Even among Wall Street legends, Philip L. Carret is a giant, the founder of one of the first mutual funds-the Pioneer Fund, which debuted in 1928-and a fount of knowledge and experience whose investing wisdom is acclaimed to this day. This classic guide to the nuts and bolts of speculating in the market, assembled from a series of articles for Barron's, is still one of the best primers available for beginners... and an excellent brush-up lesson for old hands. In clear-eyed, down-to-earth language, Carret discusses:. what is speculation? . why the investor must speculate. how stocks resemble real estate . trading on margin . over-the-counter trading. how to find a reliable broker . the disadvantages of options. the secret of the "sure-thing speculation" . forecasting market swings. understanding a bull market . how to read a balance sheet. and much, much more.American entrepreneur and financial writer PHILIP L. CARRET (1896-1998) is also the author of Buying a Bond.