ign on my own shoulders, using to the limit my personal capital and
credit. "Coppers" was to be a Lawson operation on the face of it, and I
was determined, for many reasons, to avail myself of "Standard Oil's"
aid only in taking care of completed transactions and not at all in the
preliminary negotiations. This was not always possible, but my attitude
in the matter and my desire to make a brilliant showing explain the
straits I was sometimes put to in conducting some of my deals. From the
start I had a big personal stake in the success of my campaign, for at
the time I first showed Mr. Rogers my hand I had 46,000 shares of Butte
& Boston, and my following among the public owned as many more. They had
agreed that the profits on this stock, when it was taken into the
consolidation, should be mine entirely in payment of my own work and
risk.

There was another transaction I had in mind which also fairly belonged
to me. As I have stated, I had undertaken to dispose of Bay State Gas
stock, and by this time I had succeeded in placing a large number of the
shares. The proceeds, $2,300,000, were in the treasury of the company.
Now the charter of Addicks' company permitted it to buy, sell, and deal
in anything and everything, and I saw here a good opportunity to enable
Bay State to earn the balance of the money necessary to relieve its
indebtedness to Mr. Rogers--between four and six millions of dollars.
So I explained to Mr. Rogers that as soon as our copper deal had
progressed to a point where there was absolutely no risk, and a large
gain was assured, I would make a bargain with Bay State whereby for a
part of the profits I would pilot the investment of the company's cash
in Butte & Boston. This proposition he considered fair, and he agreed
that neither he nor Mr. Rockefeller would consider themselves "in" on
that bargain, save as indirectly profiting by it through the successful
winding up of their Boston gas investments.

It is impossible for any great move to be begun in the stock-market
without some suggestion getting into the air which notifies "the
Street"[19] that "something is up." Not long after my alliance with
Rogers had been formally arranged, the atmosphere of State Street grew
thick with rumors about "Coppers." Some of these announced that I had
hitched up with "Standard Oil"; others denied it; between them all a
movement was created, and the leading stocks became very active and
increased rapidly in price.