Fifty years in Wall Street
vast majority of men of high principles, of great foresight and of
enlightened self-interest; men who recognize that their own welfare is
dependent upon their regard for the welfare of others. Most of such men
are rarely heard of, and their good deeds and honorable achievements are
not exploited in the daily press, which is naturally interested in the
search for the abnormal. Wall Street probably contains a much larger
percentage of strong brainy men than any other community, because right
there centers the management of large affairs and great organizations
which demand the highest ability. True, Wall Street attracts some men of
unscrupulous and predatory instincts because of the great opportunities
for accumulating wealth by devious and often improper methods. The
occasional flotation of questionable schemes and the improper use of
funds held in trust undoubtedly are sometimes among the greatest evils
connected with Wall Street. They are evils that its best men are most
anxious to see eliminated, and it is satisfactory to know that strong
efforts are being made in this direction. It cannot be too strongly
stated that many of the abuses which aggravated the late panic could not
be repeated, and have been stopped forever. Whatever defects remain, the
business standards of Wall Street are upon a distinctly higher plane
than existed some time ago. In spite of troubles and pessimism the world
is growing better and better. But so long as fools with money are to be
found, just so long will there be sharpers ready to take the one and
leave the other. It is useless to expect the millennium. Human nature
changes slowly, and the only means of checking abuses is to establish
rules and standards of a high order, and to keep alive a public opinion
that will insist upon their enforcement. An alert and vigorous public
opinion is often more effective in preventing evil than the punitive
measures which are applied after the wrong has been done.
No king, on being crowned, was ever prouder or happier than I, when I
first stepped on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as a newly
elected member. The pride that I felt at that time has grown and
increased every year since that day, so long ago, as I have seen the
Exchange grow in influence and moral power. There is no body of men in
the world superior to the members of our Exchange in honor, integrity
and truthfulness. Every transaction on the floor is done on word of
mouth. Sales involving millions of dollars are consummated without a
scrap of writing, and it is a rare occurrence that even a dispute arises
over a transaction, and even then, unless a witness can be found to the
transaction, the matter is settled usually by each party assuming
one-half the loss, as both the buyer and the seller know that the other
is just as square and honest as he is, and that the dispute is over a
misunderstanding and not a misrepresentation. Many people are wont to
worry over the nervous strain under which their friends in the Stock
Exchange are laboring in busy times. Their worry is unnecessary, as the
busy time on the “Street” is the happy time. Many people pretend to be
shocked at the want of dignity which prompts the members to skylark and
act like boys. Don’t be shocked. This is the recreation which offsets
the strain and keeps the members young. One of the most impressive
scenes that can be witnessed is viewed from the gallery on the morning
of a very busy day. At five minutes to 10 the members are seen quietly
gathering in little groups around the different “posts,” chatting and
smiling—at 10 o’clock exactly a gong sounds which announces that
business can begin. Every man on the floor commences to yell and paw the
air, and one who did not understand would think that he was watching the
working room of bedlam. But if he watches closely he will see that order
reigns in seeming chaos. Automatic signals on the walls, quickly moving
pages and telephone clerks in the booths at the side of the Exchange
room, all work in harmony, and the great machinery “moves in a
mysterious way its wonders to perform.” Almost everything in the
country, yes in the world, has its influence in this great market. The
grains of wheat, the kernels of corn, the bolls of cotton, the chinch
bug and the boll weevil: each has a vote. The miner deep in the bowels
of the earth and the crew on a swiftly moving railroad train, the track
walker and the laborer are all exercising indirectly an influence. All
the great railroads and industrial corporations come to Wall Street in
their time of need, and if their object is worthy they do not leave with
their wants unsupplied. Wall Street proper, as represented through the
New York Stock Exchange, is the barometer of the country. Every man,
woman or child who has a dollar invested or deposited in a savings bank
is interested in the good or bad times which prevail in the Street. In
times of great disaster or need, the members of the Exchange are the
leaders in contributing to the relief of the afflicted. There is a lot
of good in Wall Street that outsiders know nothing of; if you are one of
them, find out the truth. Be sure to hear witnesses on both sides. Honor
and truthfulness are the cornerstones on which the whole fabric of
business in Wall Street is built, and confidence is the keystone of the
arch that covers all transactions. The fact that a weak spot is
occasionally uncovered proves the strength of the general structure.
