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Home My WebLink AboutThe Seaforth News, 1933-06-22, Page 304 7' if: 440104,1trMOOk THURSDAY, JUNE 22, 1933,, THE SEAFORTH NEWS. oossiesoliareaeatelfAr PAcE THREE, MORGAN. Once again the mysteriOns and mighty. House of Morgan is standing, as it stood 20 years ago, before a 'Congressional inquiry at Washington and the judgment of the world gt large, says a writer in the Winnipeg 'Evening 'Iribuitre. This -house is re- garded' as one of th.e greatest private banking ,institutions in the world. 'Sy- , nosy mous with 01'Dney and , the power that goes with it, there are those who say that it has dominated American finance for nearly 70. years. To the tourist strolling ;through the narrow canyon of New York's Wall street, the headquarters of the House of Horn is a squat, severely plain building ' set into the corner of Broad and Wall streets, directly across front 'the sub -treasury and within a stone's throw of the Stack Exchange.. TOwer- •ing buildings overhang it on all sides. _The plain, massive door -lintel bears no Mseription. Letters coming from that office bear no legend but V213 'Wall street," In Ithe financial section it is known simply as "The Corner." _ 'Faint traces may still be seen on. this stone front of the bomb :explosion. by •'which in 10(20 a fanatic tried, to de - Stray it. ., • To: the business visitor, the interior is equally strange. There ia a lar,ge room on the main floor. Ranged in rows, suggesting a schoolroom, are the desks of the 20 Morgan partners. ,Little is seen of the nearly 1,000 ern- , ,ployees of the firm. Most of them are in an adjoining Intilding. At the far end- of the room on the side facing Broad Street, behind a law glass par- tition, is the desk Olf. J. P. Morgii. An Open fire burns on the hearth; an eoctil portrait of the elder J. P. Morgan • looks clown. There are conference •rooms on the floor above, Nat most • of the conferring is done simply by stepping , from one desk to another. hTher.e is seldom so much as a secre- tary in evidence, and never theslight- est sign of confusion. Though these Morgan partners work at a pace that has killed many .o.f them prematurely, there is no sign of activity here be- yond that of any quiet, well-run 1, 'banking toom. Popular Stallions SEASON OF 1933 To the student of organization, the mouse of Morgan offers ari interest- ing problem. Its precise organization is unknown, for if is a' private part- nership, unineorporttned. Though is some respects it is one of the great- est banks 0 the world, it is not a hank at all Under New York State law. The relations between the part- ners and ;the reigning Morgan is a contractual one whiell may (;and cloes) differ with each pa,rtner. No reports ever' are made of • the Itina's condition; reserves, resources and deposits are unknown, Recoi2tis f theetingS (DIf the partners are not kept. A partners*, leov,,ever, is said to be worth a million • a • year, to some 'live millions, :and so on, Mbrgan is the sole arbiter :off aOl disputes. At pres- ent ehere ane soMethirrg :like 20 partners. ' J. P. M.organ, head of the house= - whose revelations are shaking. up 'things across the border has long Ibsen. known as "the most undemo- cratic man in the world." The pri- vacy with which he invests his every dot is a fundamental part of the man, bred, into him from .the cradle and ,not to be drOpped easily. Morgain was born in Irvington, N. Y., on September 7, 1067. The only son ofe, a rich man,: he' was trained irom liirth for the position he would some day -occupy. lIsa. 1913, the elder Morgan died, leavingto his son the direction of the ,firtn's vast enteoprises, nation-wide . agitation prose against "interlocking directorates," long maintained by J. P. Morgan Sa-. The younger Morgan's first import- ant step as president of the company, was to withdraw, with his partners, •from the directing beard's, of more than 30 corporations. 'The younger Morgan ould hardly have ascen.dedto power at a more trying.time. He was hardily settled in his chair at 23 Wall street when. the World War broke out. In ' January of ,1915 the Morgan House became the purchasing agents of the British and ,French Govern, merits, at a commission of one per cent. To realize the size of the job that implies, one must stop and think of the staggering size of the pur- chases made in America during the War, by Britain_ and France. Every- thing those Governments bought - munitions, food, material - was bought by the House of • Morgan Billions of dollars were spent. No bank in history had ever handled so great a transaction, • Then there were mighty. loans. In the second year of the war Margin floated the largest -leery ever issued up to that time -$500,000,000 --;to re- plenish the Angle-Prench war cheat, To float this loan he had to organize a syndicate of 2,200 banks. 