138 HISTORY OF THE GRANGE MOVEMENT; OR, 



date when Drew and his associates had left it, to 

 766,300 on the 24th of October of the same year, or by 

 two hundred and thirty-five thousand shares in four 

 months. This, too, had been done without consultation 

 with the Board of Directors, and with no other authority 

 than that conferred by the ambiguous resolution of 

 February 19th. Under that resolution the stock of the 

 company had now been increased one hundred and 

 thirty-eight per cent, in eight months." 



The suspicions of the committee of the Stock Ex- 

 change were soon verified, for the Erie managers at 

 once threw off all reserve, and by forcing new issues of 

 stock upon the market, gradually forced the price of 

 Erie down to 35. The banks, taking the alarm, and 

 knowing what a terrible disaster to them a general 

 panic in the stock market foreboded, held on to their 

 greenbacks, until the enormous sum of twelve millions 

 of dollars was locked up and withdrawn from circula- 

 tion. The effect upon the money market was terrible, 

 and the business of the whole country suffered in sym- 

 pathy with it. Prices of all kinds declined, and trade 

 in every branch began to drop off. The movement of 

 the crops of the year was brought to a sudden stop, it 

 was almost impossible to negotiate a loan ; and as much 

 as one and a half per cent, a day was paid for carrying 

 stocks. Wall street and its gamblers were lost sight of 

 in the general distress of the country, and it was evi- 

 dent that unless some relief was speedily found, the 

 reckless men who had brought about the trouble would 

 drive the entire mercantile community into one of the 

 most terrible convulsions it had ever experienced. 

 When matters had reached this alarming point, the 

 General Government intervened in the interests of le- 



