The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-01-04


Frank b. Hayne, Wa P. Brown. Morris
H. Rothschild and Col Robert H. Thomp-
son had been accepted by the federal
court in the cotton corner case, it was
stated that Mr.. Scales probably would
have difficulty in raising the $1,000 he
was fined as his fortune had been lost
since the affair of 19O9-10, which brought
him into conflict with the Sherman law,
PooT Scales. He is one OF a regiment
OF plungers-big figures in the marks.s
of the world a few years ago and r3w
largely a memory.
\ certain amount of admiration goes
to any man who does a thing we'll To
A-r. Scales goes the credit of playing
small amount of money up to a large
sum in a surprisingly short time and
ther losing 1t just as rapidly and all with
out evidence of emotion. Various men
lave done the same thing on smaller
scales in poker, faro, roulette, stocks,
etc. Mr.. Scales claim to recognitpn Is
based solely on the size of the stacks
he gambled for and won and the small
amount with which he&made his start.
As the story goes, Mr.. Scales, who
always had been willing to take a chance.
found himself up against it, in the
year 1908. All his ready money was gone.
There was nothing particularly novel in
this experience. He hal been broke"
many times and flush just as often. He
was in north Texas. If he was going
to do anything to mend the situation he
had to have money. Gentlemen given to
speeulation have a habit in times of
plenty of decorating their persons with
costly gems Some persons may think
this is from vanity. In some cases II
is Ii others it is prudence Whether Mr.
Scales is vain or prudent makes no diff
ference. Though he had no. money, he
Fad a diamond stud and a pawnbroker
in Dallas who lent $3.50 on the jewel never
expected MIR. Scales would redeem it.
With the $3.50 Mr.. Scales paid a board bill
he owed, proceeded to Shreveport and
there took flyer in grain. His friend.
Jim Patten, was engineering deal in
May wheat at that time and Mr.. Scales
traiied along with him. Wheat was ad-
vancing rapidly and within few weeks
Mr. Scales had several thousand dollars to
his credit. Cotton was selling about
cents a pound. Mr. Scales thought the
price was too low. He took on as much
OF the stuff as he could handle. AS 1t
50 happened he got in almost at the bot
tenn Cotton began to jump. Every turn
upward added thousands of dollars to
MI Scales pile. He vas having run
OF luck such as it would be a sin and a
shame not to press Mr.. Scales pressed 1t
to the limit. Shreveport being too small
2 place for him then he went to New
Orleans and operated in that market.
He lad $150,00o or 100000 when he arrived
in New Orleans and lot more when he
came to New York few months later.
Cotton still was climbing. The name OF
Scales was something to conjure with.
Liverpool Havre, Bremen, Alexandria,
Reval-the whole cotton world, in fact,
which didn't know Mr.. Scales from
Adams off OK a year before, was hearing
oe him> now. He mad become one OF
the biggest operators not only in the
American, but the English markets. Cot
ton had advanced nearly $40 bale and
Scales had profited more by the advance
than any other one nan.
That 19OS-1909 season certainly was good
to Eugene Scales. The 1909-1910 one
seemed full of promise to him also. A
group of powerful and daring men saw
an opportunity for big profits through
cornering the crop. Scales had run his
20O-odd dollars up to $6,000,000. The cor
ner was not a brilliant success. Mr..
Scales luck turned then and there. Time
and again the market went against him.
The men he used to get began to get
him. The millions shrank steadily. Now
Mr. Scales is around the brokerage offices
trying to catch the turns on cotton. His
fortune is gone. He is nothing but an out
slider in the game where once he ruled.
Where are the plungers of former days?
You'll not find many of them in Wall
street nowadays. Keene is dead. Bueh-
anan Is dead. Fl. Fl. Rogers is dead.
Gates is dead Jacob Field is as quiet as
a church warden. Jesse Livermore is a
faded flower Barney Baruch has re-
formed and wants to be the reorganizing
and reconstructive genius of Wabash.
Patten has sworn off Sully is "broke.,
And so 1t goes OF all the men who have
played big roles on the stock exchange
or the cotton exchange in the last 10
years. only two-Daniel G. Reid and John
II. McFadden-are richer and more power
full today tnan they were a decade ago.
The general public has heard a lot about
Reid and little about McFadden but Nc
Fadden is far more important person
in the worlds affairs than Daniel G.
Reid
There is one thing that can be said to
the credit of the plungers. They got quick
action for their money and they proved
themselves pretty good sports. Take the
case of Jesse Livermore. He was quo
tation boy in brokerage concern in New
England. Although this concern was con-
Quoting a gambling game the head of it
was shocked when he discovered that his
board boy was playing the game-and in
rival establishment at that He lee
tured the youth and gave him to under
stand that if he caught Livermore gam
bling any more he would lose his job, and
his Sc a week that went with it, AS
Livermore was a big winner. he quit
the job and came to New York.
He was a clever youngster and fortune
smiled on him. He could not get enough
action in one market so he played two
or them. Ee won in stocks and he won
in cotton. In few years he had run
nc money up to 100000 or 100000. He
. something of statistician. The same
year that Scales got his start Livermore
saw an opportunity for big profit. He
did not start so early as Scales and he
was not so consistent in his attitude to-
rdo tta rl<o IL