《股票作手回忆录·第六章·旧金山地震·做空联合太平洋》第5节
“Nothing!” I said. “You didn’t?” He was skeptical and showed it plainly. “I didn’t hear a thing.” “Then why in blazes are you selling?” “I don’t know,” I told him. I spoke gospel truth. “Oh, come across, Larry,” he said. He knew it was my habit to know why I traded. I had sold a thousand shares of Union Pacific. I must have a very good reason to sell that much stock in the face of the strong market. “I don’t know,” I repeated. “I just feel that something is going to happen.” “What’s going to happen?” “I don’t know. I can’t give you any reason. All I know is that I want to sell that stock. And I’m going to let ’em have another thousand.” I walked back into the office and gave an order to sell a second thousand. If I was right in selling the first thousand I ought to have out a little more. “What could possibly happen?” persisted my friend, who couldn’t make up his mind to follow my lead. If I’d told him that I had heard UP. was going down he’d have sold it without asking me from whom I’d heard it or why. “What could possibly happen?” he asked again.
注释摘要
这一段对话藏在全书极关键的一个转折点上，它的表面是一对朋友在营业厅里吵架，骨子里却是两种投机哲学的正面碰撞。场景是1906年春天的大西洋城，木板路边上有一家哈丁兄弟公司的分支营业厅。那年月有钱人常到海滨度假地消夏，经纪行把分号开到度假区，既是服务，也是一种体面的广告。行情还是靠纸带机传过来的，电报员在后台滴滴答答接纽约传来的报价，伙计再把价格写在黑板上，不…