Evening star., 1953-04-15
Districts Little Wall Street Is Fast GROWING Area

phone their orders from their
offices or homes.
The small Speculator or in
vestor is a big part of today's
volume and, since the war, many
corporations have split their
stocks to bring them into the
$40 range, where $1,000 will
purchase outright the 100 shares
which constitute the unit of
trading. Possibly that is one of
the reasons why Washington,
where most incomes are salaries
is becoming so important in the
business.
Dean" Recalls Early Days.
George A. Garrett, the recent
Ambassador to Ireland, who mas
been a partner in several houses,
including a current one in the
Merrill Lynch firm, is considered
the dean of the street-although
ne has hardly a gray hair in his
head.
When I started here in 1913"
ne said, "the Washington popu-
latlon was about $4,000 and
the total resources of the Riggs
Bank were SIT million.
To-day the population is $780,
600. and the resources of the
Riggs Bank are 1915 million
That will give you an idea how
the money business in Washing
ton has increased.
"At that time three local
houses had seats in the New York
STOCK Exchange and there was
one branch house here"
In all that time he cannot re-
member any one who made O. lot
OF money playing the market.
The late Billy Hibbs, founder of
w. B. Hibbs & Co., who. everv
one agrees. was the most color
full figure of the local Wall Street
made a lot of money, but that
was in brokerage commissions
He used to tell customers. "I
never gamble with my money"
They Didn't Need Margin.
With today's big volume and
the SEC rule insisting on so per
cent margins, the brokerage
business is both a more profit
able and a safer business. but it
was more fun in the old days,
Mr.. Garrett recalled. Some
traders did not have to put up
any margin. The broker would
carry him.
They would come in at the
opening" he said, land want to
buy a thousand General Motors.
We would tell them they didn't
have enough margin for that.
They would say they would be
out before closing, they Just
wanted to make enough to buy
a new Cadillac. We'd let them
do it If they gave us authority
to sell at 2:45 p.m.-just before
closing. And it's funny how
often they made fools of us.
They had enough for the Cadil-
las at the end of the day."
He remembered the excite
ment in aviation stocks that fol-
lowed Lindbergh'S flight in 1927
and how the Street was puzzled
by a five-point rise in Seaboard
Air Line. Finally it dawned on
the brokers that the buying pub
lie did not realize that Seaboard
Air Line was railroad.
Mark Sullivan, jr., directing
partner of Auchincloss, Parker
& Redpath, a New York Stock
Exchange house, pointed out
that the money business in
Washington is much bigger than
the 10 local firms or branch
houses with membership on the
Exchange. He got out listing
of Washington security houses
ana counted 63 frnS.
Non Members Busy.
Some of the non-member firms
do big business. Johnston.
Lemon & Co., for instance, does
a lively underwriting business,
participating in national issues
with First Boston Corp, Dillon
Read, Morgan Stanley and 9TH
ers. 1t also UNDERWRITERS local
issues such as the recent So mil
lion plus offering of Hot Shoppe
stock which was heavily over
The firm has a
direct wire to New York men,
Der house, Carl M. Loeb, Rhodes
& Co., but gets no commission
on the business it sends there:
members are not allowed to split
commissions.
Another non-member local
house which does a big business
is Rouse, Brewer & Becker.
Edgar B. Rouse, one of the part
nerS, is chairman of the Quota
tiohS Committee of the National
Association of Security Dealers
in this area. Every Friday he
checks the brokers on transac-
tionS in some 80 unlisted local
securities and posts bid and
asked prices which are carried
in the financial columns of the
Sunday papers.
Two of the stock exchange