Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-10-06
The National
Yellow Streak
BY JOHN N. WHEELER.

|
One Of the biggest bear operators
| called up a friend Of mine while I
was in his ONCE. It was possible for
me to to hear only one end OF the
what do you think about things?"
| asked my friend.
"You think it's that bad. do you? .
! I think the banking situation is sound,
don't you? What do you do with
your money them"
It was evident the man on the other
end Of the telephone was on his job
of peddling pessimism. The more and
| further he peddles 1t the more the
stock market goes down and the more
money he makes. My friend hung up
the telephone. Reading the question
| in my expression. he said:
"That Teller thinks everything Is
going to hell completely"
During the war this country had
CUTS. It was an emergency and all
| hands pulled together, the soldiers in
France, those in America, the civilians
who sold and bought Liberty bonds
! and all the rest. Today we are having
a national nervous breakdown. Fear
has gripped us. We believe every
rumor and daily they become more
| fantastic.
The Government experts estimate
that between seven and eight hundred
million dollars Is now boarded by
Americans, which means the money Is
in safe deposit boxes. bureau drawers,
socks or under the carpet. The answer
| is an inexplainable fear.
War measures and patriotic spirit
would be appropriate in this emergency,
which has grown as stable as the war.
| The American Legion has already gone
on record as opposed to the increase OF
the bonus at this time. The veterans
have come to the front again.
Why not arouse the fighting spirit OF
trembling Americans with bands,
speeches, prosperity campaigns and fire.
works. The hoarders should be called
| by their right names-traitorS and cow
ards. The stock market bears should
be named and ostracized as were the
war slackers. Rumors today are enemy
bullets.
A financial writer telephoned me last
week that one Of the biggest and most
prosperous Of American companies, with
far-flung investments and many stock
ports had been falsif1ed by its head.
Pure bunk, but fuel for the bear fire.
| Another stanch sound company is
| falsely reported in trouble. Its stock is
| forced down points in a few minutes.
| An author writes me that he hears 1t is
all giant conspiracy on the part of
Russia to destroy us. II this should be
true, which it isn't, 1t Is time to fight
and not to hide.
| Hoover the other day. He knew the
President. He explained his situation.
He said when the stock market went up
| slightly recently his head was just out
| OF water on the securities held as COL
lateral. With the next relapse, he was
again submerged.
IT do this community no good" he re-
ported to the President, because have
no money to lend"
fortunes made by the bears in this mar
ket. A friend of mine told me the
| other evening Matt Brush had made
| $200,000,0 900 and Ben Smith $780, 00,-
| 600 en- the short side. lie added that
Smith was then short 5000 shares of
stock. The figures are exaggerated, but
each has made great deal of money.
| A friend Of mine was invited to spend
the night with one of the big short oper-
| atorS recently. He declined.
don't want to hang around with
a fellow who makes his money that
way" my friend explained. That is the
right spirit
| IT am going to lay my car up this
| Winter" a banker told me the other
day. This is the wrong spirit-the
psychology of panic
What this country needs is a good
| cathartic. Names should be named,
hoarders should be called slackers, bears
traitors. We should buy what we need
and more at present bargain prices. We
should give jobs where we can. AS a
| nation We need more substance in our
niddles, or, in short, CUTS. At present,
most of us act as If we had a cream puff
for a heart and charlotte russo for a
spine. Our favorite cclor seems to be
a wide yellow streak right down the
| backbone