, 1874-01-27
0PTl0N-LEGlSLATION,
Tho Character or Option-Trnline
In This Market,
And Ita Benefits to the Producer.
70 the Efftor 9f The CHICAGO Tribune:

DIR LIE TRIBUNE 8 Bpocial report from 1pring-
field, III this morning iasuo, informs uB that Son.
ator Vors "mado savage attack Oh option mon
al dangerous oharaotorsto to bus1noss- aesert
ing TINT tho offcct Of their trauHaotiona waa to
keep tho grain-markots derangod. to tho serious
injury OF tho producers Of tho State" It would
probably DO aoemod impolito, improper, md I'M
prudent to qucBtion tho Senator'S knowledge Of
Tho subject upon which ho speaks but, inasmuch
as there Ia another and difforont WOW from
that presented by the gentleman, may I beg
apaco In your columns to present It to tho gon-
ural public
In tho first place, lot mo say TINT no ono is
MORE sTnENuousLY opposED TO CORNERS
In tho gold grain, and provision markctB, or
overtrading In any direction, than is the writor
hereof. Tho corners in the Chicago grain mar
kct hayo been repeatedly declared to be not only
diacroditablo and disgraeoful to tho Board OF
Trade, but domoralIzlng to the general
public and dinaHtrous to all partos
Interested thoroln. Probably there aro not
dozcn of tho ontiro 1850 1nembers of tho Board
Of Trade who do not condemn corners, and who
would not ro}olce to know OF some legal and
constitutional means OF preventing them Thore
Ia no doup: lint traders On ntChange lost more
money as tho result Of reckless operations aud
oor,ors in grain during tho yenr 1872, than their
combined 1ossos by tho Grcat Firo of 1871 aud
Panic Of 1873. Such wero their loasos that Bolf-
preservation, Us vol al regard for tho good
manic OF their Association, induced thom to alopt
such rulos regarding n,argiuB Ito be deposited
BY thoHo unduly influencing tho market) aa rem
der 1t
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE
to run corner" OF my magnitude, and impos-
Blbfo to do 30 without a1ording protection To tho
seller III Of the fnituro OF tho party controlI
lug to buy. THIS has boon accomplished with
out restricting any nan'H moral and constitrl-
tionh right to buy all tho property he can pay
tor, whets.er for Immediate or future delivery.
This nlrch has becn said to show tho sentiment
Of thu Donrd Of Trade.
Now. Il fow words regarding option trader !;
aud hrst, to gay tho torn option is applied to
TWO DIFFERENT c1ABYEs or TRADE:
One, which party bnys tie priyilego to call or
deliver (tho Latter sometimes called "put'), 1t
specified time and price, certain amount OF
proporsy. Tho soiler Of tho privilege binds him.
| may be, provided tho hoidor OF tho privilege 40
olects It ID, howovor, optional with tho latter
purity to deliver or call or not. Tho other Appli-
cation Of tho torn option ia used in connection
with contracts in which both buyerand aoller aro
placed under obligations, tho one to receive, and
tho other to deliver, property but tho time at
which tic contract shal ba filled is nude optional
oither with tho buyer or aol1er, according to
agreement. Thoro arc but few engaged IN
mixing transactions Of tho tlrst-named c1aBB
and, excepting ut the tmo of tho !" Chandlor
oata-o oorner," in Juno, 1872 such trndes nevor
formed any considerable part Of tho trading on
Change That they hovo occagi0nod serious loss,
and have proved ruiuous to fow operators, ID
truo; aud that many disputes and disagree-
uonts, and ve1atfoua trials boforo tho Board Of
Directors rcnuls from them, il also true. But
to think that producers arc now in tho loaat in
juriously aHsotod by them
IS 4 MISTAKE.
and az much mistake az to think prices OF
corn are Affected BY the exchange Of Jaekkniyos
by achoolboya. Tho groat bulk Of tho daily
transactions on 'change consists in tho actual
aalo and purchase Of property for futura Do
livery and probably moro than one-half
OF the grain reaching this unrsct In sold before
it's arrival, and much Of 1t bofore it leavos tho
farsnor's hands. Ths Honorable Benator clailns
that tho effect OF this trading IL to damage tho
nlarkots aud aosiously iniure the producers Of
| tue StRte. As ouc who Inns carefully noticed for
Orleans, Cincinnati Now York, md Liverpool
markets, undertake to say that tho custom of
trading In Chicago for the future delivery OF
gram aud provisions (mado possible by tho syn-
| tom OF inspection aud that Of issuing warehouses
! receipts, first adopted in this city, LAS made
| this the
| 1AR0Ear AND BEST MARKET IN TIE WORLD
for breadatuffs and provisions. Could it lavo be-
| como such ut the expense OF the producing
c]asaes2 Admitting that pernic1ous practices
prices arc somewhat depressed temporarily by
"short selling" it must not bo forgotten that
Whnt is aold short must DO bought; aud that. in
addition to tho shipping and conaumptive do
mund for breadstu1H, there Ia in this market =
demand for speculative Investment. as we'll ~
ono for filling former contracts and the latter
is frequently tho most urgent Of all, and never
falls to benefit the producer. I reiteratettho
assertion that there ia not one man in fifty
familiar with the workings Of the Chicago grain
market who doubts the fact that
FARMERS ARE GREATLY BENEFITED
by the trading in optionB in Chicago.
0n1n I,sp. .1u;1
aud European cities for whoat We have to sell
for future delivery, and more frequently than
otherwise prices have advanced In the face of
tho largest arriyala Of grain for tho reason that
demand for consumption OF for shipment.
It must also bo remembered TINT there are
transactions OF large magnitude, Of speoula-
tive appearance and nature, that are mads to
meet
TIE LEGITIMATE wANTs
Of seller and buyer. Foreign and distant
dealers often send their orders hero
for property to be delivered in the
future, or ct such time AS they
property, bought for actual uso for feed Or food.
And, Olt the other hand, producers Of and
dealers in grain in tho country often send their
ordors hero to sell property they actually own.
Az ono Of tho results OF tho speculative trad
ing III grain may bo mentioned tho ability 1t
affords farmers to sell thcir cropa ut
ANY TINE OF TIE YEAR,
for Immediate or for future doliyery,--eyen be-
for foro they ase 5oady for for delivery or # for hous
sion-merchants Of Chicago make advances or
loans Of money on grain in country cribB and
warehouses, and to 4 much greater ex-
tent than II there was no speeeu-
conmiasou-1nerchant il more likely to make ill.,
eral advances on property the price Of which Ia
insured by actual salo than If no sale was mado,
and the prioe to be obtained was entirely problo