'By April of 190,7 he' had arranged British 'and French loans to th.e tune of $1.500;000,000, And then the Unit- ed States entered the war. This increased the amount of fi- nancing the Morgan House had to do. ;Between 10117 and 1026, • Morgan & Co. loaned $1,71717,000,000 to .12 countries, Morgan's luxurious private yacht Corsair, valued at $2j500,000, has car- ried him up and down much Of ,Eur- ope's c,oastline, and he has spent much .time abroad, He is a familiar 'figure on. the Riviera and spends much time in England. He awns sev- eral estates (homes), including the picturesque country seat known as Aldenham Abbey, Hertfordshire, Eng- land; alOo GannochY Lodge, Scot- land. On two occasions assassins have at- tempted to take the life of Morgan, In 'phYsical appearance, Morgan is almost the cotintenpart of his father, the sante massive' physique, huge head and • calm manner, less imperious, if anything. 11HE LITTLE 1VlO,NTE,CARLOS • "It's betting time, men, time to het. Bet 'em .right or bet 'ain vvrong, geta little het d,ow,n. H'ow'll they roll? You "can't win if you don't bht." The motrotoiron's monotone of the croupier drawls on. No, this gambling scene is not laid in Monte Carlo or any other foreign country, but right in Toronto the Good and its immedi- ate suburbs, says Thom,a,s Percy in Maclean's 'Magaztine. "Fiddlesticks," the average Canad- ian scoffs. ",Thcre may be an odd poker, or crap game played among the boys, but as for' any organized gambling on a big scale in gaming O ouses in To.ronIto Toronto the .Goods -why, 'it's impossible!" Not only is it Possible -it exists! In To- ronto and its suburbs there are no less than twelve recognized gambl- ing houses -recognized by the inter nfty Who Patronize them, 0 by na others. 'There -may he more, In the co urseeo 1 a :two. weeks' investigation the writer visited an even dozen, not 5,1 the hope of making a atick, :eas.3 fortunee but to fined out whether or not the stonieis hi, had ;hard of ‘,cleig money''' being .won or lost Were true md, if possible,. thee gaming houtes keep op:en, ),...1 The Handsome, 'Choicely Bred - ,e Clydesdale Stallion • • "FILASH4ON" No. (25032) (20576) Imported Approved Form l'Enrolment No. 2096 • Monday noon. will leave $his, own • stable lot 23, con. 5, Logan, and pro- ceed to Peter H'ignell's, lot 14, con. 5, McKillop, for night. Tuesday - To Jos. Flannigan's', lot 6, con. 7, McKillop, for noon, :thence to Rock Bros., Brodhagen, for night. Wed- • nesday-To Thos. Bolton's, ' lot 19, con. 10, MOKillop, for twat, then to Geo. Bennewies, lot 8, con. 42, Mc- Killo:p, for night. Thursday -To Amos Wicke's, lot 29, con. 114, Lo- gan, for noon, thence to George Siemon's, lot 24, con. 10, Logan, .for • night. Friday -To his awn stable • " for noon, where he will remain until ehe following Monday noon. This route will be continued throughout the season, health and weather per- mitting - e Terms -4112 to insure, due Feb. 1st, 1934. ' JACOB HIGNELL, Proprietor and Manager. • Clydesdale Stallion •• ,HAIIIG • (21563)• Enrolment No. 4110 ,Approved, Form 1 • Monday leaves his awn stable, lot 22, con. 13, Hibbert, goes north lg • miles and welt. 10 Ed. McKay's for noon. Thence west arid south by • way of Wh te s ch cod to Walter • Madge's for night. Tuesday -West to ' the• 2nd concession of Hay, then south:'to Earl Campbell's for noon, • then soutloto Leo' Johns for night. Wedn es diay-Eas t to Larry Taylor's • :for noon, then ,east and north to, • Jack Simpson's for night. Thursday --North :byway of the boundary to •:his. own stable Where he will, remain :oath ISaturday Morning. Saturday - • North arid east to Doneld NICKM- for noon, %thee south to the "1-2111 concession and west to his own - stab I e, wher,e he will re main until the f new ing Mon clay Morn ing. This • route `will be continued for the sea- son, health and weather, permitting. ' 1 Ternts--$10 to insure. WM. COLE • iP:rop. The' Stories of Mt -tones won or lost on a crap table in one evening are true. Dot hew :the backers of the houses 'keep their places open, with- out more than perifdrictory police in- terference; is still a mystery to the writer. Two of the twelve :gambling houses seem to be better patronized than the others. They have larger b'inclings and bigger staffs, and they