VOObyM

Reminiscences of a Stock Operator
An old-timer heard me. He was one of those chaps that are always reminded of
something. He said that William R. Travers, who was bearish, once met a friend who
was bullish. They exchanged market views and the friend said, "Mr. Travers, how can
you be bearish with the market so stiff?" and Travers retorted, "Yes! Th-the s-s-stiffness
of d-death!" It was Travers who went to the office of a company and asked to be allowed
to see the books. The clerk asked him, "Have you an interest in this company?" and
Travers answered, "I sh-should s-say I had! I'm sh-short t-t-twenty thousand sh-shares of
the stock!"
Well, the rallies grew feebler and feebler. I was pushing my luck for all I was worth.
Every time I sold a few thousand shares of Great Northern preferred the price broke
several points. I felt out weak spots elsewhere and let 'em have a few. All yielded, with
one impressive exception; and that was Reading.
When everything else hit the toboggan slide Reading stood like the Rock of Gibraltar.
Everybody said the stock was cornered. It certainly acted like it. They used to tell me it
was plain suicide to sell Reading short. There were people in the office who were now
as bearish on everything as I was. But when anybody hinted at selling Reading they
shrieked for help. I myself had sold some short and was standing pat on it. At the same
time I naturally preferred to seek and hit the soft spots instead of attacking the more
strongly protected specialties. My tape reading found easier money for me in other
stocks.
I heard a great deal about the Reading bull pool. It was a mighty strong pool. To begin
with they had a lot of low-priced stock, so that their average was actually below the
prevailing level, according to friends who told me. Moreover, the principal members of
the pool had close connections of the friendliest character with the banks whose money
they were using to carry their huge holdings of Reading. As long as the price stayed up
the bankers' friendship was staunch and steadfast. One pool member's paper profit was
upward of three millions. That allowed for some decline without causing fatalities. No
wonder the stock stood up and defied the bears. Every now and then the room traders
looked at the price, smacked their lips and proceeded to test it with a thousand shares or
two. They could not dislodge a share, so they covered and went looking elsewhere for
easier money. Whenever I looked at it I also sold a little more just enough to convince
myself that I was true to my new trading principles and wasn't playing favourites.
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