Evening star., 1941-04-29
Exchange Committee
Expected 10 Draft
Big Changes
Question of Filling
Martin Vocuncy Is
Handled Cautiously
BY FRANK Mac1lILLEN.

NEW YORK. April 29-Gossip
buzzed around Wall Street luncheon
tables today and a grave-faCed COM
nittee met in a tall tower of the
stock exchange to discuss high pol
icy as a Sl,O0O-a week Job sought
man and the Nations No l market
place wrestled with the most battling
problems in its l49 years existence.
For Wall Street men are con-
vinCed the problems Of,the exchange
are today the gravest since beWigged
burghers first began organized deal
Ings in securities under the legend
ary buttonWOOd tree in 1882.
Not even the debacle of the fab
ulous Dick" Whitney. whose COL
lapse and conviction in 1888 brought
clouds of gloom to Wall Street.
tightened Federal regulation of Sc
Curities and brought a reform re-
gime into power which swept the
last vestlges Of old Guard control
from the marketplace, left Wall
Street so stepped in indigo and
bathed in red ink.
Two Headaches Faced.
When William McChesney Young
Bill, Martin, 35-year-old president
of the exchange, left his $4,000 Job
to iOln the draft army. he left the
governors Of the exchange two head
aches.
l. The question OF a man to fill
the Martin shOes-and many OF the
men who would be logical candidates
are said 10 think that to put them
on would be to invite a mental hot
foot that not even $4,000 a year
could make attractive
2. A yaledlctoTy speech to the
membership IN which he spoke
some unpalatable truths and recon-
manded further drastic streamuning
of the exchange mechanism to meet
its fiscal and public relations prob
lens.
The committee session today is a
gathering OF the Special Commit
tee of the exchanges governors set
up to recommend to the full board
some solution for these twin prob
lens. They have met several times
previously and will meet every day
this week
First on their agenda is the re-
organization proposal made by Mar
tin: That the present board Of 81
governing members be cut to is,
with salaries of $1,000 each to make
them attend TO business and with
their concern solely with matters of
broad policy-giving even further
power TO the paid professional"
management of the exchange headed
by the president.
Stream Lining Expected.
What they will recommend To the
board is still their secret, but the
Wall Street grapevine SAYS they
may follow rather closely Mar
tins suggestions on organiza tional
streamlining with abolition of all
but a few key committees of mem
bers which now deal with the run
ming of the exchange machinery.
Who will be the next president
of the exchange-despite the food
of sure tips heard on the trading
floor and in downtown luncheon
clubs-is still an open question.
This much can be said, officially:
Nobody has been offered the job.
In the last few days however, and
probably more intensively in the
next week. "feelers' are being put
out to likely looking candidates.
One man who has been in close
touch with the committees dehber-
ations said: They are moving very
slowly and carefully" and then
added frankly, 1--WE can't afford
flock of turn-doWns."
What are the problems that make
strong men quail in the face of
$4,000 salary? Here are some:
l. Stock turnover, which has not
reached the 1000 OOO-share mark a
single day this year and in this
boom of wartime preparation has
consistently run under 100000. A
volume of something like 100000
shares is required for all members
to be assured Of profitable operation,
even with present reduced staffs
?. Sales of big blocks of stock out
side of the exchange where no COM
mission is collected by exchange
members, because the listed market
for some stock and bond issues has
become so inactive that large trans
actions are no longer possible with
out market arrangement.
3. An operating loss from the ma
chinery of the exchange which has
totaled nearly s1O00000 in the last
three wears Though it has been
steadily reduced under Martin, it
will still present worries to his sue