There is no place in the world where the measure of confidence between
employer and employee is so large and where loyally to each other is so
marked. In whatever business a young man intends to embark, a year or
two in Wall Street is a good training, as he will learn much that will
benefit him in after life. He would realize the necessity of close
attention to work and the true application of the principles of the
Golden Rule. In these times of reckless denunciation of Wall Street a
general application of this rule by those who attack by innuendo and
without a scintilla of truth would help to restore confidence and give
evidence of fair-mindedness on their part. Men in high places prefer
charges and the very wording of their complaint proves that they are
beyond the depth of their knowledge. Wall Street will survive all
attacks, and the refutation of these attacks by well-meaning but
mistaken men will in the long ran redound to its lasting good. This is a
time of trial by fire in both business and private life, and those who
have nothing to fear will come out of it unscathed, and the New York
Stock Exchange will be in the front rank of those declared guiltless and
worthy.
Possibly there are a few abuses undiscovered on the Stock Exchange that
should be remedied. Nevertheless, I affirm without fear of contradiction
that there is no business institution in the United States where
standards are as high or where the integrity of its members is equal to
that prevailing on the Stock Exchange. Therefore, let the people and our
Legislatures come to their senses, and awake to the fact that in
striking at the financial district they are hurting themselves quite as
much as those whom they seek to destroy, and that the evil transactions
are small in comparison with the good. Let them understand that in
fomenting discontent of this sort they are intensifying the general
depression, adding to the number of unemployed, driving capital into
hiding and generally interfering with that recovery in commerce and
industry which is now so earnestly desired. The present antipathy to
Wall Street savors largely of public hysteria, bogyphobia and political
dementia. Apparently, it is a disease which must run its course; if so,
the best cure will be a period of reflection in which to cultivate
calmer and more rational views.
At the same time that Wall Street is being riddled with hot shot, the
railways are being harassed by State legislation, involving low rates,
and projects are on foot that in effect would prevent their development
to meet the wants of the people. All this is oppressive and inimical to
the national welfare, and I advocate as a remedy removing the interstate
railways from the control of the States, and placing them entirely under
the control of the United States Government. This Congress can and
should do promptly.
Another great difficulty the railways and other large employers of labor
now have to contend with is the refusal or unwillingness of the Labor
Unions to consent to a reduction of wages to meet reduced earnings. A
lowering of wages has become absolutely necessary, for they are still at
the high figures to which they were pushed during the long period of
prosperity. They are at a boom level that railway and manufacturing
corporations cannot afford to pay in these altered times. The Labor
Unions should recognize this at once, and reduce their wage scales, and
not wait until they are forced to yield. Moreover, they should see that
with reduced wages a larger number of men could be profitably employed
than is possible with wages as they are, and in this way the ranks of
the unemployed would be reduced. This of itself would be of great
benefit to both the working men and their employers, as well as to the
country at large. It is a time when common sense should be brought into
play in the adjustment of means to ends in wages as well as other
matters, for the more it is the quicker will be recovery from the
effects of the panic, and the less will be the suffering from industrial
depression by labor as well as capital. This in the concrete means that
it would result in there being fewer workmen in actual want, and fewer
corporations going to the wall. It is one of the great remedies that the
situation now calls for.
A general reduction of wages would to almost a certainty cause some
mills that have closed to reopen, and cause others that are running on
part time to run on full time. The advent of Spring will of course tend
to stimulate recovery, so we shall have the help of Nature to repair
damages. With Nature as an ally, we ought to rapidly overcome all
obstacles in the way of complete recuperation.
Readjustment of existing conditions is the order of the day, and where
there’s a will there’s a way, as we all know. The general reduction that
has taken place in the price of commodities, and to some extent in
rents, furnishes a very good reason of itself why wages should be
reduced from the high points to which they climbed to meet high prices.
As it is, the inequality between wages and prices is very conspicuous,
and equality should be restored as quickly as possible. Equality is
another name for justice. It is also the touchstone of taxation. Workmen
should not forget that even half a loaf is better than no bread, and
that by accepting reduced wages they are paving the way to better times
for themselves as well as for the country. Then, too, they owe a duty to
society at large. No one should be governed by the narrow, selfish
policy of living for himself alone. This is a world in which we must
give and take, and labor and capital have mutual interests.
The decline in commodity prices, that were before excessive, has been
salutary and of vast benefit in bringing the necessaries of life within
easier reach of the wage-earning masses, and in preventing many
industries from going from bad to worse, through cheapening their
supplies of raw material. The people generally, as consumers, benefit by
this reduction in the cost of production, and in turn it tends to
increase consumption and quicken trade and manufacturing enterprise. All
these influences, too, toad to strengthen confidence in the situation
and hope for the future. But the over-trading, extravagance and
excessive speculation that primarily led to the panic should be