Low Tide

Last week two New York Stock Exchange seats were sold by disgusted broker-owners for $33,000 each, lowest price since 1899. Even in 1933, Wall Streeters paid up to $250,000 for seats. But by last week, the 26th of U. S. industry's post-Flanders upward trend, it looked as though Wall Street was one place in the U. S. where the defense program was definitely depressing.

Prolonged slump has wrought many changes in Wall Street. Lunch-hour groups of pallid clerks cluster about skyscraper entrances, talk of their latest "Scotch Week" (forced leave) in subdued tones. There are fewer limousines, fewer taxis, there is even plenty of parking space. Inside the skyscrapers, scores of vacant desks are evidence of little business, ironclad leases. Instead of an excited mob in the customers' room, a few clerks doze or play ticktacktoe.

Last week the New York Financial Writers held their annual dinner and show kidding Wall Street. Best gag: An underwriter, entertaining Jimmy Roosevelt at dinner, says, "Oh, yes, we have a small office down at 120 Broadway." Chimes in his wife: "Twelve floors. And if business gets better, they're going to turn the electricity on again."

Other portents:

>The New York Stock Exchange is hunting a buyer for its oldfashioned, 20-story building at No. 20 Broad Street. It paid $5,000,000 for the building in 1928, will take any reasonable offer, expects none.

>In silence Wall Street suffered when the rival Chicago Stock Exchange added one hour to its trading period, thus got a bigger share of the nation's stock trading. New York has pondered adding an hour to trading, rejected it because many afternoon papers might drop their financial pages if closing prices came any later.

>With the amount of new securities issues around one-third of the 1926-29 average, underwriters have been further bypassed by private placements. Last week came the biggest private-placement blow yet: American Tel. & Tel. sold $140,000,000 of 2 3/4% bonds direct to 14 insurance companies. In better times underwriters would have made about $2,800,000 from a 2-point spread on this issue. (Snubbed also were A. T. & T.'s good friends the Metropolitan and Equitable. Reason: SEC's forthcoming insurance study is expected to criticize insurance companies' interlocking directorates with companies selling them securities.)

>Paradoxically, two of the more prosperous members of the financial colony were among the gloomiest. One, curt, stubby, red-mustached Major Lawrence Lee Bazley Angas (single interviews $100 an hour), who has been accused of starting several bear raids, periodically flabbergasts Wall Street by distressing ads titled "Fool's Paradise," "Pandemonium Ahead," "Nose Dive," etc. The other: William J. ("Billy") Baxter, economist-investment consultant, who in 1936 predicted a revolt in Britain, now expects the English to quit or fold up within a few weeks, carry Wall Street with them.

The most spectacular lone wolf in 33 years of Wall Street history was Jesse Livermore, who plunged in & out of four Wall Street fortunes. Last week he decided the odds against another comeback were too steep, quit the market for good.

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