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Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation
 
 
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Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation [Paperback]

Edward Chancellor (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"The longest bull market in history" is a term that gets used a lot these days. Since 1990, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen some 8,000 points, from around 2,700 in January 1990 to nearly 11,000 today--a boom by anyone's standards, including Edward Chancellor's. In Devil Take the Hindmost, Chancellor takes an entertaining, albeit sobering, look at the history of speculative manias and the mass delusion that surrounds them.

Beginning with the "tulipomania" that gripped Holland in the 1630s, Chancellor chronicles the formations and irrational euphoria that can inflate markets, from shares of South Sea stock in England in the 1720s to real estate in Japan in the late 1980s. He characterizes the speculative spirit as one that

loves freedom, detests cant, and abhors restrictions. From the tulip Colleges of the seventeenth century to the Internet investment clubs of the late twentieth century, speculation has established itself as the most demotic of economic activities. Although profoundly secular, speculation is not simply about greed. The essence of speculation remains a Utopian yearning for freedom and equality which counterbalances the drab rationalistic materialism of the modern economic system with its inevitable inequalities of wealth.
But it's precisely such inevitability that always seems to win out, when "sharply rising prices followed by sudden panic without cause" bring speculative excess to an abrupt end.

Chancellor makes Devil Take the Hindmost especially relevant to today's U.S. investors by using his analysis of past speculative manias as a lens through which to view the current bull-market binge. No matter what his or her current investment outlook is--bull or bear--anyone with capital to invest would do well to spend a thoughtful weekend with this book. Highly recommended. --Harry C. Edwards --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

In an era of rampant speculation and questionable investor habits, it is a pleasure to read an insightful, well-focused analysis of the events that have dominated social and economic history since at least the second century B.C.E. Starting with the speculative frenzy that gripped ancient Rome, British business journalist Chancellor goes on to provide keen insight into a wide variety of events, including the emergence of stock exchanges from the great fairs of northern Europe, the tulip mania that gripped the Dutch Republic in the 1630s, the insanity of the Mississippi and South Sea bubbles, the robber barons and their impact during the Gilded Age, the events leading to the Crash of 1929, the Japanese bubble economy of the 1980s, the Mexican crisis of 1994, the Asian market crisis of 1997, and the speculative manias that have accompanied the emergence of new technologies, including railroads, the telegraph, automobiles, radio, and the Internet. A well-rounded presentation that should be included in all public and academic libraries.ANorman B. Hutcherson, Beale Memorial Lib., Bakersfield, CA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Plume (June 5, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0452281806
  • ISBN-13: 978-0452281806
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #33,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
    #71 in  Books > Business & Investing > Economics > Economic History
    #14 in  Books > Business & Investing > Investing > Futures
    #54 in  Books > Business & Investing > Economics > Theory

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Edward Chancellor
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
tulip mania, efficient market hypothesis, red chips, grand parti, kamikaze capitalism, tokkin accounts, new era ideology, new railway schemes, speculative euphoria, tulip market, total capitalisation, railway mania, portfolio insurers, bubble companies, devil take the hindmost, warrant bonds, rational bubble, margin loans, speculative mania, railway speculation, money subscription, bubble years
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
South Sea, New York, Wall Street, United States, South American, Bank of England, Exchange Alley, John Law, Federal Reserve, East India Company, Ministry of Finance, Bretton Woods, Dow Jones, Great Depression, Adam Smith, James Grant, Michael Milken, General Motors, Civil War, Jay Gould, Daniel Drew, Tokyo Stock Exchange, Mississippi Bubble, William Fowler, Alexander Baring
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Customer Reviews

69 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.6 out of 5 stars (69 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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55 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars This Time is Never Different, June 29, 2001
This review is from: Devil Take The Hindmost: A History Of Financial Speculation (Hardcover)
A wizened wag at an investment firm once warned me to start looking for the sell tickets as soon as I heard the words "This Time is Different."

In my short experience as an investor, it was some of the most sage advice I have received. Edward Chancellor book arrives at the same conclusion but provides more foundation to recognize the bubbles of speculation.

Investment bubbles never change. Yet, for the investor or trader caught up in one, they remain difficult to identify. According to modern economic theory, markets are efficient and speculators are rational opportunists intent on maximizing their wealth.

Chancellor, a former investment banker and historian, disagrees. More than fear and greed drives speculators, they motivated by deeper compulsions and aspirations. Speculation, he says, can only be understood within a social context and that its history cannot be a simple description of economic affairs. It is important to understand the behavior and attitudes of politicians, since the laws governing markets are written and enforced by governments.

