Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-11-02
Lot Buyers Pick
Great Bargains Now
In Stock Exchanges
Big Corporations Notice Increase Of
Shareholders -- Not All Small
Investors Shrewd-
By ROERSANIER.

CHICAGO, Nov. In the last two
months Leading corporations notably
the Pennsylvania, New York Central
and the steel mpanies-hhve had
acCessionS to their share rosters.
These lists now are longer than at
any time in the life OF the compa-
MES The buying does not connote
precisely a defiant negation Of eau
ton; neither does It signal a general
ly robust optimism.
What 1t means is that tho odd-lot
buyer is unconsciouslv pitting his un-
errinE instinct against the erring rea-
ron OF big-lot spectators for the de
cline There is, and always has been,
q street delusion that the public"
buys only on a falling market. The
higher and more sensational the rise
the heavier the lay participation. This
Is valid as to the speculative public,
not the investment
II is absolutely invalid as applied
to the bargain hunter large and
small. This element Is infallibly busy
in a quiet way-whenever a de-
preston is on markedly at what
might be the final months of q pro
longed depression.
Poor at Selecting Stocks.
As n rule bargain hunters taken IN
the mass have the differentiation
OF the crowd They are unerring
enough In the matter of time to come
into the street; but in the finer dis
elimination OF selecting stocks they
are, collectively, faulty. There are
OF course, noteworthy exceptions, es-
pecially among the longer pursed.
To pick up genuine bargains par
tiCularly in pesslmistiC period, re-
QuIres the assistance OF collateral
qualities and advantages which are
not granted to the casual small in
weston, for the man who is bold
enough to indulge in an absolutely
independent investment and to be at
tracted to securities chiefly by the
fact that no one has a good word to
say for them. must be gifted by suf-
fiCient patience to carry him through
LONG periods during which his pur-
chases may still remain unappreciat-
ed by the crowd, whose verdict, after
IAN. decides tho ultimate value OF all
stocks.
Part OF the esrenSe Of his choice
lies in the fact that the purcha ses
which he selects are, for the time be-
ing. condemned and this quality in
his securities win cost him dear IN
less he is in a position 70 stand up to
the sings and arrows OF outrageous
fortune" without being obliged TO
carry the contents of his tin box to
market.
Low Priced Not Cheap.
Above all, and here IL the most az
tiCult condition to the success OF the
bargain hunters. he must know n
good stock when he sees It, and re-
fuse to he deceived by tho error
which leads so many collectors OF all
kinds astrav. Of thinking that any
thing that is low priced is cheap, and
that, because an issue has been
thrown on to the rubbish heap II
must he worth carrying home
An inexperienced treasure hunter
who Ia turned loose on a rubbish
heap viii he almost certain to M his
pockets with rubbish. II is the
trained eve that fnds the political
gems, Given the trained eve
and the faculty for tracing
the history OF a stock, testing the
financial methods OF a property. who
are responsible for its fortunes and
estimating the causes which are like
ly TO affect the industry from which
II derives its earning power, the stock
exchange barRain-hunter may inter
est himself with pleasure and profit
nv searching In the hywsys Of mar
i0ets for securities which are under a
cloud for reasons which have no con-
nection with their intrinsic value,
And II his scent - guided by sound
instincts and checked by half the
pains that men commonly bestow on
the search for artistic hric-a -brac,
he may now and then win a prize for
his pains such as ia beyond the
dreams ot the ordinary seeker after
Investments which everyone else is
buying
Such prizes may not be as LARGE
as they were In the railroad recon
struction period that eusued upon tho
panic Of 1898, but they are almost
as numerous
Union Pacific, Northern Pacific.
Atchison and other once insolyent Is
sues can not be bought under 90 (and
assessment paid, Jersey Central can
not be picked up At :, OF Steel com
mon at S. Finds OF that kind-thcy
sound legendary to-day-are impos-
| sihle
But content with taking stocks on
/ a higher price level the careful ex-
/ plorer IS likely 20 be rewarded II his
| patience is as cumulative and quail
/ itatlve as his courage and confidence.
America, with All its troublesome
politicians and their "isms" its get
/ the millions quick huanciers. its
middle class discomfort, IS progreS.
/ s'ye country rvery decade makes
/ for economic oeuormcut for increased
/ wealth AS the nation grows. It's Sc
/ rurt'Hs. Collectively. become more