Remedies and Preventives of Panic 241 
offices of J. P. Morgan & Company were understood 
to have been informed as to the general results shown 
by this questionnaire. While no great concentration 
of short interest was revealed, it is understood that 
the absence of such interest was due to hurried cover- 
ing immediately before the calling for the question- 
naire. Immediately upon announcement of the in- 
quiry a sharp covering movement became manifest 
on the exchange, and it was reported that the subse- 
quent rally in stocks had been naturally helped by the 
measure as a check to bear operators. In fact, this 
measure in all probability saved the market from fur- 
ther disaster. 
Waiving of Margin Requirements 
Still another measure was, in part, involuntary. 
During the height of the panic many brokers ad- 
mitted that they had declined to sell out insolvent 
accounts, waiving margin requirements. Margin 
calls had been sent out on October 28th, for ex- 
ample, with the idea that the market had “touched 
bottom.” It was expected that accounts would need 
only small additional margins, at worst. But the 
market fell severely on that day. Adequate margins 
could not be deposited in time to cover many of the 
accounts, and the brokers faced the dilemma of 
throwing more stocks on the falling market, which 
would involve actual losses to the brokers in addition 
to wiping out their customers’ accounts or of keep- 
ing them at possible loss to themselves. The ac. 
counts were carried over until, with tardy rallyings