The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1920-08-26
JAPANESE RICE GAMBLER.
Up Like a Rocket Down Like Il Stick.
Fate of Il Flyer.


Tokyo with practically nothing, play
ed the rice market, won millions anC
then lost it all. The rocket-like career
of this one-time child Of fortune has
covered less than three months. II
was in March that he first invaded the
arena where the bulls and bears play
with other peoples money; 1t was
last week that he was definitely clear
ed out.
His name is kakuhara, and up to
March, when he came to Tokyo with
something like 900 yen in his pock-
ct, he was leading the prosaic life OF a
small shopkeeper at ShiuOka. Times
were good, the farmers in his district
were making money and spending it.
His little shop prospered and kaku-
hara salted away something over l.
600 yen. He had heard stories Of the
vast fortunes being made over night,
in Tokyo. He decided to test his
luck.
It was in the latter half of March
that he made his appearance in the
rice section of the Tokyo Rice and
Produce Exchange He started as a
bull; he bought rice. The succeeding
fluctuations of the rice market were
upward. He waited till the peak was
reached and then sold. He now had
enough capital to begin operations On
a larger scale. He bought again and
with judgment that was uncanny, or
with the luck that beginner is sup
posed to have in all games of chance,
he was right again. The beginning OF
the April trading on the exchange
found Kakuhara millionaire, and
ambitious to get into the multi-mil-
ionaire class.
Bulled the Rice Market.
About this time he formed a COM
bination with one Of the most noted
Or notorious gamblers in Japan, one
Hanzaimon Okla, popularity known as
Okahan, man who has lived for
years by manipulating the various
markets. This Okahan was one OF
the speculators who called down the
popular wrath at the time OF the 1919
rice riots by their alleged prohteerlng.
His big home at Tsu was made the
object Of an attack by an indignant
mob. With this man Kahuhara form
ed an alliance and together they set
about to effect a corner of the rice
market.
Bears run for Cover.
They were partially successful, Tor
when the time came for the settle
ment at the end of April, the bears
we're caught short and ran for cover.
They had to pay penalties to the
Kakahara-Okahan combination. ka-
kohara's pile passed the two million
mark. His ambition grew.
But his judgment-or luck-de-
serted him. He still believed in the
game of the bulls, in buying rice, al
though there were many signs that
pointed to a drop. Farmers in the
country, hard pressed for money, be-
gan to ship rice to Tokyo, on consign-
ment, willing to take what they could
get for it. Operators who had been
holding rice in the big go-down in
Fukagawa, alarmed by this turn, be-
came sellers.
Bears Clean kakuhara.
With the stage thus set, the bears,
tired of being victims of this interlop-
er in their game of chance, set about
to get him. They formed selling
combination, under the leadership of
a man named NagaslEma, who, just
back from New York, was believed to
have learned something from the
bulls and bears of Wall street. Every
thing favored them and when the
slump in the RICE came On the Ex-
change on May %, they caught kaku-
hara and ''earned' him. He was
caught holding 100000 koku of rice
on margin. He was able to meet the
first demand for a payment of addi-
tional margin of p yen per 100 koku,
but the second demand found him
"broke." His bargains are to be sold
at auction.
Back in the little shop in Shizuoka,
Kakuhar. can now astonish the viii
layers Wi. tale that can rival the
best romances of Wall street, Lom-
bard street or the Chicago Change.
He was a millionaire for about two
months, anyway.