Stock Certificates

A federal judge made a highly anticipated ruling Friday on the question of which set of shareholders in the defunct Philadelphia Savings Fund Society should receive the $276 million awarded in damages for the improper closing the bank in 1992. The question, raised by a former director who sold his shares at a loss in 1993, was whether the money should be paid to current shareholders - including some hedge funds that may have bought the shares for a penny a piece - or to shareholders at the time of the bank's seizure by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

Chronicled in the maps, schedules, stock certificates and other printed material that will be sold at a small-town auction Wednesday is an implicit history of the rise and fall of American railroads - in the East at least. At least one document hints at the reason for that decline. The sale is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the Ken Reed auction gallery, 401 Main St., Royersford. Still being catalogued, the sale will offer 200 to 300 lots of railroad and other transportation memorabilia.

A Single Man is like a big coffee table book on grief, loneliness, and loss - and mid-20th-century home design. Set in 1962 Los Angeles and starring Colin Firth as an English literature professor (he's English and he teaches literature), this meticulously crafted film has been adapted from the Christopher Isherwood novel by fashion designer-turned-director Tom Ford. Ford gets a strong and melancholy performance out of Firth, who wears his charm like a burden, because everything in his character's life has become meaningless since the death of his lover, Jim (Matthew Goode, in flashback)

Camden County Counsel Vincent J. Paglione allegedly mishandled two financial estates he was administering in his private law practice, according to a lawsuit filed in Superior Court in Camden yesterday. "That's not true," said Paglione, acknowledging that he had been slow in closing out the accounts of Angelina Giambrone, who died on Jan. 2, 1984, and her brother-in-law, Joseph Giambrone, who died on May 17, 1987. "It did take too long and I'm not making any excuses," said Paglione, who has offices in Camden.

Billions of dollars in life savings were lost in the Enron Corp. debacle - but some enterprising souls are recouping at least a little of their money. Nearly 2,000 souvenirs bearing the Enron logo, many coming from former company employees, are being auctioned on the popular eBay Web site. The objects have gained worldwide interest, and some have sold for more than $200 apiece. One current Enron employee, who sold a company paperweight on eBay, estimated a huge personal loss from the former energy-trading giant's spectacular collapse last fall.

For the last eight years, scripophilists from across the globe have invaded this quiet town, intent on acquiring pieces of financial history. And beginning today, history buffs and other fanciers of the tangible evidence of economic success or failure again will have a chance to bid on antique stocks and bonds, some dating from the 18th century. The term "scripophily" was coined in 1978 by a reader of the Financial Times of London. "It comes from 'scrip,' the old term for stocks, and 'phily,' the love of," said Micheline Masse, president of Stock Search International in Tucson, Ariz.

pharmaceuticals SmithKline wants to use Cuban vaccine The Clinton administration is considering a request by SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals to bring a Cuban vaccine against meningitis B to the United States. SmithKline, a British company with U.S. headquarters in Philadelphia, has developed vaccines for such diseases as hepatitis A and B, polio and tetanus. The request must overcome a 36-year U.S. economic embargo of Cuba. The proposal also comes as the administration - prodded by Pope John Paul II and others - is trying to make it easier for U.S. companies to sell medicines and medical equipment to Cuba.

All eyes have been riveted on the phenomenal rise in stock prices since the start of the year, a truly eye-popping event. But in the excitement, little attention has been paid to another equally arresting development: the astronomical rise in the number of shares traded. The rise in stock trading - while part-and-parcel of the stunning bull market of 1987 - could create very serious problems in the future for individual investors, because it leads to errors. Brokerage firms can make mistakes ranging from something as innocuous as putting the wrong date on a trade to something as crippling as losing track of your account altogether.