13G HISTORY OF THE GRANGE MOVEMENT. 



enable them, subsequently, to buy up the stock of the 

 road at their own figures, and by producing a greater 

 stringency, compel the dealers to pay them a usurious 

 rate of interest for the use of money and the carrying 

 of stocks. 



" Towards the end of October it had become perfectly 

 notorious in Wall street that large new issues of Erie 

 had been made, and that these new issues were inti- 

 mately connected with the sharp stringency then exist- 

 ing in the money market." On the 27th of October, 

 the Stock Exchange appointed a committee to wait upon 

 the officers of the road for the purpose of procuring 

 such information respecting these new issues as they 

 might be willing to afford. The committee waited upon 

 Mr. Gould, but received only vague assurances. " Mr. 

 Gould informed them that Erie convertible bonds for 

 ten millions of dollars had been issued, half of which 

 had already been, and the rest of which would be, con- 

 verted intc stock ; that the money had been devoted to 

 the purchase of Boston, Hartford & Erie bonds for five 

 millions, and also of course to payments for steel 

 rails." The committee endeavored to ascertain if any 

 further issue of stock was contemplated, but were told 

 by Mr. Gould that no new issue was contemplated at that 

 time, except " in certain contingencies ; " which mysteri- 

 ous phrase the acute financier declined to explain. The 

 committee went back to the Exchange with the convic- 

 tion that Erie meant mischief and was not to be depended 

 on. Meanwhile, vague rumors concerning the new is- 

 sue began to pervade the street, and to alarm the brokers. 

 " It was not until months afterwards that a sworn state- 

 ment of the secretary of the Erie Railway revealed the 

 fact that the stock of the corporation had been in- 

 creased from $34.265,300 on the 1st of July, 1868, the 



