Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1882-02-03
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GRAIN GAMBLING.
Representative Kahlo After |" Bucket
Shops.o
The Cleveland Leader Stlrs Up This
Species OF Gambling.

any one engaged in legitimate trade, but In
intended to do away with the bucket shop
which do not handle any grain, stocks, &C.,
andare ofno practical benefit TO the citizens
OF any city in which they m,y be located.
The full text OF the bill is as follows;
To prerent gambling in grain, ruilrodd stocks
and other commodities;
SECTION l. He Il enacted by the General As
sembly Of the State OF Ohio, that whoever con-
tracts To have or give to himself or another the
option TO sell or buy. Ht future inc, any grain
or other commodity, stock Of any railroad or
other COMPANY, or forestalis the market by
spreading false rumors to influence the price Of
commodities therein. or corners the market, or
attempts to doso in relation to any such commod
tiles, shall be fined no. less than $50, uor more
than $50, or confined In the county Jail not ex-
ceeding six months, or both /; aud all contracts
made in violation OF this section, shall be con-
sidcred gambling contracts, and shall be void.
SEQ. q This act shall be in force from and
after its passage.
FROM THE CLEVELAND LEADER.
The Leader OF the 10Th ult. contains the
following article on the subject treated by
the above bill, which fully coincides with
our views on this species of gambling:
The buying and selling of futures" and
"options" OH millions of bushels Of grain,
bales of cotton, or bushels of provisions,
is damage TO real commerce, the death
Of honest trade, and curse TO the poor.
Only few days ago Boston merchnn,
bitterly denounced such buying aud selling.
He SAID that il brought crowd of adven
turers and sliarpers into trade who have no
business there. Such men, he held, have
neither financial standing nor moral respon
sibiliiy, and their only desire IL TO make
money by buying aud selling privileges
upon products which the hard labor of the
country has raised, which they never
owned nor expected To own, aud which
tl v never had money enough to own
That this species Of gambling in n curse
to the consumer and to legitimate trade
Is demonstrated by the transactions in
grain for the past few months. Early in
The season hue and cry was raised over
the shortness of the grain crop. The news
went ont broadcast that there was fail
nre in wheat of S0.000,000 bushels, and in
corn of 250,000000 bushels, but no one
seemed TO take into account the fact there
WAS enough of the old crop left over to
make the rhortnge quite good, and that
the stock OF Hour IN the country was the
largest ever known. A wild speculation
in grain commenced, and il was confident.
ly predicted that wheat would go up to
50 n busl,el, and that the price of corr,
would advance to ut least 81 90. In DC.
,ober last, grain options were selling Mt q
rate more than one.thir,l higher in Chica
go than in the corresponding month oi
1880. Eventually the new crop came
rushing into market, and it was not long
before the evators were lied to repetion
Enormous stocks accumul ,ted at inf ,tet
prices, and in consequence of the higl
rates at which wheat was held, the ex
porters and millers, to quite large extent
cnrtailed or suspended operations. Whe,
the keener Chicngo operators awoke t,
The fact that there WIS plenty of grain il
the country, they quietly stepped out from
under the speculative market, repudatet
their contracts, and left those who coult
not get out to their fate.
One result Of this speculation has beel
to put considerable check OH the milling
business. The price of wheat il thirty t,
thirIy-five cents mere a btslcl at this tim
than IL was year ago, and yet the hes
winter wheat patent fours are selling II
about the same price ns in January of las
year. Under this state of affairs the mill
ers are unable to grind for consumption
and il is estimated that not more than one
half of the Touring mills of the West ar
in operation to anything like full capacil.
nj the present time. Another result o
this infamous slecmla' ion has been to chec
the export trade in -four and grain. En-
| tTIn l,.,cl ~.
has turned 10 other countries for her sup
ply OF breadstnffs, and thus N trade wort
millions of dollars TO commerce and agr
cul ure will be lost to the country thruug
the action Of the gamblers in grain. The
have done their work, and nothing mo-
remains for legitimate trade but to fa
back upon the har'pan OF supply and d,
mand MS hest il may.
There ought TO be some way of reaching
he gamblers who interfere with legitimaI
business, and we are pleased to find tht
Judge Barnum of the Criminal Court {
Chicago has charged the grand jury wit
, reference to this very matter. He d,
no,nced the whole business of "oplions
,, "puts" and "calls," and quoted to the iur
the following decision OF the Illinois $,
prcme Court in the case of j. b. Lyon
I
I "The tact that no wheat WAS offered
demanded shows, we think, that no part
. expected the delivery OF any wheat h,
! in case Of default OF Keeping margins 200
e or even at the time for delivery, they on
y expected TO settle the basis of contracts
a differences, without either performing
offering TO perform the lest Of the agre
: ment, and, If this was The agreement,
II WAS only gambling on the price of whe,
e And il such gambling shall be pcrmlte
it must eventually lead to what are call
' corners which engnlf hundreds in ult
! ruin, derange and unsctt,e prices, n
u operate injuriously ON the fair and leg
!, innate trnde in grain, as we'll M the pi
n dncer, and are pernicious and highly ,
moralizing to the trade. A contract, 10
u. thus settled, is no more than bet on I
" price Of grain during or nj the end oil
ID limited period. II the one party IL mt
!, deliver or the other 10 receive the gra
. 1t IL, III all but name, gambling on
price OF the commodity, and the change
X. name never changes the quality or natl
lie Of things. 1t has never been the policy
n. the law TO encourage or even sancti
gambling transactions, or such Ms are
~ furious to trade, or are immoral, in tn
ce tendency, and the old maxim that coii
Will always suppress new and subtle
ventions in derogation OF the common
Brancl's Principia. ~ will be apI
or cable to such contracts. This seems TO
m subtle invention to abrogaie well-est
ne lished, fair. and just principles OF the |
90 OF conlracts, and il results to the great
', jury of fair and legitimate trade"
MI II is about time hat every State ennc
u' laws against gambling in grain. provisio
ct, cotton, etc. Such laws should be so fra
No ed M To make them thoroughly efiecil
M and penalties ought TO lie enacted to see
oi their enforcement. Whatever damage
'o' community or a coun'ry is an evil, /
a. the strong hand Of justice should be {
IN ployed to put il down. There is no sc
10 in Furnishing men who gamble with Gu
lie dices, and allowing those who gamble
Ie. the necesaaries of life TO go unwhipped
~ justice. The man who loses money at I
'es bears his own losses, but the men who q
y" ble nt produce exchanges rob every u
ne and woman IN the country.
Ho