The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-01-24

The boards action followed notice given to the rules committee during it's session here today that action on the committees request for the pro duction of the brokers accounts, in cluding the real names' of the GUS toners who dealt in the market dur ing the period mentioned and the ex- tent of their operations on either side of the account, had been postponed.
 COMMITTEE INDIGNANT
 Indignant over the boards action, the committee advised H. G. s. Noble, presi- dent of the exchange, that if it failed to obtain the production of the desired accounts, the committee would force each broker individually to produce them.
 Noble explained that the production of the accounts would prove a great hard ship to many brokers. who are not mixed up in this natter and that the board was in doubt as to it's power to compel the members of the exchange to produce their records.
 Both Chairman Henry of the commit tee and Sherman L. Whipple, it's counsel, hastened to explain that it was not the committees desire to make public the names of anyone whose transactions did not tend to throw light on the Teak" rumors. Whipple was willing the real names should be given the chairman of the stock exchange clearing house com raittee in sealed envelopes to be exam ine1 by the expert accountants of the committee only if developments rendered their examination material This appar- ently appealed to the governors, for, in resolutions adopted at their hurriedly called second meeting. MT. Whipple's words are virtually incorporated.
 RESOLUTION SPECIFIC
 The resolutions ask specifically that thes members furnish statements showing on what stocks customers were long and short between December 10 and B, the real names of the customers and the stocks they dealt in. What clearing house stocks were borrowed, when and from whom and when returned also are to be included.
 Members are requested to advise the secretary that the exchange report any cable or wireless messages from abroad with regard to the Presidents peace note before it was made public here.
 Notwithstanding the action of the board doubt still exists in some quarters to whether the members will furnish the desired information. Whether the board would have power to punish members who failed to comply is a moot ques- ton.
 Mr Whipple expressed the view that the constitution of the exchange did provide for forcing the production of books at such an inquiry as the pres ent one.
 MT. Noble and Samuel F. Streit, chairman of the New York stock ex- change clearing house committee, were the only witnesses examined today. They were questioned as to the power of experienced speculative cliques to manipulate the market by short" sell ing at the expense of "the public" and take advantage of "unfavorab1e news" in order to depress prices and "cover" at profit.
 Short sale" speculators are alleged to have been the Teak beneficiaries. Both witnesses were required to do- scribe in detail the operation of the stock exchange machinery with special attention to methods used to sell the market "short.' MT. Whipple brought out with particular emphasis that the so-called public" seldom sold short, the large majority of such transac-