operate in a more wide-open manner than the others, Mile's, apparently are 'more or. less .upstarts in this hard -to - find, easy -money world where a dollar en,e.Tainea st.ewsrnstel 010.1111:raalpcse,n,pt 1,taoyetdhewiavvhentag,,oe him try to raise a ,small loan and see him d'owti manl-until Inc goes broke, Then let enstwthile playmates turnidentical sikesided dice; marked with spots from' One to six, is the most popular game in every "joint," al- though •"lelaciejack," sametime's call- ed "pontoon" or "twenty-o,n.e," is an- other go:paler game. In two. of th,e gaming hones ,foulette wheels have, been installed and are getting a good play. Let us visit one of these so, - called 'c'clubs" and see what manner of men 'keep 'the Wheels going round. 'Entrance is by introduction, it was found. So. having reaehed a Man who was already a "memther," we started out for gambling Jaime No. 1, situat- ed in the west errd, but strategically 'placed outside the city limits, "Drive in this landway and keep going to the relar," my guide directed.e1 drove in, and a flashlight b'lin'ked from behind the 'big building, picking out a park- ing spot in the midst of forty or fifty cars already there. The'time was just after eleven o'clock in the evening, and I was informed that we would likely be a little early for any big ,play, which usually starts shortly af- ter midnight. The c'ar' parked, we walked back to the entrance, a glass- 'enClosed ,parch with a locked door. On ringing the bell we were kept .waiting a nroment, probably being scrutinized by unseen eyes from some vantagt point; then the automatic dbar-catch :clicked and we entered the porch. An- other heavy, locked door barred our way, hut in a moment it, too, opened, and we -walked into a small square room fitted with, a desk and a few chairs, where two meh silently looked us over. "Been here before?" one 1511714y aalkedy. mguide answered. "Name of This is a friend of mine. He's all right." • "Sign the register," we were ord- ered. That formality completed, we Were perfunctorily searched for weap- ons or liquor ---neither of which is al- lowed on t'he premises of any of the houses, I later learned. Finding noth- ing, the searcher called out, "Okay, 'George," and a third door opened, let- ting us into the "club" proper, "Did you see the fellow in the cage watch- ing?" my guide asked. "What fellow and what cage?" I asked in turn, bewildered, for as far as 1 knew no one but the pair in the reception room had seen us so far. "At one end of the small room where they searched us, there is a 'false wall made of steed plates. A man Srts eiind there with a gun all night long and watches every 0110 that conies in to see they don't make any trouble, These places have been helcl up, you know. He looks. through a slit in the steel up near the ceiling, and shoots through that slit, too, if necessary."' "Nice people," I thought. "At the next place we go to I must watch for the "1111.111am." Up the stairs we went and into a small office. An elderly sittihg behind a desk and read - Mg a neWspapet, glanced up as we entered. He smiled and motioned us thtough another heavy door, unlock- ed, into the gaming T00.111. On the in- side of this last door there were sev- eral heavy catch locks, as well as a steel bar, presumably a precaution in case of a raid. By the time the raiding officers 'could get the door open or batter it clown, the gambling appara- tus could be stowed away in a safe "hide." Elaborate precautions are taken to guard against any surpr.is.e raid, my companion 'informed Inc that he with the .ffashlight in the yard would be the first one to give an alarm, he stated, Several Push buttons 'placed at stra- tegic points about the building woolci come intouse at the first sign of any- thing wrong-. These would warn the persons inside that a raid was in pro- gress, and the work of getting ricl of the 'apparatus WOO Id start et once. 03y the time the police got in every- thing would be .hidden, ancl unless the slice, chips, sticks and crap 'layout could be found, gambling could mot be proved against those freq.uenting the house. • !Inside the room in which we now stood were three large billiard tables, only two of Wh it'll were in use. Wood- en, Sides about eight or' nine inches high, covered with, green cloth, had been erected along the sides of the table to keep the dice froin going off to the floor. Black markings an the table alteach entl showed the bettors Where to pkuee their money, while a smaller alloiths covered. with figures that ine'anit nothing to 'me but oip- . parently