The Washington times., 1926-08-20
TRADING
GROWS HERE
By RICHARD HATToN

By RICHARD HATTON
The vastly increased interest in
Washington in recent years in trad
ing In securities listed upon the
New York Stock Exchange and the
Increasing number Of brokerage
houses maintaining branch offices
here. in addition to the old estab-
lished firms Of the city which are
members of the exchange, makes
certain Information recently COM
piled by great metropolitan institu'
ton OF especial and peculiar interest.
Few people who daily follow the
market and who read the quota
tons from the floor OF the New
York Steck Exchange have any
idea Of the history and activities
OF that great. throbbing nerve center
OF finance.
In spite OF the volume of trading
carried on daily in Washington
there are only two firms in this
city members of the New York
Stock Exchange which are entirely
local in character and membership:
These are the well known firm OF
W. B. ETibbs and Company, he
pioneer In this field, organized il.
1888. and the firm of John L. Ed
yards and Company. organized in
1915. For many years w. B. Hibbs
& Co. was the sole representative
In this city with the exception OF
large New York brokerage firms.
Organized in 1892
In 1892 the first organized stock
market In New York was formed,
when "a brokers subscribed to the
original brokers agreement. The
meeting place of this group was
under tree on Wall Street. In
1877 a constitution was adopted and
the name OF New York Stock Elk
Change Board" selected. In the
same year the organization moved
from beneath the cottonwood tree
on Wall Street to a second floor
room.
The organization thereafter moved
some IL or more times before locat-
ing on ita rpesent site at the cor
Her of Broad and Wall Streets. The
first railroad stock. Mohawk and
Hudson. . was placed on the market
list in 1880 and buying On non.
delivery was authorized in 1882.
The title of the organization was
changed to the New York Stock
Exchange in 1863 ana in 1865 1t
moved into the first building of
its own. Two years later stock
tickers were first introduced In
1853 memberships were first made
salabIe. During the years between
1868 and 1878 the exchange wealth
cred some fierce financial storms
and market panics but 1T came
through stronger and better equip
ped for its business than before.
Telephones were first installed in
the Exchanges in 1878 and an cleo
trio annunciator board for paging
members In 1881.
Clearing House Formed
On the Tooth anniversary Of the
signing Of the brokers agreement,
or in 1892 the Stock Exchange
Clearing House was organized. The
Better Business Bureau Of New
York was established by the Stock
Exchange for the purpose OF fight
ing frauds in 1922. Last March a
record volume OF sales was estab-
Ished by the Exchange with 1885,
Ill shares traded in. Nowhere is
the financial growth of this coun-
try better exemplified than in the
progress of this organization from
the first meeting under the cotton
wood. tree to the day of this tre-
mendous volume Of busine ss.
The New York Stock Exchange
Year Book, under the heading SIN
solvencies" prints a comparative
table Of failures among its members
and all American banks and COM
metcial houses which. with the ex-
ception Of a very few years be-
tween 1900 and 1925 indicates that
the record Of the Exchange houses
for solvency was above the aver
age.
The highest price paid for a seat
on the New York Exchange to June
1, 1925 was $780, 900 and the largest
volume OF trading in any year was
IN 1925, when the total turnover
amounted to 452.211. S9s shares.
Captain Julius Peyser, president
OF the Security Savings and Com
merciaI Bank. has just returned
from Poland Springs. Me-, where he
spent a three weeks vacation,
motoring up and back.
Alexander Wolf, council of the
Bank of Commerce and Savings, Is
spending a month in Europe, while
President NJ. D. Rosenberg and
Director Louis Bush of the same
institution are at Atlantic City. Il
The Riggs National Bank has
been designed as the local ex-
change agency for the acceptance
bk mark loans for reYaluation.
Because Of the large number of
bank officials at present taking
their summer vacations work iii
local financial institutions is falling
heavily upon those bankers who
are still at their desks.
A slight decline in the general
level Of wholesale prices from
June TO July is shown by infornr-
ton gathered in representative
markets by the Bureau Of Labor
Statistics of the United States De
partment OF Labor The Bureaus
Weighted index number, which In.
Observation-Disclosures