New-York tribune., 1883-06-17
FAILURE of PETER McGEOCH.
A MILLION LOST IN LARD SPECULATION.
PANIC IN THE CHICAGO PROVISION MAaKEr-
DISASTROUS EFFORTS TO RUN CORNER"


At tho opening OF Change, brokers red In the face
and apparently In the possession Of secret began
selling lard +" For the account of whom IL may
concern" said one Of these brokers. upon making
sale that settled the matter that McGeoch had
failed. Notices had meanwhile been sent around
| by McGeoch and Everingham to all the firms with
whom they had trades to close them out. In .
twinklIng the was all over the street and half
| on its way to the other markets of the world.
The great Milwaukee sp.culator was beaten.and his
| lard corner was a failure. His own money, the
money of his partners and the money of his friends
were gone. The product, which for months he has
been buying and for months supporting in the
speculative markets of the world by the force of hz
dollars, was dropping at frightfully rapid rate.
The crowd, which for years has stood in awe Of
McGeoch and for months has been selling him lard,
although fearful Of the consequences, was tre-
mendously stirred. Men who have been here
through all the great provision corners" and pro-
vision failures, who have witnessed the effect of
yellow-fever panics the provision market. say
that they never saw such sudden depreciation Of
property.
July lard, which closed last night on
The call at $11 17l2 opened this
morning at $40 65. and dropped down In q
twinkling to SO 05 Sales even were made at SO 80.
Over 800 600 terces of lard cash property and lard
bOughtfor future delivery sold out for the
count of McGeoch. While scores of brokers
trying to sell this 100000 worth of stuff for the
bursted manipulators. the buyers stood aghast.
The feeling grew all the while inteQser, but sales
were with the greatest difficulty made. Although
prices were dropping and dropping. quotations
were difficult to obtain. Sales made at the
same moment, within few feet of each other.
20 and even 80 cents hundred apart Finally. the
brokers for Armour and Kent e. Co..
Fairbank and the few other great specu-
lators in produce made themselves felt Armour's
partner and other men from the same office stood in
the middle of the provision crowd and bought pro-
visions worth millions of dollars. They took every
thing, and it was all offered cheap. Sidney Kents
employees did the same thing The rich men at
New-York teegraphed orders to buy while the
panic lasted
The panic was finally checked. The rich buyers
got the upper hand by o'clock. and when the big
Board closed the general fright had subsded. There
were failures, ii was conceded; half-dozen
houses h.d sent notices around to have their
trades closed out, but the wild selling was over,
The sacrifice of property had ceased.
Lard at one time to-day was over $2
per hundred pounds lower than at the close last
night. little figuring shows how those on the
wrong side of the IDEAL" have suffered within the
last twenty -four hours. The smallest speculative
lot recognized on Change is $50 tierces. The buyer
Of $50 erces of lard bought at last nights prices
loser, at the bottom figures OF to-day, of over
81 800. The depreciation on the 5000 tierces
sold for McGeoch, between o'clock yesterday af-
ternoon aud III O'Clock to-day. over 81, 100000
and this sum is, most likely the figure that tho
Scotchman owes tonight. He has left not dollar
in money, so it is said by his friends. Il think"
said intimate friend of his to-day, that Mac 10
81 900 900 In debt. He put up hislast dollar" Tho
firm declares that the liabilities will not be over
$5O0,0O0, but in making the sales in the midst OF
the panic the lard Of McGeoch was slaughtered
WHY THE JULY DEAL" DID NOT SUCCEED.
McGeoch failed because Alexander Mitchell went
back Oh him. The Scotchman has been running o
IDEAL" here in lard for the month Of
July. Daniel II. Wells, of the lumber
firm of Ludington, Wells & Van Setback, was in-
terested in the IDEAL" TO the extent of 100000.
Alexander Mitchell. as a banker, furnished money
with which the manipulation was carried on. The
corner" as everybody sees now Of
course was ill-advsed but McGeoch is not the only
man who has been fooled this year the crop Of
hogs. He began buying lard four months ago and
soldou at profit, as he CLAIMS and got it back
at a cheaper figure The deal " from the start was
opposed by the English houses here snd especially
by the great establishment of the Fowler
WuO "eFo ou iaiu
because of the big hog crops abroad. McGeoch
bought aud bought, and the Englishmen sold aud
sold to him. About six weeks ago the Scotchman
made proposition to the Fowlers to take in-
terest in his lard corner" They refused and re-
doubled their sales TO him. Then followed the
charges against the Fowers of adulterating their
prime steam lard. The Fowlers, who ara wealthy
and have great influence in England, Ireland and
Scotland. conspired, so McGeoch claims, to ruin
him. They exerted themselves to get McGeocRs
banking facilities Withdrawn from him. Whether
through their efforts not will probably
never be known, but last night the
scotchman received word from the Bank
Of Montreal that he must take up his lard. This
meant that he must pay the money he had borrowed
IN the l25OO0 tierces of cash lard he had with
hem
The Bank of Montreal is the representative here
If Alexander Mitchelps bank. McGeoch was
lumfounded. He went to Armours house, for
his notification was received after banking hours,
md Armour telegraphed to Plankinton, OF Mil
yaukee to see Mitchell. IL is SAID on good author
ty that Plankinton pleaded with Mitchell hall
he night, and that at very early hour this
morning Armour got Mitchell at his private wire and
lImself pleaded with the Milwaukee banker offering
O guarantee q million. The demands however. .were
more than the great banker could grant. It was
lot one million or two millions but tive millions
hat were asked, and which ii conceded
ecessary for Mc(ieochs salvation II is also under
TODD that Wells promised TO have $3.50, 600 IN hank
ere for McGeoch. but this did not get here before
he opening of Change, and within five minutes
fter beginning trading 81. 100000 would not have
ayed the DEAL
The lard "cornern was undertaken by McCseoch
ganst MitchelPs protest, 50 il is said. he stood
eady TO loan money ON good security and even to
efriend the speculator. But he was opposed
0 so vast speculation. His action to-day.
oweyer, it is said, was caused by the
isrepute into which lard has dropped. Tho
harges againsJ Fowler Bros. have boomerang,like,
ONE back and destroyed the man that hurled them.
he case against Fowler has been so well made out
nat McGeooh's own bankers became alarmed &C lard
security for their money.
IL.