had real meaning to the gamblers, was set in the middle of the table., Three employees of the house work et each table, 'one handl- ing the dice from the centre of 040 side, while two Others, pay off and take in money at the ends. The olay- ers-often as many as fatty crowding arottod one table--eake up what space is lett. The dice pass froth one player to the next in turn, going round and round the table inthe course of the -night's pilay, Crap, as played in these gambling honses, is a intech more 'complitated game than that usually indulged,, in Iby the average players :Who get clown on the carpet and "roll the bones" at some parties. Basically, the idea of the game is to roll a seven or an eleven on the first roll. If seven or eleven comes out on the first roll, the shooter wins the amount of mon- ey he has bet and 'gets his oWn hook If, however, he rolls a "point" -that anything but two, three, seven eleven or twelve -he must make the "point" he.shot first before he malkes a. seven or Inc loses. Also, he loses if he rolls a "crap" on the first roll. A "crap" is either two ones, a three, or two sixes. +1,n addition: to this comparatively simple way of betting, the gaming houses have worked out a system of "odds" by which the gambler can get action on every roll of the dice. If ;lucky he can 'make a fortune in five minute's; conversely, if unlucky he can lose one in the same tinie. There is a fascination to the game that draws the heavy gamblers as a candle drat/Vs inoth.S. "It's betting time, men, time to bet, Bet 'em right or bet 'ern wrong...." the croupiers' voices repeat steadily. Edgiog up to the table, we stood watching for several minutes until we caught the eye of one of the em- ployees who, on a stepladder at one :side was waltc'hing the progress of the 'cgiames. "If you're not idaYing, step back from the table and let sorne one else in who will," he advised us, and guiltily we stepped 'back. "l3et,ter play a -little .or they% not- ice es again,"1 my guide advised me, so I stepped up and bought ten chips. One dollar is the smallest bet that can be placed either for or against the dice, although some of the "Odds" 'bets can be made for a low as fifty cents. How much money changed hands after each roll of the dice is problematical, but the two pay-off men at each end of the table had in their hands neatly piled bundle's .of twenty -dollar bills at least two inches thick, 'Each must have 'had over $2,- 000. Every now and then another empMyee would' .come along to gather up the smaller bilis „which had been received from the bettors. Finally the dice came to ine, Eagetly, for the gambling urge was descending upon me after :seeing others make money easily, 'I plated a dollar chip on the line and rolled the dice, Seirenl Sure enough, there it waa. The croupier dropped a second chip on top of the ;first. I left it there. This time I rolled a five for a point. _Almost at once another five came op. I had W011 15 second time. Now my original dollr had multiplied until it was four. "You're hot. Put six with it and bet ten dollarsl" my goide and craps ad- viser whispered, "Easy money," said V to myself, and placed another six chips on the four I already had out. 'But this time I tolled a ten, one of the hardest points' to make, and short - 13r afterward up came the seven, I had lost my three dollars profit and seven of my original ten, ,This time I bet my tem'ainiog three chips .that the dice would go against the shooter. For ole to win, he would have to throw craps on his first roll, or get a point and then not melee it, Vostead of doing that, he made a seven on his first roll. I had guessed wrong again, and was out ten dollars which I had bet. 'Who patronizes these gambling houses? At this. one alone there were men who, by their looks, clothes and actions, came from widely separated &asses 01 life. Slome were :poorly, even raggedly, dressed. -Others were more presentable than the average business man. Most were young meet although ,there was a liberal percentage Of mid-. dle-aged and a few well beyond that All were white, although craps is gen- erally thought of as a negro game. Many of the players might have work- ed in offices, as clerks in stores, in any of a thousand' capacities. Most of them did work. The gambler who ,rnakes his living by gartibling alone is hard to find in Toronto, 1 wa.i' told. "How about these stories one hears about men losing their !Manes and for- tunes in places like these'?" I asked my companion, "True enough, in lots of cases," he replied, "although it's not so common