"You forget, Mr. Beck, that you are a wealthy man. We do not manage matters in a hole and corner. The bears have sold on expectation of an allotment. Now as they have not got an allotment, and we have, they must buy. When such men as you buy largely, the effect is to run shares up; when you sell largely, you run them down."
Mr. Cassilis did not explain that he had himself greatly profited by this tidal influence, and proposed to profit still more.
"Many companies, perfectly sound in principle, may be ruined by a sudden decrease in the price of shares; a panic sets in, and in a few hours the shareholders may lose all. And if you bring this about by selling without concert with the other favoured allottees, you'll be called a black sheep."
Mr. Beck hesitated. "It's a hard thing——" he began.
His adviser went on:
"You have thus two things to think of—not to lose your own profit, and not to spread disaster over a number of other people by the very magnitude of your transactions."
This was a new light to Gilead.
"Then why sell at all? Why not keep the shares and secure the dividend? It's a hard hank, all this money."
And this was a new light for the financier.
Hold the shares? When they were, scores of them, at 16 premium? "You can certainly do that, if you please," he said slowly. "That, however, puts you in the simple position of investor."