Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1914-12-12
GREAT CHEERS MARK
OPENING Of EXCHANGE
Wall Street Busy Again After
Period of Over Four
Months
900 MEMBERS ON THE FLOOR
Visitors Gallery Thronged; Many
Women Present When
Gong Sounds
100 MEMBERS ON THE FLOOR
By associated Press

New York, Dec. l2-Wan Street
came into its own to-day The Stock
Exchange, closed for nearly four and a
half months. except for limited trading
in bonds during the past two weeks,
was reopened at 10 o'clock this morn
ing for active trading in stocks. one
hundred and nine.y-two issues were
approved by the governors for trading
and, though other issues were barred,
notably United States Steel, activity
on the floor of the exchange revived
memories of big days ten years ago.
Not for many years has there been
such throng of brokers on the floor
as that which waited patiently for
nearly an hour to-day for the signal
10 resume trading. There are 100
members of the exchange and nearly
400 of these. it is estimated, were on
the floor. Many of the others smiled
down, with their families and friends,
from the members gallery on the west
wall.
Visitors Gallery Thronged
The visitors gallery across the way
on the west side was thronged. Half
or n ore of the hundreds who gazed
down at the unusual scene on the floor
were women.
The first chime of Trinity Church's
10 O'Clock bells has long been the sig
nal for sounding the opening gong on
the floor of the exchange. AS the
church clock struck wave of cheer
ing rippled over the exchange and
swelled to n vast roar as the gong
clattered noisily in response. The vol
ume of sound that echoed through the
building has not been equaled for
many a day.
Almost before the metallic echoes of
the gong ceased ringing the cheering
20 l., i q,
hundreds of brokers were grouping
themselves in knots around the trad
ing posts. The galleries gazed down
in dwindling interest and slowly began
to empty Within less than ten min
utes the floor of the exchange was
white with paper snow-the torn frag-
ments OF thousands OF memoranda.
Old-Time Opening
There was hardly need. IL seemed
during the first few minutes OF trad
ing for the posting of minimum prices
me market opened with its old-time
swing that sent the principal issues
Whole points over the rock bottom fig
ures determined upon by the commit
tee in advance. There was one feature
however. that was not all in keeping
with the activity of the big davs of
more prosperous times. and that was
the small Noume of single trades. Most
OF the trading was in blocks of 100 to
3OO shares and much of il was in
blocks of less than 100 shares.
Around posts II and u on the floor
of the exchange the crowds were thick
est At these posts Reading and the
toppers-such of them as were not
barred-were bought and sold. AL
though the trading was most active
there, the volume continued to be
small. few single lots of more than 500
shares changing hands. The largest
single transaction recorded during the
early trading was a sale of n block OF
800 shares Of Reading. This stock
"hened at more than points above
tho minimum prices.
trading to-day We only for cash
IN this way the governors sought To
'nrh speculation - and succeeded
though ii was believed at the eypenss
o. the volume Of trading. Within the
first quarter of an hour II was osti
mated that $4,000 shares had changed
hands.