Starting on September 1, Gould and Fisk put their plot into motion by purchasing $1.5 million in gold in the names of Corbin and Butterfield. The conspirators would make $15,000 ("$263,000 in 2016") for every dollar rise in gold. By September 6, the price of gold had risen by $4.50 to $137 an ounce. By September 7, Gould was faced with a startling reversal when members of his pool were directed to sell off their $6 million they had achieved during the previous buying frenzy. Prices of gold fell sharply from $137 to $134 in one day. Gould lost more than $100,000 in two days. Abandoned by his associates, Gould looked to Fisk for assistance, but he was away on railroad business. Fisk returned to New York on September 8 and found Gould worried and depressed. Fisk reminded Gould that he still had "enough gold to sink a ship" while the two looked to others and devised other schemes to come out on top, but they knew by this time that if they began buying again, the Treasury would counter their efforts and begin selling at an accelerated rate once again.