The Pit · Chapter
Chapter III explained
Curtis Jadwin, influenced by his broker Samuel Gretry, decides to speculate on a million bushels of wheat after flipping a coin, despite earlier skepticism about cornering the market.
What happens
Curtis Jadwin, influenced by his broker Samuel Gretry, decides to speculate on a million bushels of wheat after flipping a coin, despite earlier skepticism about cornering the market. The chapter vividly depicts the chaotic energy of the Chicago Board of Trade, the 'Pit,' and the aftermath of a trading session, highlighting the gambling instinct and the forces of speculation.
Themes in this chapter
Speculation and Greed
The chapter centers on Jadwin's speculative gamble, driven by a coin flip and the allure of quick profit, reflecting the speculative frenzy of the Board of Trade.
Fate and Free Will
Jadwin's decision to trade hinges on a coin flip, which he feels is predetermined, blending chance with a sense of inevitable luck.
Characters to notice
- Curtis Jadwin
Jadwin visits Gretry's office and, after flipping a coin, commits to selling a million bushels of wheat short, driven by a premonition of luck.
- Samuel Gretry
Gretry persuades Jadwin to speculate, emphasizing the opportunity from a crop report and the top-heavy market, and handles the trade.
- Landry Court
Landry is a Pit trader for Gretry, Converse & Co., seen in the corridor after receiving orders and later involved in executing the trade.
- Charles Cressler
Cressler is referenced as having earlier laughed at the idea of cornering wheat, influencing Jadwin's initial thoughts.
- Grossmann
Grossmann is a trader in the Pit, persistently offering to sell May wheat at a specific price, illustrating the market's activity.
- Hirsch
Hirsch, a young Jew and Pit trader, joins Landry Court and Barry Semple in the corridor.
Key passages
“Small wonder that Cressler laughed at the thought of cornering wheat, and even now as Jadwin crossed Jackson Street, on his way to his broker’s office on the lower floor of the Board of Trade Building, he noted the ebb and flow that issued from its doors, and remembered the huge river of wheat that rolled through this place from the farms of Iowa and ranches of Dakota to the mills and bakeshops of Europe.”
It's no surprise Cressler found the idea of cornering wheat absurd; as Jadwin walked to his broker's office, he observed the bustling activity and recalled the vast wheat supply flowing from American farms to European markets.
Highlights the contrast between Cressler's skepticism and the immense scale of the wheat trade.
“Jadwin hesitated. In spite of himself he felt a Chance had come. Again that strange sixth sense of his, the inexplicable instinct, that only the born speculator knows, warned him.”
Jadwin paused, sensing an opportunity; his intuitive, almost supernatural instinct as a speculator alerted him to a potential turning point.
Emphasizes Jadwin's reliance on intuition and luck in his speculative decisions.
“It was Luck, the great power, the great goddess, and all at once it had stooped from out the invisible, and just over his head passed swiftly in a rush of glittering wings.”
Luck, personified as a powerful goddess, suddenly descended upon him, sweeping past with a dazzling, fleeting presence.
Illustrates the almost mystical importance of luck in Jadwin's worldview.