CHAPTER  VI.

THE  TREATMENT  OF  EXISTING
INVESTMENT  LISTS.
But  few  of  those  who  read  the  pages  of  this
book  will  find  that  their  own  investments  are
distributed  in  the  manner  suggested  by  us  as
the  safest  ;  because  stocks  and  shares  are
usually  acquired  gradually,  and  added  to  from
time  to  time  without  any  definite  Investment
Scheme  being  followed.
Whenever  the  investor’s  banking  account
discloses  an  unnecessarily  large  cash  surplus,
a  stockbroker  is  consulted,  and  this  or  that
stock  is  bought  without  any  regard  to  previous
‘purchases,  and  without  considering  the  fitness
of  the  new  stock  to  assist  in  the  development
of  a  wide  distribution  of  risks.  As  the  sums
of  money  so  freed  for  the  purpose  of  investment ­
  naturally  vary,  at  one  time  a  large
purchase  is  made,  whilst  on  another  occasion
only  a  small  amount  of  stock  is  required.
As  a  natural  result  the  most  curious  combinations ­
  of  investments  are  strung  together,
in  which  the  quantities  of  the  various  stocks
held  bear  no  symmetrical  proportion  to  each