Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-24
CHICAGO.
Especial Telegram to the Globe. I


an unexpected move made by J. B. Lyon
& Co., who startled the board by serving
an injunction on those brokers with whom
he had open deals in January corn, to de-
clare void their contracts for the delivery
of corn sold for delivery this month, and
to restrain the purchasers from buying in
the grain on their account, from making
complaints to the officers of the
board that might result in their expulsion,
or from beginning suits for differences,
the ground for the action being that the
market is cornered. 1t is brought under
the statute, and recites that John B.
Lyon and Thos. B. Rice, copartners, COM
posing the firm of Lyon & Co., are mem
bers of the board of trade; that member
ships in the board ; re nominally worth
$4,000, but are actu, lily selling at about
$4,000; that the natu al and fair price of
corn from Dec. %, 1882, to the
present time would b. and Is from
4Oc to SOC per bus he, and no more
Compliments have done business for them
selves and for others. On the 9Th of Janu-
airy they sold to S. Fl. Richardson 10000
bushels of corn.J anuary lat 50 Il per bushel,
on January 8, $4,000 at $500, on January
II, $4,000 bushels at 81 4c, Is, 900 at $3.50"
Mentions other parties, including, Lind
blom & Co., Eggleston, Wright & Co., Fet-
ran & Day, Blair & Blair, Stuart & Brown,
Everingham, Quar- & Co., Wheeler, Greg
DRY & Co. and McRae & Co., and they are
short an aggregate amount of over 100000
bushels contracted at prices ranging from
40 d to 63o; that all these rates were made
by verbal contract for the delivery, of corn
in January. The parties who purchased
this corn have conspired TO corner the mar
ket in corn delivery during the month of
January. They have pooled, together with
other parties, large amount of money to
be devoted exclusively to the purchase on
the board of trade of all the corn in the
city, or that arrives during Jan
uary, and also all or nearly
all corn offered by the board of
trade parties elsewhere offered at sellers
option. The object of such pooling of
money and purchase of corn is to COM
pletely monopolize and engross the mar
ket so far as 1t relates to corn with the end
of forcing the price of corn from its nat
ural and honest market value, about SOC
per bushel to the fictitious and unnat-
ural cornered market price, which is now
Toe perbushel. If 1t had not been for
this effort TO corner the market
the price of corn would now be about
SOC 1t is further shown that corn is not
worth for shipment to the eastern market
more than SOC per bushel, and that the
market for said corn IN st. Louis ia not
worth to exceed SOC; that cora deliverable
in Chicago Feb 1, does not exceed Gin
value SOC bushel, and it is wholly by rea-
son of the manipulation that the price is
higher. Such acts are in violation of sec
ton 1870, page SO, Of the revised statutes of
the state, and such fictitious
prices cannot be maintained, and
the contracts above set forth
are void. By rule of the board the de2
PENDANTS claim the right to call on the
complainant for margins equal to the diff
ference between the selling and the market
price, and they have threatened to buy in
the corn to protect themselves if COM
plainant does not put up the money. At
the time of making the contracts com
plainants had no knowledge of the con-
spiracy TO corner the market, out by a rule
of the board they are liable to suspension
if they fail to margin up.
When the injuncti were served on these
parties there was the widest excitement on
the floor. Most of the spectators rushed
frantically to the pit to hedge their deals
against all possible efforts of the move.
There are two sides to the question, and
although Lyon has far from spotless
reputation among his fellow brokers, the
shorts generally thought he had at last
done one good thing; that while they
would not have squealed, the clique was
altogether too hoggish and was squeezing
them too hard. The bulls on the other
hand were loud in their denunciation.
"This action On the part of Mr.. Lyon"
said Robt Lindblom to representative of
the GLOBE, sis for the purpose of trying
to prevent us from bidding under the rule
10000 bushels of January corn which we
bought from him, and getting redress from
the board. We bought corn at 1910 and
Mr.. Lyon has put up margins to the
amount of $1,000 on the deal. Last
Saturday 1 called on him for $1,000
more, which he said he would pay
Monday. He failed to do so, and when
asked him about it he said he would fix it
this forenoon. He has fixed it by getting
out this injunction. We have bought of
him 10000 bushels of May wheat and sold
him $1,000 bushels of May corn. The sti-
uation of the entire deal to-day is about
$500 in our favor. Under the rule if call
for margins is not answered within an
hour the party making the call has right
to bid it again, then obtain redress from
the board"
''Do you think Lyon is badly caught on
January corn"
'.No, do not. This action would not
be so bad in any one who had been badly
squeezed by corners, but it is contemplate
n man like Lyon, who has been en-
corners and cliques, to resort to
;lch methods.
aLyon IS noted for his corners and
calps, having engineered several very