The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1914-02-12
a Game Of Chance.
By w. H. Winslow, Phi. D.
CHAPTER I.

CHATTER I.
"Mmm!" "Ahrrr!" "Ohooo!" mingled
with raucous roar of contentious voices
came from the Board Room of South
wick. Wiener & Co., Brokers and Bank
ers. of % Bramble street. The uncoutn
sounds of speculative business expanded
into words and phrases and sense WITHIN
the room. where tickers ratified, tele.
nhones tinkled and gabbled, men shouted
stock quotations from the tapes to the
markers at the boards, and motley
crowd of men filled the traders chairs
and surrounded the tickers.
The news from the tickers and the ex-
changes of great cities was exciting this
morning. Strange statements and con-
Trajectory tips arrived at intervals to
stupefv Judgment and upset carefully
laid plans Of operating. The most ex-
nerienced traders could not interpret the
sphinx-like hieroglyphics of the swiftly
running tapes, Amateurs and expert
enced traders floundered amid differing
opinions like drowning men IN surf and
undertow.
The Board Room was thirty feet long
and fifteen feet wide. One side was
covered by rectangular-lineda and spaced
blackboard, having abbreviated names
of railroads, industriais, mines and mis-
cellaneous stocks above the columns OF
parallelograms more or less filled by
card quotations in fractions or numerals.
The ticker tapes recorded quotations OF
prices: men called them to the marker
lads, who walked forth and back before
the boards, and fiicked the printed flg'
ures out and into their appropriate
spaces, thus recording the markets OF
the world to the despair or delight OF the
traders. They saw the shrinking or the
swelling of their margins, as the elghths,
quarters, three-eighths, halves, i've
eighths, three-quarters, seven-eignths
and units, shuff1ed from one to announcer
momentarily.
A small blackboard at one end OF the
room. labelled across the top likewise,
with wheat, corn, oats, sides, pork, iard
and cotton, showed columns OF chalked
quotations: but it attracted little a.ten-
tion from the New York stock market.
A few traders in these lines came and
surveyed the figures carelessly, inspect
ed the Geographic news and tips on clips
and hooks, and went away to more I'M
portaIt business. Excitement over this
board was rare, and the Bull Rings OF
New York and Chicago furnished the
spectacular exhibitions of the Bears and
Bulls.
The other side of the room had tickers
along the wall, hooks and racks Tor
brokers' letters, official sheets OF quota
tons. and the financial journals OF the
country.
An entrance door from the corridor,
the side of small office, and mahog.
any counter, completed the traders
quadrangle. Telegraphers and telephon-
ers sat behind the counter working ex-
citedly, operating the keys OF lnstru-
ments and shouting through telephones
to transmit orders from Buy" or Sell
slips, which they received constantly
from nervous or phlegmatic customers
between them and the quotation boards.
The rows of chairs before the greater
blackboard were filled; the standing
room was crowded; messengers and
statesmen ebowed roughly through the
tbrong, and the air was fouled by many
breaths and clouds from cigarettes,
cigars and pipes.
Fire and smoke hung over this battle
field of fortune, and men talked, gestlcu-
lated and moved with the frenzy OF SOL
diers storming fort. or sailors boarding
an enemy's ship. A panic was threaten
ing on the exchange; stock prices were
changing rapidly; the margin clerk was
hunting money among shilling and a hali
traders, and he scrutlnlZed his list Oh
larger operators with stern importantly.
Henry Wendell, young attorney OF
Baxter's Building, entered this n ael-
strom of humanity and stood squirting
through the smoke at the rapidly vary
ing quotations on the board. He was
clean-cut, well-dressed, amiable looking
fellow of about twenty-five years OF
age, not yet overburdened with legal
business, for which he had prepa'ed talth,
fully at the university. He made small
investments and took frequent turns In
the stock market, when cases were
scarce and lunch-t time lured him out for
stroll and smoke among the specu-
iatorS.
Good morning, Wendell; the market
is jumping this morning, SAID man OF
midole-age, with a thin nose, pointed
chin, beady, black eyes, and black mus
tache. , :,
"Some stocks are moving a lttie' ,
replied Wendell evasively. Amy deal
on this morning, Hambright?"
Nothing special. Cornucopia ls ac-
tive. L IQluk IL VIII Sooii So w Pe'h'
$50? Is it listed yet?''
.sNo; it is still on the Curb.
That's a good place for it, If you
wish to keep its condition secret"
Hambright scowled and stepped over
to the curb ticker. These men did not
like each other very well. Hambright
had been guilty of some shady transac-
tions in stocks and Wendell knew toe
much about him to trust his opinion in
anything: o,,
"Hello! Golden; still at it?" remarked
Wendell to the man at the main ticker,
who was calling off the quotations for
the markers.
eyes; that's what l am here for, but
nv salary isn't paid every Saturday.
Pennsy one twenty,-Mop. ninety-siS
and half, -Tele. one ten and one-quar'
ter,-Steel thirty-fve and three.eighths,
Maggie eighty, Arizona thirty and
three.quarters. Peoples favorite! Can
not do without it! Buy now!' Someone
bounced a spit-ball on Golden's bale
head and punches of paper were thrown
among the lazy sitters.
80. come off your perch; your turkey
is buzzard," called Adams derislvely
at may turn out strange bird, but
don't believe it should from the inside
reports we receive. Car sixty,-Loco.
fifty-four. Dividend soon.
That's the stuff! It's going to seven
tv-five. | have three points profit al
ready" cried Oberman.
"Better snatch it while you can" ad
C,+,ot tho hpar as a VOllnO fellow