He traces the origins of speculative fever back to ancient Rome and follows the thread through Holland's tulip mania in the 1630s and London's stockjobbers 70 years later.

The book ends with an insightful analysis of the Junk Bond era here in the United States, the Japanese bubble and the near collapse of Long Term Capital Management. It is a must read for every serious investor.

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36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb Introduction to Speculative Bubbles, February 23, 2001
By Mark Wylie (Spokane, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation (Paperback)
The heading for one chapter of Edward Chancellor's fine book quotes the investor Sir John Templeton: "The four most expensive words in the English language are 'this time it's different.'" Templeton's words sum up the most important lesson to be learned from this outstanding history of speculation, which focuses in particular on those manic episodes called bubbles, in which the prices of assets are driven to levels far above those justified by the assets' underlying fundamentals.

Chancellor's account, while not a comprehensive study of speculation, thoroughly examines major speculative periods from the tulip mania of the early 17th century, to the Japanese "bubble economy" of the 1980's. Three repeating motifs characterize these speculative episodes. First is the irrationality of financial markets, especially the way in which people of all eras are susceptible to the euphoria which inflates a bubble. Second is the constant recurrence of manipulation of markets by the greedy and unethical, the likes of Jay Gould and his accociates.

The third and most important theme is the existence of parallels between past speculative bubbles and conditions in our own time. Chancellor convincingly argues, for example, that the internet mania of today is similar in many ways to the British railway bubble of the 1840's.

I strongly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in financial markets or their influence on history. The only, slight caveat I would offer is that it helps a reader to have at least some knowledge of the language of financial markets, as Chancellor at times tosses terminology at readers without offering a clear definition.

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32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Read it, November 21, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Devil Take The Hindmost: A History Of Financial Speculation (Hardcover)
How can one justify the current market valuations of money-losing Internet ventures, and even of some 'blue-chips' trading at 50+ times earnings? One would be surprised to find some of the most eye-opening answers to this question in the investing behavior of ancient Romans, 17th century Dutch, Victorian Englishmen and Gilded Age Americans. That's why this book is excellent reading for those who believe human nature is remarkably uniform when it comes to greed and financial speculation. On the negative side, the author sounds too 'opinionated' sometimes, as when he implies that the recent rebirth of classic economic thought and monetarism serve merely as intellectual "window-dressing" for a wave of perverse speculation. Were it not for this minor fault, I would certainly rate it a 5-star book. Read it and enjoy.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars The hobo philosopher
This book makes it extremely clear that the stock market is a dangerous place. The author begins with the speculator and the ethics of speculation. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Richard E. Noble

5.0 out of 5 stars Book Review from the Aleph Blog
Sometimes we forget how bad it can be, and then we howl over minor bad times in the markets. We may be past a mania in residential housing, but we have not really experienced a... Read more
Published 6 months ago by David Merkel

5.0 out of 5 stars Those who do not learn from history....
I highly recommend this book to anyone trying to make sense of the economic crashes of the past couple of years. Read more
Published 8 months ago by DAS

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for all speculators...if you intend to succeed

I have been a client adviser in speculative/growth investments for 11 years and have recommended that all my clients purchase this book. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Tlo

5.0 out of 5 stars Great history book
I really liked it. It went into pretty good detail on some major market bubbles. Mainly focuses on London and New York events. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Stephen Samperi

4.0 out of 5 stars Good history but misses the obvious
This is a good look at the major bubbles of the past few hundred years, but I think in terms of a unifying theory it misses the obvious although it hints at it a few times. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Liberty4all

5.0 out of 5 stars Greed never changes
I don't think anyone can be a successful investor without understanding some financial history. It is so easy to get caught up in the current financial crisis and not think from... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Mariusz Skonieczny

5.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly researched, well written history
Written in late 1998, this book gives detailed, well researched historical examples of financial speculation eerily similar to what followed in the dot com boom/bust and the real... Read more
Published 16 months ago by David Gould

5.0 out of 5 stars The boom and bust cycle is inevitable except in the middle of a very long boom
Great history but don't expect to find any clues about how deep and long our current recession will be. Read more
Published 17 months ago by andris virsnieks

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, Fresh, Literate
Edward Chancellor is full of stories, stories of speculation, speculators and social conditions. It is astonishing how very different times are so similar to our time. Read more
Published 18 months ago by ws__

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