Devil Take the Hindmost by Edward Chancellor

The south sea company was formed in 17 11 to help d leverage the british government by assuming some of the government's debt and paying it off with the proceeds of a stock offering. Demand for the company stock was strong due to the expectation of great profits from these endeavors, although none ever materialized. By september 17 20, the bubble was red and the stock price fell below 200 pounds, off 80 % from its high three months earlier. Despite having seen through the bubble earlier, sir isaac newton couldn't stand the pressure of seeing those around him make vast profits. He bought back the stock at its high and ended up losing 20 thousand pounds.