as to happen every night. What does happen is that young fellows, working on a salary, often come out here and lose their :week's wages. They come back again the nett weelc and do the same thing There being already in the hole and hoping. `to get out of it, they may borrow money to ,come back again. Usually they lose what they borrow- ed, and the first thing they know they are in so deep they get desperate 'for money, especially if they are mar- ried acid have homes to keep up., Then anything is liable to happen. They may steal money from their employ- ers, hoping to win hack What they 'have lost and replace what they have stolen. Again, they may go out and stage a hold-up, That young bank robber they caught a few weeks ago used to oome here quite often, He got away with about 1115,000 in three bank hold-ups, and you can bet that these gambling houses got more than their share of it. He was so well kndwn here that he borrowed $700 from the "boss" tend $500 from the proprietor of another joint, giving them I 0 U's for 10 A few weeks 'before he was caught be came back here and paid them both up.," "H'on, late do these games run," I asked. "Four o'clock in the morning is quitting time, but usually only ane table runs that late, Most of the Play- ers go home about three, if not before, This place supplies taxis to take the players hoina if they haven't cars. Taxis leave about every half hour for ' the east and west end of the city, so even if a man goes broke and has no car he doesn't have to walk home. These places have lunch counters where you can get sandwiches, sof` Services We Can Renger In the time of need PROTECTIONe is your best friend. Life Insurance --To protect your LOVED oNna, , Auto Insurance - To protect you against LIAR/LIT-14' to PUBLIC and their PROPERTY. Vire Insurance - To protect your HOME and id CONTENTS. Sickness and Accident Insurance- ' To protect your INCOME Any of the above lines we can give you in strong and reliable companzeoa I', interested, call or write, E. C. CHAMBERLAIN INSURANCE AGENCY Phone 334 Seaford?, Ont. drinks and tea or coffee free for the asking. Plenty of fellows Came 0s2 here, lose a couple of dollars, then eat enough to get their Money's worth. But if they try that more than, orroe or twice they dot% get iss again." • "Are the games on the squarer 1 - wanted to know. Alc'cording ,to isay in- formant, they are. "They can't affor&:. to be anything else," he stated. One surprising feature of these gambling houses was the class of em- ployees. Where one expected to find. flashily dressed, diamond wearing; pasty4wced men, one found men suds as are met in everyday business Me. Most of them were tanned and heal- thy looking, and in their off moments - they talked of their golf scores. andi other amusements even as you and L. At that, theirs is a well-paid job. Eaolx roan receives $90 per week of six. nights work, or $1,5 per niealt. Titer work from ten in the evening four in the morning, ,ancl have Su.nriar nights off. As far as could be found.' out, there are no gambling houses operating then in Toronto. It is a.. strictly six-day :business, Some make money there. More lose, it. And Still the croupier drones on: 'It's betting time, men, time to bet. Bet 'em right or bet 'em wrong, but get a little bet down...." H•usband and wife were touring tfie shops in the ',West End :of London. Presently they stopped outside a play 01 of hats 'in a shop window. "There you are," he said, pointing to an attractive stYle, "buy yourself that hat. Itll suit you." She shook her head. "But that style is not worn now," she replied. ,He painted to another hat. "How about that ,one?" he asked. "No; everybody is wearing that. kind," she returned. Miller's Worm Powders are a sant medicine for worm -infested chil- dren, and they will take it without objection. 'When directions are fol- lowed it will not injure the most deri- Fate child, as there is nothing of an. injurious nature in its coMposition. They Wil/ speedily rid a child of worms and restore the health of the • little sufferer whose vitality bas come impaired by the attacks of thesa,. internal peste. ..e, 'Want :and For Sale Ads, 3 times 5E0ta. TA1 11 51 • e,a.; o•.„ Oes,tlt,.n5legletalleato o....fOOOO41.0.4."0/' i'?/"`"7://i0 •••••••o•••••......tmodsui•dmowesk. • We Are Selling Quality B Books are Well Made, Carbon is Clean and Copies Readily. styles, Carbon Leaf and Black Back. Prices as Low as You Can Anywhere. Get our Quotation on Your Next On -ler. he Se • forth SEAFORTH, ONTAkI0, hill All. Get It 111111•111111111111101111111=1.2