sharply at the close
to 941b. The floor said the rally was
due to evening up purchases by the
bears, but it really came from whole
sale buying by Pierce's unknown
brokers' ST. Louis Southern had been
put down seven points without arous-
ing suspicion, and the shrewd manipH-